8 places to kayak or canoe close to Wichita

Kayaking or canoeing Kansas rivers was almost unheard of 10 years ago. Now, the Arkansas and Kansas rivers are nationally rated as two of the best floating adventures in the country. Floating clubs and groups are becoming more popular, and a growing number of businesses are embracing the rapidly expanding pastimes.

Here are eight excellent floating outfitters that rent or loan kayaks or canoes to the public. Most also run shuttle services that drop off or pick up clients at various places along the rivers.

Arkansas City Kayak Rentals

About an hour south of Wichita, from a base near the Arkansas River and the Chaplin Nature Center near Arkansas City, Shawn Silliman rents a fleet of 12 kayaks and provides a shuttle service. This is his third year in operation, and Silliman said business is growing with a lot of repeat customers.

The floats have multiple options, ranging from 5½ to 13 miles in length, through some of the most pristine stretches of the Arkansas River between Wichita and the Oklahoma border. The Arkansas River was designated a National Water Trail last year because of all it offers floaters.

A professional naturalist for the Nature Center and avid paddler, Silliman can advise clients about the ease of floats, best sandbars for picnics or swimming and best areas for seeing wildlife, including nesting bald eagles.

Prices are $20 for a half-day, $30 for a full day, with discounts for groups of six or more. Prices include life jackets, paddles and shuttle service.

For reservations or more information, call 620-660-3250 or go to www.arkcitykayakrentals.com. It can also be found on Facebook.

Arkanoe

Scott Brown’s business offers half-day floats on what he thinks is one of the prettiest parts of the Arkansas River. It’s a five-mile stretch of the waterway that’s contained within Hutchinson from start to stop.

Brown said the Arkansas River around Hutchinson is far different from that closer to Wichita and farther downstream. The river is generally more narrow up north, sometimes with some swifter water. The floats started last year, and Brown said he was impressed with the amount of interest from as far away as the Colorado border.

The business rents kayaks, canoes and inner tubes. The price includes a ride to a drop-off point upstream. The floats end where clients have parked their cars in Carey Park.

Half-day rates are $30 for kayaks, $70 for canoes and $20 for inner tubes. Reservations should be made at least 16 hours in advance. Same-day reservations and rentals will carry an additional $10 charge per watercraft. Paddles and life jackets are included in the pricing.

To make reservations, call 620-664-7708. For more information, go to www.arkanoe.com. It also can be found on Facebook.

Arkansas River Coalition

This Wichita-based conservation group has been leading free floats down the Arkansas River for more than 15 years. They are its way of getting the public involved with promoting and protecting the waterway.

Saturday morning the club is leading a 9-mile float from Wichita to Derby. It begins with an 8 a.m. gathering at Herman Hill Park, near Pawnee and Broadway. The float ends at the canoe ramp on 71st Street South in the early afternoon. A caravan of vehicles will take paddlers back to their cars at Herman Hill Park.

Loaner equipment, including kayaks, can be provided by the club with advance notice.

Currently, use of the loaner gear is free, though membership to the club is required for the guided float. That’s $15 annually.

For more information, and a membership application, go to www.arkrivercoalition.org/. To reserve a kayak, call Vince Marshall at 316-680-9669.

CaNewton Kayak and Canoe Rental

Newton’s Sand Creek seldom has much current and often paddles more like a lake than a stream or river. This is the third year CaNewton has offered kayaks, canoes and paddleboats for use on the stream that takes about an hour to paddle from one end to the other. It’s a pretty swing through Newton, about 30 miles north of Wichita, with plenty of elbow room.

Kayaks rent for $10 per hour, canoes for $12 per hour and paddleboats for $15 per hour. Groups may qualify for discounts. Rentals are made all day on weekends, and during evening hours on weeknights.

For more information, call 316-288-5756 or go to www.CaNewton.com.

Cross Timbers State Park

The combination of free use of kayaks and an educational interpretative water trail makes the small fleet of kayaks at Cross Timbers State Park near Toronto appealing. It doesn’t hurt that the state park is on Toronto Reservoir, about 90 miles east of Wichita, one of the prettiest lakes in Kansas.

Kim Jones, state park manager, said the kayaks are checked out two hours at a time. The park’s Blue Water Trail involves only about 45 minutes of actual paddling, but guests are encouraged to sit back some and enjoy the scenery of the Chautauqua Hills. The popular program has remained largely unchanged since it began about eight years ago.

Kayaks are checked out by the camp host at the state park’s Toronto Point area at campsite 61. Use is first-come, first-served. Jones said visitors can find plenty to do within the state park if the kayaks are already being used, including a playground and miles of hiking trails.

A state park vehicle pass is required to enter the area. They sell for $5 daily or $25.50 per year.

Paddles and life jackets are included. Jones said the kayaks can hold an adult and a small child. She hopes to add a few canoes to the fleet soon.

For more information, call 620-637-2213 or go to www.ksoutdoors.com/State-Parks/Locations/Cross-Timbers.

Fall River Canoe Trips

Lloyd Funk, of Eureka, was way ahead of the game when he began selling outfitted float trips through the Fall River Wildlife Area back in 1980.

Its takes about four hours to float the 4 1/2 miles of Fall River, just above Fall River Reservoir. Funk said that allows clients time to stretch their legs on a sandbar and do a little fishing or swimming.

The price for canoes, paddles and life jackets is $18 for ages 12 and under, or $25 for 13 and older. Prices include the shuttle service that picks clients up at a gorgeous set of wide, shallow rapids and takes them back to their cars. The heart of the operation is about 70 miles east of Wichita in Eureka.

For more information, call 316-841-0462 or go to www.travelks.com/listing/fall-river-canoe-trips.

Tuttle Creek State Park

The River Pond area below the dam at Tuttle Creek Reservoir can be one of the most peaceful and relaxing settings in Kansas. The 80-acre lake, 135 miles northeast of Wichita near Manhattan, is surrounded by towering cottonwoods that most years hold nesting bald eagles. The birdwatching can be superb, and the fishing can be good for catfish, white bass, crappie and saugeye.

Renting a kayak, canoe or stand-up paddleboard at the nearby state park office can be one of the best ways to experience the secluded area.

Todd Lovin, state park manager, said the cost of rentals is $10 per hour, or $30 for all day. Guests are welcome to spend their time on the River Pond or haul the kayak or canoe the few miles to a nearby access point on the Kansas River, which is also open to public floating. The park rents a trailer for those in need. The rental program has been going on since 2014.

For more information, call 785-539-7941 or go to www.ksoutdoors.com/State-Parks/Locations/Tuttle-Creek.

Double T Snack Shack and Canoe Rentals

The Kansas River was designated a National Water Trail in 2012. At that time it was only the second such water trail in the nation.

With the support of most small towns along the river, the Kansas has good access points about every 10 miles, all the way from Junction City to Kansas City.

In tiny St. George, about 140 miles northeast of Wichita, Double T Snack Shack has made a fleet of rental canoes and kayaks available to the public the past three years. They rent for $35 and $25, respectively. They also have a shuttle service that’s $15.

Their preferred float is to gather guests in St. George, ferry them to a launch in Manhattan and let them float back to the shop, where their vehicles are parked.

The float normally takes about 3 1/2 hours, depending on the flow of the river and how long people spend exploring the river’s many sandbars. The business often sells homemade pizzas for a post-float meal.

For reservations, call 785-494-8081 or go to www.travelks.com/listing/double-ts-snack-shack-and-canoe-rental.

This story was originally published June 21, 2017 at 5:04 PM with the headline "8 places to kayak or canoe close to Wichita."