Chugga-chugga, choo-choo. The summer heat has rolled into to Kansas City early this year, keeping most of us scrambling to stay indoors or hit the pool. And, to be honest, we’ve done a little of both at my house. One hot Sunday afternoon, I was looking to give my daughter some much needed outdoor time and didn’t have time to get ready for the pool. I was looking for something a little different that would last about 30 minutes to an hour. We headed to the Overland Park Arboretum & Botanical Gardens to explore the newest attraction – a Train Garden.

Located near the Children’s Discovery Garden, the Train Garden boasts a red caboose to welcome visitors as they approach and highlight its features. (Eventually, it is planned that this will be used for hosting birthday parties or other small gatherings at the Arboretum.) After visiting “Thomas the Train” at the Midland Railway in June, my daughter is obsessed with trains. When she saw the caboose, she took off running towards the garden and was stopped in her tracks when she saw the model train (seven g-scale) weaving in and out around mountains, countryside and through “downtown Overland Park.” She thought it was so funny that a train would go through a city. Her favorite part of the garden was the Plexiglas walk-ways that the train goes under as it moves from one side of the sidewalk to the other side. She would race from one walk-way to the next and back to watch the train. We spent about 30 minutes exploring this garden and watching the train, but my daughter could have spent the whole day I believe.

So, this summer, if you’re looking for a little outdoor time, say all-aboard and head out to the Arboretum to visit the Train Garden. I know we’ll be back again soon.

~Amy

P.S. – According to the Arboretum staff, additional features will be added to the Train Garden in coming months.