Big Kansas Road Trip to Visit Ellsworth & Lincoln Counties and Community of Lucas

The Big Kansas Road Trip will be held in Ellsworth and Lincoln Counties and the community of Lucas in Russell County.

This year's event begins Thursday, May 2nd and runs through Sunday, May 5th.

A project of the non-profit, Inman-based Kansas Sampler Foundation, the Big Kansas Road Trip was created to be active, to be fun, to bring people together and to make an economic and social difference in the showcase counties.  It was designed to help people understand rural culture and to bring urban and rural folks together.  The big goal is to get people addicted to exploring Kansas so they'll want to do it year-round in a way that will help sustain communities.

In 2017, the 28th and final Kansas Sampler Festival was held in Winfield, Kansas.  This had been a beloved event in which representatives from about 130 communities came annually to help the public know what there was to see, do, hear, taste and buy in Kansas.

Marci Penner, Executive Director of the Kansas Sampler Foundation, said they decided it was time to hit the refresh button while the event was still going strong.   So, a year prior to that last event, dozens of rural community doers from across the state gathered at the Kansas Sampler Center barn to help brainstorm a new event, name it, and decide where to hold that first new event.  The Big Kansas Road Trip was formed, designed to turn people on to exploring by doing it.

Penner says the event format is akin to a tri-county open house with an opportunity for the public to choose their adventures ala carte.  The idea is to get people onto the back roads and into Kansas towns to actually see places, to actually eat in local cafes, and to talk to and get to know the locals.

Information on attractions, places to shop, restaurants and events being offered can be found at bigkansasroadtrip.com.

Print guides are also available at Cloud County Tourism in Concordia.

Penner says they hope to infuse pride, understanding and economic development through tourism during the Big Kansas Road Trip.

The Kansas Sampler Foundation was established in 1993 as a 501c3 public non-profit.  Their philosophy recognizes rural culture and the contributions communities have made to the history and ongoing drama of rural Kansas.  The Kansas Sampler Foundation defines rural culture as the combination of eight elements: Architecture, Art, Commerce, Cuisine, Customs, Geography, History and People.  They encourage and support communities to preserve and sustain their rural culture in a way that will help them be the best they can be at being themselves.