Amazon Ditch

From Main in Lakin, 12½ miles west on U.S. 50, 2¼ miles south on D, then 2¼ miles east on 358 (becomes River) to the headgate. Or from Main in Kendall, 6 miles east on River. Entrepreneurs such as Asa Soule of Eureka Canal fame and C.J. “Buffalo” Jones knew that to make this part of the country prosper they needed to tap into the Arkansas River for irrigation. In 1887 Soule and Jones started the 42-mile Amazon Ditch that runs from five miles west of Hartland east to the Finney County line. It was the largest irrigation feature ever constructed in Kansas. The ditch is still in use (and owned) by irrigation farmers today. In wet years it can be quite a sight to see the volume of water rushing through the gates. As you travel east on River you’ll see signs indicating when you are on the old Santa Fe Trail.