Modern technology is great, but it doesn’t stay great for long if it doesn’t keep up, and for the organizers of the Wetlands and Wildlife National Scenic Byway, that includes keeping a popular Internet web site updated, and making it more user friendly all the time.
That goal has required some recent changes and additions to the byway site, according to Barton County Financial Officer Janet Crane.
Crane explained that the site — www.kansasbyway.com — has recently included changes that should make it easier to use and to include more important information for visitors to our area.
There are now links on the website to a series of “slide shows” that provide information about what visitors can see around the area.
A great deal of work was put into the information on the communities that area long the byway also, Crane stressed.
This is vital because the whole idea of the byway and the website are for them to work together to help bring people into this region from all across the United States.
The byway is intended to connect Cheyenne Bottoms and Quivira, which are both internationally-known wildlife areas. They are, to those people who are involving in birding, places of vital importance.
So, when someone is planning a trip to experience these natural wonders, it is good for them to be able to learn about what else there is to do in the region, Crane stressed.
The community pages accomplish that, by discussing other things to do, places to eat or rest, and more.
There are pages from Great Bend, Ellinwood, Hoisington, Claflin, Hudson, St. John and Stafford. Visitors to the website just go to the “maps” page and click on a community to get access to the information.
These represent an amazing amount of effort by many volunteers, too, Crane noted.
Also, the web page now has direct links to a calendar on special events and it is connected to both Facebook and Twitter.
It is vital, Crane urged, for the site to be connected to the social media outlets so that more people are able to be brought into it.
There is also a connection to an important internet bird watching site, “eBird,” which provides serious birders with detailed information about species that have been recently spotted along the byway. That is also important in encouraging visitation.
“Our website has a wealth of information that we really want people to start utilizing,” Crane said.