 Run For The Wall – May 19, 2013
The 25th Annual Run For The Wall will be in Oakley at Veteran's Memorial Garden at Bertrand Park on Sunday May 19, 2013 from 10:00 am – 2:00 pm.
Founded in 1989 as a joint effort by James Gregory and Bill Evans the mission of Run For The Wall is to encourage healing among all veterans and their families and friends. They also call for an accounting of all Prisoners of
War (POW) and those Missing in Action (MIA). They honor the memory of those Killed in Action (KIA) from all wars and support our military personnel all over the world.
As these two Vietnam Veterans traveled across the heartland of America on motorcycles they advance their message by talking to local radio, TV and newspapers about the fact that we had thousands of men and women still unaccounted for from all our wars. It has become a tradition and this marks the 25th ride.
Blog November 5, 2012
2nd Kansas Governor's Ringneck Classic in Oakley
Oakley will host the 2nd Ringneck Classic November 15-18. The community event on Friday evening the 16th, at the new Buffalo Bill cultural Center, will feature a BBQ dinner, live and silent auctions and a community drawing with many great items inlcuding a hand made pheasant quilt, a half side of beef, a gun, artwork and more. The live auction features a John Deere Gator and gun safe. The evening will cap off with a concert by country music performers Joey and Rory. Their new album, His and Hers features their hit song "When I'm Gone". Tickets are still available at 785-671-1000.
Blog: September 20, 2012
State Cornhusking Contest in Oakley October 13
Mark your calendars to join in the fun at the Kansas State Cornhusking Contest on Saturday, October 13th. See how cornhusking was done "back in the day" when horses, wagons and hand hooks were used to husk the corn. Enter the contest in one of the many categories, including the novice group for the newbie huskers who will learn the techniques from the pros. Contest registration begins at 8:30 a.m.
 
The fun doesn't stop at husking corn. There will be food and fun for the whole family. Kids can take part in the corn money dig and the pumpkin carving and decorating contest. There will also be a corn toss contest for all. There will be prizes for all the winners.
Gals, need a little shopping break? Head into town to shop or over to the 4-H Building for the "Girls Day Out" Open House & Craft show, where 65 vendors will be selling their wares for women. Prizes will be given out throughout the day.
Come on out and plan to spend the day!
Blog: August 23, 2012
What's New In Oakley?
High Plains Camping & RV: New Owners Jim and Jessie DesRoches are busy making lots of changes at the campground. They broke ground for a new pool, now completed and ready to make a splash.
 
After the pool project, Jim was pooped. Here are the "hard workers" relaxing around the new fire pit. Look for more changes as Jim and Jess remodel the barn into a pub and add a bird cleaning station for hunters. Visit High Plains Camping website to see all their amenities.
Our Place by Macias: Oakley Welcomes new restaurant owners Carla and Oscar Macias at the new downtown Our Place on Center Avenue. Stop in for mexican or american food and a casual, friendly atmosphere. The food is authentic and yummy so stop in for lunch or dinner.
The Buffalo Bill Cultural Center: The new BBCC in Oakley is under construction. The new center will be a state community owned travel information center as well as a cultural and historical center preserving the history of the wild west and showcasing the sites along Kansas' Western Vistas Historic Byway. The new gift shop with feature Kansas made products. A 3,200 square foot community, multi purpose room will be ready the second weekend in November to host the 2nd Kansas Governor's Ringneck Classic. Accomocating more than 300 people, the BBCC will host gatherings for weddings, reunions and meetings from near and far. Booking for 2013 events has begun. For more info, visit the Buffalo Bill Oakley website.
  
Blog: August 22, 2012
Western Vista Sunflower Classic Bike Tour
(25, 50, 75, or Century Ride) & Family Fun Ride
Saturday, September 22, 2012
Annie Oakley Park
Oakley, Kansas
Looking for a great fall bicycle tour? The third annual “Western Vista Sunflower Classic” is the ticket! Whether you’re looking for a shorter ride; say, 25 miles, or you’re interested in a full century, the WVSC has you covered! The tour travels for 25, 50, 75, or 100 miles along beautiful agriculture ground, rolling hills, and Scott Lake State Park. Riders will have the opportunity to see wildlife, learn about the rich history of the Wild West and possibly view buffalo grazing on the prairie. All rides commence and finish at beautiful Anne Oakley Park in the heart of Oakley. Stick around after the ride for our terrific post race meal and awards presentations!
Click Here or Call 785 672-3663 For More Information:
Event Times
- 6:30 – Registration begins. All riders must check in prior to their ride.
- 7:00 am – Century Ride Begins
- 25, 50, and 75 mile riders may start anytime after 7:30 am
- 9:30 – 12:30 – Family Fun Ride (This will be an in town loop)
- 1:00 – We will begin serving the post ride lunch
Event Rules
- All riders will receive a free T-shirt, goody bag, lunch, and much more
- Early registration is encouraged by Friday, September 9, 2011
- All riders must have their ID number on at all times during the event for identification purposes
- All riders under 18 must wear an approved safety helmet
- Riders 18+ are encouraged to wear a bicycling helmet
- Riders are encouraged to carry a water bottle
- Please make all checks payable to The Logan County Healthcare Foundation
- To Register for this event, please call 785-672-3663, mail wavier and fee, or register online.
Blog: June 2, 2012
IT’S A STOMP MOB!
BUFFALO BILL DAYS AT THE CABIN – SATURDAY JUNE 9TH –
JOIN IN THE FIRST “OAKLEY STOMP AT THE STATUE”
UP UP & AWAY: Noon kicks off the events with kids kite flying. Bring your kite and let’s see how many we can get up there.
KIDS: 1 p.m. we need your help in making a Human OAKLEY spelled on the side of the hill where our Buffalo Bill Statue stands.
RANDY SAUER will be performing from 1:30 – 2:30. Kids from 5 to 95 will enjoy his musical stories.
STOMP AT THE STATUE: 2:00 p.m. Randy will teach us a song that we will dance to up at the statue. It’s a STOMP MOB! Don't miss it.
BUFFALO BILL, Kirk Shapland will be here from 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. with his Buffalo Bill stories. Get your picture taken with Buffalo Bill.
HOG ROAST: The Knights of Columbus is serving up a pig from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Blog: May15, 2012
Buffalo Bill Days in Oakley, June 8,9
Saturday June 9th, Buffalo Bill Days list of events.
- Tri-County Cruisers Car Show at the Annie Oakley Park – Fifth Street
Cruise in event Friday evening at 5:00 p.m. at Oakley Motors, 611 S. Freeman. Car show begins Saturday at 10 a.m. Over 100 new and antique cars will be on display. The CYO will be sponsoring a barbeque at the park.
- City Wide Garage Sale Saturday, 8:00 a.m – All over Town!
- Free Day at the Cool Pool Saturday – Annie Oakley Park
- Arts & Crafts fair at the VFW – 317 Center Avenue
Fair starts Saturday at 9:00 a.m. Come for arts, crafts, food and fun.
- Matinee Movie at the Palace Theater – Center Avenue
In addition to the regular Saturday evening 7 p.m. showing of the selected movie, the student run Palace Theater will offer a 4 p.m. matinee showing. Along with the usual movie concessions, there will be Subway sandwiches. Money raised supports the theater and the students’ college scholarship fund.
- 3rd Annual Wild West Quilt Roundup – Quilt show – 318 Center Avenue.
Saturday 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Admission $3.00. Quilt demonstrations and door prizes throughout the day.
- Buffalo Bill Events Saturday at the Buffalo Bill Cabin and statue at US Hwy 83 & 2nd Street.
UP UP & AWAY: Noon kicks off the events with kids kite flying. We want to see how many kites we can get up there, so bring out your kite.
Kids – at 1 p.m. we need your help in making a Human OAKLEY spelled on the side of the hill where our Buffalo Bill Statue stands. Then at 1:30, Randy Sauer will be playing music for the kids so kids from 5 to 95, be ready to dance.
 STOMP at the Statue: 2:00 p.m. Randy will teach us a song that we will dance to up at the statue. Its a STOMP MOB! Don’t miss it.
Buffalo Bill, Kirk Shapland will be here from 3:00 to 4:00 p.m. with his Buffalo Bill stories. Get your picture taken with Buffalo Bill.
HOG ROAST: The Knights of Columbus is serving up a pig at the Buffalo Bill Sculpture between the hours of 3pm and 7pm. Whistlin’ Pig will also be here with lemonade, snow cones, chocolate dipped waffles.
And – give a big welcome to Biking Across Kansas, BAK, who will be stopping overnight in Oakley on the first leg of their bicycle tour across the state.
Blog: May 8, 2012
Groundbreaking held May 3rd for the Buffalo Bill Cultural Center
Miller Construction out of Goodland was awarded the contract to build the 8,000 sqare foot Buffalo Bill Cultural Center at the site of the twice life-sized Buffalo Bill bronze statue in Oakley. The groundbreaking was held May 3rd. The Wild West Historical Foundation board of directors was joined by the Oakley Ambassadors, city officials and a representative from the Kansas Department of Commerce. Buffalo Bill Bronze artists and sculptors Charlie and Pat Norton also joined the ceremony which was covered by three newpapers: The Hays Daily News, Colby Free Press and the Oakley Graphic. Below is an artist rendition of the new center planned to be open the first of November.
Blog: April 21, 2012
The Buffalo Bill Cultural & Visitor Center to open fall 2012
The Wild West Historical Foundation is pleased to announce the breaking ground for the construction of their new Buffalo Bill Cultural & Visitor Center at the site of the twice life size bronze Buffalo Bill Sculpture in Oakley.
The gift shop will showcase Kansas made products and artists. The visitor center will provide travel information for the entire state of Kansas.
The 8,000 square foot facility will have a 3,200 square foot multi-purpose event center that can host meetings, weddings and events of up to 350 people. Booking for 2013 events has begun. Call 785-671-1000 for more information.
Groundbreaking for the new center will be held on May 3rd, 2012 and 9:00 a.m. at the Buffalo Bill sculpture site located in Oakley on US Hwy 83 at Second Street. Everyone is welcome. The center is scheduled to open in November of 2012.
Blog: March 2, 2012
Want a real "wild west" experience?
Take a drive on the Western Vistas Historic Byway.
Estimated Exploration time, 4-6 hours.
Start in Oakley at US Hwy 83 and Second Street, the site of the 2x life sized bronze sculpture of Buffalo Bill. Stop in at the cabin gift shop for coffee and a map of the byway. Take a short drive down Second Street into town and visit the Fick Fossil & History Museum where you will see many fossils found in this area, a soddie house and historical artifacts from the Smoky Hill Trail.
With map in hand, head south on Hwy 83 out of Oakley. About 25 miles south, turn east on Jayhawk Roakd and take a drive through Monument Rocks. Don't forget your camera, and don't be shy about getting out of the car and getting dirty. Visit Keystone Gallery & Gift Shop on your way out to check out the marine fossils and other historical artifacts on display.
 
Take a buffalo ranch tour at the Duff Ranch just south of the Keystone Gallery. Your tour will take you through a herd of almost 400 head of buffalo. Your tour guide will load you in the cab or back of a pickup - or on a flat bed trailer if you have a pack of people - and you will ride into and along side the buffalo. Book your tour ahead of time to ensure a spot for the day and time you are going.
 
After your tour, continue south on Hwy 83 to Scott City and visit the El Quartelo Museum and Jerry Thomas Art Gallery. The theme of the El Quartelejo Museum is a developing story line, one which traces the history of this region of western Kansas through the stories told by the fossil discoveries on exhibit to present day Scott County information. Visitors can choose to either follow the story line, or simply browse in areas which are of interest to them. Separate displays are set up in several different rooms, and rotating exhibits change often. Appeal for both adults a nd children has been achieved. Exhibits allow youngsters to touch and even “dig” for their own fossils. Two distinct areas of the museum house local Indian and Pioneer History, while a third room has antique farm machinery, along with horse-drawn buggies from the early 1900s. A major addendum to the facility occurred in 2010: The Jerry Thomas Gallery and Collection, containing the work of nationally recognized Wildlife and Western Artist, Jerry Thomas. (portions of this blog were reprinted from the El Quartelejo Museum website).
HAPPY TRAILS! |
