These hikes are for women only. The free events offer exercise and friendship.

A year ago, hiking buddies Jeri Brungardt and Cindy Coughenour decided it was finally time to invite a few more friends along on their treks.

“We would go on these trips and then post photos on Facebook, and friends would say, ‘Oh that’s so cool, I want to go next time,’” Coughenour said. “On the way home from a trip to Colorado Springs last year, Jeri handed me a big legal pad and we decided to put something together and see if anybody showed up.”

By the end of the drive back to their homes in Wichita, the two women — in their sixties — had a loose plan for organizing monthly hikes and a name for the group — Women Hiking KS and Beyond — that reflected the focus and scope they envisioned.

They created a Facebook page and an event listing for their first hike. A few friends showed up for the first organized outing in October and those friends brought friends. The ladies were thrilled to have 17 for a hike on the trails at Camp Horizon in Arkansas City.

“We thought we’d really tapped into something,” Coughenour said.

And when 60 women turned out in southeast Kansas to hike Elk City State Park in November, they thought, “Oh my gosh, what have we gotten ourselves into.”

Only three or four of the hikers that month were close friends of the duo, the rest heard about it when someone they knew shared the group page on Facebook. And the hikers weren’t just from the Wichita area; it turns out women from all over the state were interested in meeting up for camaraderie centered on hiking.

One year since forming, Women Hiking KS and Beyond has more than 3,700 followers to its Facebook page. They averaged 55 women per hike and attracted ages 20 to 72 years old. While many are from Wichita, hikers regularly come from Kansas City, Dodge City and many communities in between. Each outing draws about half returning participants along with a new set of hikers. Some come in pairs, others are solo looking for new friends who enjoy outdoor activity.

“We think we have found a niche by keeping the hikes to just women,” Coughenour said. “We always try to explain that we don’t hate men, in fact Jeri has two sons and I have three sons. It’s just a different experience to hike with a group of women.”

The places they go

Their first year was cut short by three months for safety precautions during the coronavirus pandemic. The two founders continued to hike, though, and received a steady stream of messages from hikers ready for the next organized event. Finally, in June, they planned a sunrise hike on the trails at Coronado Heights, about 70 miles north of Wichita, and had their biggest turnout: 74 women.

There are no fees to participate. Everyone is responsible for paying their own expenses: Entrance fee if there is one, food and drink, and getting yourself to the hike. Carpools are organized to help share fuel costs.

Brungardt and Coughenour schedule at least one hike each month and it’s on the third Saturday except for January, when they schedule a New Year’s Day hike, and May, when they get together early in the month to avoid graduation season. Some months, an impromptu hike or two will pop up for any day of the week and will be announced on the group’s Facebook page.

Among the destinations so far in 2020: Fall River State Park, Coronado Heights, Santa Fe Lake, Cross Timbers State Park, Harvey County East Lake and a week-long stay in Estes Park with hikes in Rocky Mountain National Park.

They started having informational meetings to plan the first trip out of state in January and had 89 women interested in going to Colorado in July. COVID-19 forced the cancellation of that trip. They rescheduled and about 30 women went in mid-September.

There are three hikes remaining for 2020: Oct. 17 on the Konza Prairie Trails, about 130 miles northeast of Wichita near Manhattan; Nov. 21 at Kanopolis State Park, about 90 miles northwest of Wichita; and Dec. 19 to a mystery location.

They’ve announced their 2021 schedule and it’s a mix of destinations within one to two hours of Wichita and three overnight trips, including two out-of-state excursions. The plan: January, Great Plains Nature Center in Wichita; February, Camp Horizon or Chaplin Nature Center in Arkansas City; March, Wichita Mountains (Oklahoma); April, Cheney State Park in Cheney; May, Wilson State Park in Wilson; June, Teter Rock near Cassoday; July, Rocky Mountain National Park (Colorado); August, city hike in Wichita; September, Sand Hills State Park in Hutchinson; October, Monument Rocks and Little Jerusalem Badlands and Lake Scott state parks near Scott City; November, Kanopolis State Park in Kanopolis; December, Pawnee Prairie Park in Wichita.

A New Year’s Day event at Great Plains Nature Center is a family hike.

“We’ll throw in an occasional family hike because we want the moms in the group to bring their daughters out and teach them to keep moving and to stay active,” Coughenour said. On a regular basis, though, the focus will remain on hikes for women only. When they’ve polled participants, she said, the women have indicated they like getting out of the house and doing something for themselves with other women.

More than just hiking

It was about six years ago that Brungardt asked Coughenour if she wanted to join her on a trip to Estes Park the following summer. The two had recently met through a work project and struck up a friendship, and Brungardt had made it an annual tradition to drive out to Estes Park to hike at least once a year.

While Brungardt was a regular hiker, Coughenour said she wore regular tennis shoes on her first outing because she didn’t want to invest in gear if she wasn’t going to like it enough to do it regularly. The next summer she had trail shoes, then the next year hiking boots.

Earlier this year, they were part of a trio climbing their first fourteener, a mountain peak with an elevation of at least 14,000 feet. Both said they preferred the hikes that they did during a July scouting trip for the group trip to Rocky Mountain National Park.

The out-of-state trip as well as the monthly hikes attract all abilities to Women Hiking KS and Beyond. They usually start with a group photo and then disperse, the women naturally finding others going about their speed, from the group out front pushing hard to the laid back crew happy to be enjoying nature at a slower speed.

“We didn’t ask them to break off into groups, that’s just how it has always worked out,” Brungardt said. “Now with COVID-19, that has helped because everybody is spread out in groups of six to eight or smaller.”

While hiking is the activity that brings the women together, Brungardt and Coughenour have seen their group create friendships off the trail. At an event in early March, they saw three women in their twenties who had first come to Women Hiking KS and Beyond hikes individually because they didn’t have friends who liked to hike. Now they come to hikes together and havebecome best of friends.

“It’s been fun to watch the camaraderie that women are making within this big group,” Coughenour said, “and it actually ends up being more than hiking.”

Women Hiking KS and Beyond

What: women’s free monthly hiking group

When: Typically meets on the third Saturday

Activities: 2020 remaining hikes: Oct. 17 on the Konza Prairie Trails, Nov. 21 at Kanopolis State Park and Dec. 19 at a mystery location

Find details and a full schedule on the group’s Facebook page

This story was originally published October 14, 2020 at 10:06 AM.