Photography by Doug Stremel
From a giant toilet bowl in Lucas to graffiti-covered trucks and prairie oddities, these unforgettable Kansas pit stops turn road trips into stories.
Road trips can lead to daring adventures, but the best ones aren’t about the destination—they’re about the unforgettable stops along the way. For a break from the ordinary, take a detour through Lucas, home to the Bowl Plaza, the world’s largest toilet bowl. It is the perfect pit stop for when nature calls (or you need a good laugh).
Bowl Plaza began as a solution to a practical need in the Lucas community—ADA-compliant public restrooms for tourists. It quickly grew into a massive art project led by the Grassroots Art Center. Local artists Mri-Pillar and Eric Abraham helped guide the work.
“Lucas needed public restrooms, and being the artsy town that we are, we didn’t want our restrooms to be a typical ‘his-and-hers’ cinder-block building,” says Connie Dougherty, director of Lucas Area Chamber of Commerce. “At first, most people thought it was a crazy idea. But now most think it is great for Lucas.”
Shaped like a giant toilet bowl, the plaza is a functional restroom wrapped in folk art. The lid stands 16 feet high, with two half-circle benches forming the rim of the bowl. In the center of the rim, a 6-foot-wide ceramic drain showcases the unusual items that can get dropped in a toilet, such as phones, books, change, glasses and jewelry. A small dog stands at the edge of the water, drinking from the bowl.
Dougherty’s favorite part of the installation is the ceramic drain. “It was created by the late ceramic artist Eric Abraham. … It’s so unique,” she says.
Local artists and volunteers covered the restroom walls inside with mosaics made from vibrant tiles, mirrors, broken pottery, bottle caps and found objects. The stalls feature cheeky murals and bathroom puns, and a huge roll of toilet paper next to the building appears to have unspooled to become the cement walkway around the building.
“It has been a very good fit for Lucas,” Dougherty explains, as Lucas is considered the Grassroots Arts Capital in Kansas.
When Bowl Plaza was completed in 2012, the city auctioned off the opportunity to be the first to flush each of the toilets. At its grand opening, the auction winners were dressed as royalty and paraded through an adoring crowd to make the “first flush.” The flushes were broadcast live on a local radio station.
Today, Bowl Plaza is maintained by volunteers and attracts nearly 15,000 visitors each year. Donations fund its upkeep. In 2014, Bowl Plaza was awarded 2nd Best Public Restroom in the United States by Cintas, a company that designs restrooms.
If you find yourself in Lucas, prepare to stay awhile. This quaint town of 333 people is home to many fun and quirky grassroots art installations, including the World’s Largest Collection of the World’s Smallest Versions of the World’s Largest Things, the World’s Largest Souvenir Travel Plate, and the Garden of Eden, one of the most bizarre sculpture gardens in the world.
MORE TO EXPLORE
Kansas has a trove of offbeat roadside attractions. If you like big, you can always visit the World’s Largest Ball of Twine in Cawker City, the World’s Largest Cow Hairball in Garden City, the World’s Largest Painting on an Easel in Goodland, or the World’s Largest Belt Buckle in Abilene. If you are seeking quirky attractions you can’t find anywhere else, look no further than these hidden gems.
Truckhenge Farm
Topeka
Ron Lessman, an artist and farmer whose family has owned their east Topeka farming property since 1879, was ordered by a judge to “pick up” his collection of old trucks and buses, due to flooding and public safety concerns. In response, he “picked up” each vehicle by cementing them upright and into the ground—a playful homage to England’s Stonehenge—and covered each vehicle in vibrant graffiti with messages like “Rise Up” and “Truth.” Officials didn’t fully appreciate Lessman’s artistic vision, but the local Shawnee County Recycling and Preservation Association named the property a Kaw Region Art Park in 2006. Since then, Lessman has continued to install new and unusual art throughout his 10-acre property.
Wheat Jesus Billboard
Colby
If you’re driving through western Kansas on I-70, keep an eye out for Wheat Jesus. This Colby billboard, locally known as Wheatus, makes for a quirky photo-op. To bring this one-of-a-kind billboard to life in 2009, Colby residents Tuffy and Linda Kay Taylor commissioned Concordia artist Phyllis Shanks to paint the image. This two-sided structure depicts Jesus’ head rising above a bountiful field of wheat, grasping a sheaf in one hand—perhaps as a symbol of bounty. More than 20,000 people pass the billboard daily.
Giant Grasshopper
Goodland
In the early 1970s, Goodland farmer Lloyd Harden created unique sculptures from old mechanical parts. Goodland’s beloved grasshopper, measuring 9 feet and 3 inches long, quickly became an iconic figure among Harden’s field of art. Following Harden’s death, the grasshopper—along with a lone metal palm tree—was moved to a property along Highway 27 on the Land and Sky Scenic Byway. Lee and Dee Ann Ihrig had bought the grasshopper at auction and brightened it with a fresh coat of paint. Today, this massive creature stands on their farm near a palm tree, a comfortable chair and a colorful sign that reads, “It’s 5 o’clock somewhere.”
