Nebraska man creates ultimate Kansas travel guide
A Nebraska man has created the ultimate Kansas travel guide after traveling to every corner of the Sunflower State.
TOPEKA (KSNT) - A Nebraska man has put together a comprehensive travel guide for Kansas after spending most of the last year visiting every corner of the state.
KSNT 27 News first spoke with Seth Varner back in May about his journey through the Sunflower State. His goal? To visit each of Kansas' 627 incorporated towns to create a travel guide showing the best the state has to offer.
From the smallest towns to the biggest cities, Varner can now claim to have seen more of the state than many Kansas residents have in their lifetimes. His journey took more than eight months to complete but the effort has since paid off with the release of Varner's travel guide for Kansas: "Wandermore in Kansas."
Varner said his book was officially released on Nov. 22 and has been a resounding success with his fans. Nearly 2,500 copies have been sold so far with around 1,300 being sold on the release date alone.
"It pretty much blew my predictions out of the water," Varner said. "I think it's already sold more than my Nebraska book which is three-years-old."
Varner said his Kansas travel guide is his most successful Wandermore launch to date, outshining the past guides he has written for his home state of Nebraska, Iowa and South Dakota. Its kept Varner busy recently as he is responsible for distributing every copy he sells. While the book is only for sale on his website for the time being, he said Kansans can expect to see it at local retailers, bookstores and museums starting in late January.
Varner's Kansas odyssey lasted a total of 65 days from February to October with him traveling from town to town from "sunrise to sunset every day" to find out what the Sunflower State had to offer to other visitors. He said one of the last places he visited was the Wichita and Hutchinson areas and an exotic animal farm in Nickerson.
"Right up until the very last day I was having a blast checking out all the communities," Varner said.
He also gave a shoutout to the town of Caldwell when he was asked what his favorite places to visit in Kansas were. He said the town bears numerous murals and statues paying tribute to the cattle-driving history of the community.
Greensburg was another favorite for Varner who said the community has made leaps and bounds in progress after suffering terribly during a tornado outbreak in 2007. He was impressed by the state-of-the-art schools and city hall during his visit to the town.
"Great example of a community coming together," Varner said. "Probably the most successful tornado rebound in the nation's history."
He also has a special place in his heart for the Capital City where he encountered the scariest part of his entire trip when he ascended to the top of the statehouse's dome.
"It was terrifying," Varner said. "That was the scariest thing I did in Kansas. That was amazing getting to climb the stairs and getting to see the surrounding communities, I absolutely loved that."
Varner made a stop at Bobo's and the Brown v. Board of Education historic site before he left town. Overall, he said "Topeka was fun" and enjoyed visiting the city.
Aside from creating a travel guide keyed specifically for Kansas, Varner hopes he can help encourage people to get out and travel more. He hopes his book shines a light on communities that might otherwise be overlooked or described as boring.
"If you really put your mind to it, every community has something to offer," Varner said. "You don't have to go very far from home to have your own adventure."
You can learn more about Varner's journeys through the Sunflower State by checking out his Facebook page. To order your own copy of his book, click here.
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