Stepping onto the Kansas Gunsmoke Trail is like riding straight into television history. The trail blends authentic Wild West sites with Gunsmoke lore, inviting travelers to experience frontier legends, iconic characters, and enduring cowboy culture firsthand.
Highlights
- Easy road-trip appeal: Manageable drives, welcoming communities, and attractions for couples, families, and solo travelers.
- Four legendary towns: Abilene, Hays, Dodge City, and Wichita each showcase real frontier history tied to Gunsmoke.
- TV nostalgia meets reality: Museums, murals, reenactments, and landmarks bring Marshal Matt Dillon’s world to life.
The writer was hosted.
Standing beside the towering statue of Marshal Matt Dillon in Dodge City, Kansas, I felt dwarfed by his impressive seven-foot frame, boots, hat and all. This moment perfectly captured the larger-than-life spirit that defines the Kansas Gunsmoke Trail, an extraordinary journey through four historic towns that brought America’s longest-running television western to life.
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What is the Gunsmoke Trail?
The Kansas Gunsmoke Trail was the brainchild of Julie Roller Weeks of the Abilene tourism office, who was looking for a way to “connect some of Kansas’ most iconic cowboy towns in a fun and collaborative way,” she says. “I was inspired by the storytelling power of the Gunsmoke TV series (which is still on TV today!) and the shared Wild West history of places like Abilene, Dodge City, Wichita and Hays.”…