36 hours in Humboldt, Kansas: Where to go, what to do for a weekend getaway
Kansas is low on “weekend getaway” type of places: small towns with enough going on to entertain and satisfy visitors between Friday after work and Sunday morning when it’s time to drive back home. A Bolder Humboldt, a civic group that has been hard at work revitalizing the southeast Kansas town since 2016, aims to fill that gap.
“One of our guiding principles is that we are trying to build Humboldt into a place where you can visit for 36 hours and there’s never a point during that time where you don’t have anything to do,” said Paul Cloutier, a founding member of A Bolder Humboldt.
The town is well on its way there. Several new options for bars, restaurants, lodging and recreation have opened in the last few years, with more on the way. Here is a guide to what to do in Humboldt — and what to expect in the future from this suddenly booming town.
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Where to stay
▪ Base Camp Humboldt. Three modern-rustic Scandinavian cabins sit on a 21-acre property near the trailhead of the Southwind Rail Trail, which connects Humboldt to Iola. Guests can paddle and canoe in the on-site quarry pond or ride around on the BMX skills course. Five pull-through sites for RVs to park and camp are slated to be open to the public by September. Beth Works Barlow, who manages Base Camp, also operates a two-bedroom Airbnb located above Bijou Confectionary, her downtown sweets shop. Status: Open, but plan ahead; the cabins are booked months in advance.
▪ The Bailey. A five-room boutique hotel located right off Humboldt’s town square. Status: Opening in late August.
If everything’s booked up, consider hotels in Chanute or Iola, each just a 10-mile drive from Humboldt.
Where to eat
Honeybee Bruncherie. Breakfast and lunch spot serving classics (biscuits and gravy, eggs Benedict) alongside more modern fare (chilaquiles, “Broke Millennial Avocado Toast”). Status: Open 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday.
Frost Bite: A commissary kitchen located in the Life Is Fine Plaza off the square pumps out ice for this “yeti-style” shaved ice food truck. Another slot in the plaza features a rotating food truck. Status: Open.
Calamity Mae’s. A farm-to-table restaurant with a fire-driven menu, Calamity Mae’s will feature a cocktail program from Laura Wagner and food by Rye Leawood sous chef Miles Kim. Status: Aiming to open in late 2022/early 2023.
Where to drink
Octagon City Coffee. Named after a failed intentional community attempted in the area in the 1850s, this airy coffee shop bills itself as “the best coffee south of Lawrence.” It carries Messenger coffee beans, serves bubble tea, and is attached to Humboldt Mercantile, a gift shop where customers can browse the wares of local and regional makers. Status: Open.
Perrenoud’s Cocktail Bar. Little expense was spared in the creation of this urbane lounge, from the Italian terrazzo bar tops to the cherry paneling behind the bar to the lush deep-green banquettes. The cocktail menu is a mix of classics and more experimental, ingredient-driven drinks. “But we also want to be a place where you feel comfortable ordering a Budweiser or a nonalcoholic drink,” says general manager Laura Wagner. Status: “Hoping to be open for Water Wars,” says Cloutier. That’s Aug. 13.
The Hitching Post. A “sophisticated honky-tonk” with Hank and Patsy on the turntable, a stage in the corner for the occasional weekend performance and a rolling ladder behind the bar to reach the bottles of high-end whiskey. Status: Open very soon. “Maybe the last weekend of August, or Labor Day weekend,” says Cloutier.
Union Works Brewing Company. This 25-barrel brewery will double as a restaurant, with wood-fired pizza at the heart of the menu. Tablecloth dining up front, a brewery bar in the back and a beer garden outside. Status: Aiming to open in late 2022.
Where to shop
Idle Hour Books. This small, curated bookshop can be found in the lobby of the Bailey for now, but the plan is to eventually move it around the corner into a former church that’s being renovated. Status: Opening in September.
Roots. Locally owned plant shop. Status: Open.
Jae & Co. Mother-daughter shop selling women’s clothing and housewares. Status: Open.
What to do
Neosho Valley Woodworks. Pat Haire maintains an 1880s-era lineshaft woodworking shop in the old Odd Fellows Hall on the square. It’s an active woodshop but also a kind of museum; poke your head in, and Haire’ll be happy to show off all the old tools he’s restored and put to use. Status: Open.
Sticks Golf Lounge. Too hot out to hit the links? Sticks, opened by Chase Butcher and his father-in-law, Craig Newman, in March, offers three golf simulator bays. “You bring in your golf clubs and can pick from over 100,000 different courses — Pebble Beach, courses in Scotland, whatever,” says Butcher. It’s a bar, too, with a bunch of big screens tuned to sports. Status: Open Friday and Saturday for now, with plans to expand to six days a week.
Revival Music Hall. This 250-capacity concert venue in a former First Presbyterian church is perhaps A Bolder Humboldt’s most ambitious project. “We’ll be booking regional bands and national touring artists,” says Damaris Kunkler, the community engagement director for A Bolder Humboldt (and a songwriter herself). “We’re excited to bring a lot of different genres of music here.” Though it’s no longer functional, they’re keeping the old church organ as a facade and putting seating up in the choir balcony. The basement green room features three bedrooms, two showers and a full kitchen — a blessing for tired musicians passing through town.
Status: “I will cry if it’s not ready by the end of the year,” Kunkler says. In the meantime, they’re hosting the blues-and-roots-centric Middle of Everywhere Festival over Labor Day weekend.
