The Cimarron National Grassland lies in the very southwestern tip of Kansas. This is pretty far off the beaten path, and there aren't too many choices of roads to get you here, which is one of its charms.

Where Three States Meet...

To put its location into perspective, check out the picture to the right. This is of the Eightmile Historical Monument which marks the point where Kansas, Colorado and Oklahoma touch. The monument itself is an old windmill from 1903; if you look carefully at the vanes on top, you'll see the names of the three states cast in metal. More recent satellite surveys have placed the actual intersection several feet away. When visiting here, look for the brass plate marking this point in the middle of the dirt road.

We went to Cimarron National Grassland in June of 2000, as part of our great Santa Fe Trail vacation that year. In fact, the Cimarron Cutoff of that notable trade route runs right through here. I'll save that connection for later, and concentrate on other aspects in this part.

Dealing with the Heat

I confess I had some qualms about going this far south that time of year. Usually, Marie and I call a moratorium on camping in the summer, but the lure of this trip was too much. When we pulled into the neighborhood of Cimarron, things didn't look so good; the temp had risen above 80°. We decided to spend a night at any motel we could find in the closest town of Elkhart, Kansas and hope for more refreshing weather the following day. Summer camping can be the pits...

I suppose we had low expectations; after all, this locale was almost off the map. To our great surprise, we chanced upon one of the nicest places I've ever stayed at, the El Rancho Motel. The cost was definitely rural Kansas at its best, but the trappings were like the Palace of Versailles — literally! I'm no expert on interior design but the furniture, fittings and ornaments sure looked like 19th century France to me! And the extremely large quarters, with a separate dressing lounge, thoughtfully included every nicety one could think of. Best of all, there was a jumbo hurricane fan in addition to the air conditioner. Believe me, this inn was every bit as good as the ritzy ones I've stayed at in San Francisco, San Antonio or Baltimore. And the owners were among the nicest people I've ever met. Finally, right next door was an excellent "home cooking" restaurant, where I had my fill of chicken fried steak that night. Now that's a vacation!

Camping Logistics

For the best camping, consider setting forth a couple weeks before Memorial Day or the day after Labor Day. Here are just a few of the advantages:

Our delaying tactic paid off, for in fact the temperature did moderate the following morning. As you'll note from most of the photos in this section, a different sort of weather rolled in. Skies became overcast in general, and pleasant breezes swept over the rolling hills. We set up camp for several days, and had decent temperatures (by southern Great Plains standards, at any rate.)

About the Cimarron National Grassland

So what is the Cimarron National Grassland like? Well, as I intimated above, it seems to be characterized mostly by gently rolling hills and sand dunes. But in places there are very sudden rises in elevation, with strangely colored craggy cliffs. One of the most spectacular is Point of Rocks, from which Coronado reconnoitered back in the 1500's and was later used as a look-out in the Santa Fe Trail days. You'll find a picture of it in that section.

As for vegetation, there is much more here than grass. A silvery-green sagebrush can be found everywhere as well as yucca, and there are enough pockets of water to support a few trees along the banks of the Cimarron River. (More about that in a moment). But it's the quantity of wildflowers that sticks in my mind.

Now I love all grasslands for one reason or another, but I have to say that the field of purple poppymallow just across the road from where we camped is one of the most gorgeous sights I've seen in any of the grasslands I've been to. The photo to the left doesn't do it justice; the brilliant neon blooms peppered the field like a Peter Max dreamscape.

Water, Water, Everywhere?

Now what about that river? Well, click on the photo below to see it in all of its majesty. Surprised? So were we. As it turns out, the Cimarron River (although appearing on most maps) usually flows underground only, several feet below the surface. This is so weird! You get the lush growth of cottonwoods along its banks, and yet there's no water to be seen!

However, according to info in the Auto Tour brochure and official map put out by the Grassland (see below), the Cimarron does go crazy every now and then and flow aboveground big time. There was a major flood in 1914 that completely washed away a 30,000 head cattle ranch. Two of the owner's daughters were swept downstream some nine miles and drowned.

We took a long drive along the dirt roads one day and came across the little girls' grave sites, in a starkly beautiful shortgrass field. Flowers and prickly pear abounded everywhere in this remote part of the Cimarron National Grassland, and the soil provided a sandy white backdrop. It was a lovely site, and reflecting on its history made the area seem very quiet — even quieter than grasslands usually are.

A Fishing Frenzy

But if it's noise you want here, you can have that too. In particular, one Friday night we noticed a number of tank trucks stocking fish in some of the ponds that dot the Cimarron National Grassland. The fishery staff had put up signs declaring the ponds off-limits while they worked. And then they left.

Next morning, while preparing breakfast, we noticed a definite increase in traffic by the campground, but didn't give it much thought. Then we left camp to go explore further away in this 108,000 acre grassland. Taking the main road out, we passed one of the ponds and were staggered to see at least 100 fisherman lined up, and the cars kept a-coming and a-coming with ever more anglers. I have no idea what the population of Morton County is, but I'd guess that just about every inhabitant arrived with rod and reel that Saturday. It was actually a pretty picturesque scene, a good illustration of the value of multi-use public land — land that belongs to all of us.

Camping in the Cimarron

I better say something about the campground here. In a nutshell, it was wonderful. (See the adjoining picture). As I've mentioned elsewhere, the National Grasslands provide excellent facilities. At Cimarron we not only got tidy kybos, a picnic table and grill, but a splendid camping pad as well.

Another thing I've noticed about National Grassland campgrounds is how widely separated the sites are from one another; it's possible to enjoy a fair amount of privacy. This contrasts vividly with most of those built by the Army Corps of Engineers. I always get the feeling that the Corps is trying to squeeze every last bit of surface area into use. No thanks — college dormitories or Tokyo aren't my cup of tea.

We really enjoyed ourselves unwinding at this campground, and spent a fair amount of time lounging about, reading and just staring into space. Our tent was only fifty feet away from a small pond surrounded by tall grasses or sedges, and so we were regaled with a non-stop chorus of bull frogs and bobwhites (both of which are very common here).

Birds and Literature

Two limbs of a large cottonwood hung over us, one some fifteen feet above the other. Each had a home in it, the top supporting a nest of Bullock's Orioles, while the next limb down housed a family of Western Kingbirds — a double-deck avian apartment! Both provided hours of amusement. I especially love the boisterous, almost giddy, chatter of the Western Kingbird and always feel like I'm in cowboy land when I hear it.

And speaking of birds, let me remind you once again that there are all sorts of excellent maps, brochures and guides available from our federal government. You've just got to know how to ask for them. The picture here shows a couple I requested by mail beforehand and found to be very useful on our trip. One is a bird checklist for the Cimarron, in which I kept my field notes, and the other is an Auto Tour guide which led us on a great half-day trek through the backroads of the grassland. By the way, the official mile-square Cimarron National Grassland map is also available in a waterproof, tearproof plastic form for less than ten bucks, which is really handy for hiking. You can cram it into a back pocket without having to worry about damaging it too much. (As usual, you can click the footnote link to find out who's behind these publications. Remember, these are just pictures of items from my souvenir collection — I'm not selling anything or trying to take credit for someone else's handiwork here.)

Some Real Out-of-Towners

Before moving on, I have to tell you about another group of campers who showed up one night. At around dusk, a car took a couple swings through the campground, obviously trying to scope out a spot. Now, the Cimarron has room for 14 campers, and it looked like it was full house. However, I had noted that some greedy people down the line had pulled their gargantuan RV into one site, while parking their car at the next site.

Anyway, the latecomers were flummoxed, trying to figure out where they could camp. I saw their plight, and offered to help. At first I didn't get a response from them, which made me wonder just a bit. But as it turned out, they were foreign college students, one girl and two boys. Eventually the French guy stepped forward and he spoke English. (The two from Eastern Europe didn't). After figuring out that they needed a spot, I walked down to the clods hogging two campsites and indicated that we had some visitors here who needed a place to spend the night. So, things worked out okay. I had to admire the courage of those three young people, traveling into what is still just a bit of the wild west and yet just barely knowing the language. I hope they liked the Cimarron and told their countrymen about its beauty.

Was That a Bobcat?

On one of the nights, a family group rolled in with a pop-up camper. I think there were about 85 people in it, along with a baby. I need hardly mention that the latter started squalling at about 4:00 am. They left first thing in the morning; I'm not sure a fun time was had by all.

• Federal
  • Forest Service Map Orders
  
  
• Municipal
  • City of Elkhart
  
  
• Other Interesting Sites
  • El Rancho Motel
  • Fred's Flower Finder for Cimarron N.G.
  • The Grassland Biome