American Agri-Women

Friday, November 11th – Main Convention Tours
 

Option #1 – Explore the Heavens

Tour the Kansas Cosmosphere including a show in the IMAX Theatre, a planetarium Show, a visit to Dr. Goddard’s Lab and a self guided tour of the Hall of Space Museum! The Kansas Cosmosphere is one of the largest collections of US and Russian space artifacts! It is a Smithsonian affiliated Museum.

There is a universe full of fun and education to discover! Visit the galleries in the Museum: Apollo Gallery; Mollett Early Spaceflight Gallery, German Gallery; Cold War Gallery, View Rockets, lunar modules, blackbird spy plane, moon rocks and much more…! Shop the Cargo Bay Gift Store.

Option #2 – Maxwell Wildlife Refuge

The tour to Maxwell Wildlife Refuge will begin with a buffalo burger lunch, followed by a guided prairie tour aboard a tram (our modern day covered wagon). Maxwell definitely offers beautiful views of the prairie and its inhabitants each season of the year. Fall brings the changing colors of the trees to gold, the sumac to red and the grasses to beige and rust. The elk are sporting their full grown antlers and are seen out in the open for winter tours. The buffalo are in their full winter coats. Groups will also have opportunities for educational presentations inside the visitor center/gift shop.

Option #3 – Kansas Skyscrapers & Top Crops in Kansas

This Ag-site-ing tour will introduce you to the Skyscrapers of the plains – grain elevators. In addition, you will visit a cattle feeding operation, and get some insights into the many uses of Kansas grains, including ethanol.

Evening Tour- Underground Salt Museum –
All three tours will meet at the Underground Salt Museum to conclude the day’s activities.
Kansas Underground Salt Museum Gallery Tour and Dark Ride! You will travel 650 feet under the Kansas Prairie! Surrounded by salt deposits formed 275 Million years ago! This tour provides the only opportunity of this kind in the western hemisphere. The geological and cultural story of salt comes to life with dramatic displays. This is still a working salt mine.

We will have our evening Meal Underground, with special entertainment and a live auction! Come prepared to bid and support AAW!

Thursday, November 10th – Spouse/Guest Tour

Sharing Kansas Heritage

Guests and Spouses will start the morning in Yoder for Homemade Cinnamon Rolls and coffee. During breakfast, they will get the history of this Authentic Amish Community from the local Blacksmith. Tour the Stafford County Flour Mill maker of Hudson Flour products and eat lunch at Wheatland Café.
There will be a driving tour of the Quivera National Wildlife Refuge for viewing the migrating birds with a step on presentation by Wildlife and Parks. On the way back to Wichita, you will stop at the Haw Ranch Feedlot, LLC to see their 35,000 head of cattle in a confined feeding operation.

Saturday, November 12th – Spouse/Guest Tour
 

Tall Grass Treasures
 

Guests and spouses will travel to the Tall Grass Prairie National Preserve where they will have the chance to tour the historic 1881 ranch house and take a short hike through the last standing tall grass prairie. Tallgrass prairie once covered more than 140 million acres of the United States, from Indiana to Kansas and from Canada to Texas. Nearly all of it is gone, plowed under for agriculture or urban development. An ancient past survives in the irreplaceable Flint Hills tall grass. The group will finish the tour by traveling to the Flying W Ranch for lunch and a local culture and ranching presentation.

Saturday, November 12th – Youth/Children’s Tour
 

Harvest of Imagination!
 

This will be a trial run tour, encouraging families to participate and attend AAW events. Youth of all ages are invited to attend this tour! The group will spend the morning at Exploration Place – discovering the hands-on exhibits, interactive features, learning and expanding their imaginations! They will have lunch in Old Town Wichita, and continue on their journey through time, visiting the Museum of World Treasures - Dinosaurs, mummies…. Amazing! City Arts - Art classes, galleries, gift shop. Beadazzled - Glass art studio, jewelry, gifts & Classes, make your own jewelry!

Sunday, November 13th – Post Convention Tour
 

Harvest of Energy
 

The Sunday tour will begin at AAW member, Bobbi Shrum’s family operation and Outlaw Arena in Harper KS. Bobbi will share some information about the facility and her new venture with Natural Gas conversion kits. The group will enjoy lunch while listening to a presentation by BTI John Deere, located in Greensburg Kansas, as they share their story of tornado devastation, rebuilding and the advent of green construction and wind energy. Following lunch the group will travel to an ICM facility to tour a biomass gassifier located at a county landfill and learn about the new technologies available in that field. The tour is expected to arrive back at the Hyatt in Wichita by 4:30pm.