Around Wichita

Keeper of the Plains facing downtown Wichita

The Sedgwick County Zoo's growing herd

 

 The fog fooled me. I expected the morning similar to the previous one, where rain and clouds dominated. But as I drove east toward the undeveloped land around the Sedgwick County Zoo, I realized that I only saw morning river fog. By the time I hit the zoo campus, the clouds moved off. 

I have written of this expansive zoo before. This time I’ll focus mainly on its star attraction in 2025. SCZ had an unprecedented elephant baby boom in 2025, with four calves joining its seven adults (Sadly a fifth elephant was stillborn). The herd only comes out on warm winter days. Despite the blustery wind, we had clear skies and mid-50s. The full herd grazed and roamed their massive outdoor yard. 

In the shadow of their mothers, the calves could prove hard to spot despite all weighing in excess of 500 pounds already. The herd formed when the zoo took in six elephants from Swaziland in 2016 (one male from the group has moved to a different zoo). The herd stands at six females, one male, and the four calves (two boys and two girls). African elephant gestation averages 22 months, so there was plenty of prep time for the arrivals. Kijani and Bomani, the two male calves, were born four days apart.

The good grasses go fast. 

 

The little trunk almost reaches.

For the better part of an hour, I watched them in the yard, the little ones trying to mimic their mothers behaviors, such as eating grasses beyond the exhibit barrier. The baby trunks were not long enough to pull in grass, but occasionally a tiny trunk swung up on the concrete to look around.  

This trip wasn’t all animals though. Early in my trip, I had to stop at the Innovation campus of Wichita State University. Among all the new mid-rise buildings stood a modest brick building that provided innovation back in 1958 – it once housed the first Pizza Hut. 

If Wichita reminded me of Columbus for its Midwest character, there were other ties. The first White Castle opened in Wichita in 1921; the company known for its tiny burgers is now headquartered in Columbus. 

While the building has been moved several times, the outside appearance resembles how it would have looked when pizza was still a novelty in the U.S., long before this particular brand became ubiquitous internationally. An old-school Pepsi sign hangs above the door, and small museum lies inside. Despite hours listed as 9-5 Monday to Friday, the original Hut was locked up. I felt foolish peering in the windows at displays I could barely see and decided to get out of the rain. 

I had seen the Keeper of the Plains from a distance on a blazing June day and in the pouring rain the day before. But with the weather balmy, I had to explore it up close. Crafted by Native artist Blackbear Boursin for the bicentennial, the 44-foot weathered steel sculpture stands on a 30-foot rock base at the confluence of the Little Arkansas and Arkansas rivers. Pedestrian bridges across both rivers take visitors to the Keeper’s point. Exhibits explain the role of the Plains Indians in the region. Native music and stories play during the day. There might be higher structures in Wichita, but none stand taller than the Keeper. 

Keep from the base.

Keeper and its bridges. 

Wichita has a healthy brewing industry, and I sampled the wares of several. Most area breweries were closed Monday and Tuesday or sat too far outside central Wichita. I had a single pour at River City, a brewpub in Old Town. The beers were fine and the whole restaurant was heavily decorated for Christmas; the bartender told me they closed for a day to set it all up. Tor Brewing disappointed me; despite a soaring taproom next to the downtown arena, they had no beers of their own on tap. I had a smoked porter and moved on. 

On Douglas Avenue. a brick clock tower in a traffic circle welcomes visitors to Delano, a neighborhood on the Arkansas River’s west bank. Briefly a separate cattle town in the 1870s, Delano joined Wichita in 1881 and has undergone numerous economic turns. On a rainy Monday, the study brick blocks seemed surprisingly active. For lunch I stopped at the Wichita Brewing Company’s restaurant. They had a decent lunch menu and some solid West Coast IPAs. To WBC’s credit, it also continues to brew beers from an shuttered Kansas brewery. Tallgrass Brewing from Manhattan was once Kansas’ best-known craft brewery before closing in 2018. WBC revived it as a brand, bringing back several beers including 8-Bit Pale Ale and my personal favorite, Songbird Saison. 

Down the block was Spektrum Records. Set in an old house, Spektrum was my kind of record store, with a good selection of used vinyl and reasonably priced new releases. The clerk was excited that I picked the Sleater-Kinney LP she placed in the Staff Picks box (The Hot Rock). I have been on a Sleater-Kinney kick lately, so I was excited too. Craving an afternoon pick-me-up, I stopped at Reverie Coffee Roasters on Douglas Avenue. The coffee went down easily and I read a few pages from my book. At the edge of Old Town, The Record Ship was in a little strip center. The vinyl selection was solid, but nothing jumped out at me. A few records came close, although I picked up some used Tori Amos CDs. 

Tuesday afternoon, I stopped for a view of Wichikitty, the 25-foot mural with an emblem of the city flag on its right eye. For someone who looks down on the people who spend hours in line for selfies with a pair of angel wings in Nashville, I had no qualms about Wichikitty. But I had a hard time finding parking. I stopped in an auto repair shop's visitor spots, jumped out of the car, took a few quick windy pictures, and took off. 

Then I headed a few blocks over to Hopping Gnome Brewing, which I visited on a one-night stop several Decembers ago. I sat alone on the patio with their tasty saison, a beer I enjoyed tasting again. 

The second brewing on that December trip, Central Standard, ended up the only place I stopped twice. I found the staff friendly, the patrons agreeable, and the beer quite tasty. I had a pair of drafts each night, and While I hoped for a few more of their mixed-culture sour beers, I was pleased with their everyday brews. 

I had a whole list of museums and other spots I could have checked out. But feeling close to a regular a good brewery for a night or two rounded out the stay nicely. 

I had to see Wichikitty.