Entry No. 3 — the Wichita file — filed under: outdoor
The Wichita Troll
“Most people walk right over it.”
A 7-foot, 200-pound bronze troll with greenish skin, big ears, wood-plank shoes and a patchwork outfit crouches in the dark beneath an unassuming storm grate on the east bank of the Arkansas River. Installed in 2007 by local artist Connie Ernatt with no formal signage pointing to it, the mystery is the point. Most people walk right over it.
The story
In May 2007, local sculptor Connie Ernatt installed a 200-pound, seven-foot bronze creature crouching beneath a heavy iron storm grate along the Arkansas River, and then... told almost nobody. No plaque was bolted to the concrete, no ribbon was cut, and no official signs were put up. The city placed him in the drain chamber during a riverfront improvement project, leaving him in the dark until observant pedestrians slowly began noticing a pair of wide eyes staring up at them from under the sidewalk.
The troll itself is pure, unvarnished grotesque art: greenish bronze skin, oversized ears, wood-plank shoes, and a patchwork outfit, frozen in a permanent subterranean crouch. He rests inside a concrete cell directly beneath the upper walking path, chained in place, looking straight up toward a purple martin house mounted above the grate. Because there isn't a single official marker pointing to him along the path behind the old Westar power plant building off West Central Avenue, hundreds of joggers pass directly over his forehead every week without knowing what's underneath their feet.
What makes the installation genius is how Ernatt exploited the multi-tiered riverbank. You aren't limited to looking down through the sidewalk drain on the upper path; you can also walk down to the lower water-level trail and peer through an iron side-grate directly into his face. It’s an intentional piece of urban myth-making—art installed not for gallery patrons, but to startle anyone curious enough to peer into a storm drain.
What it's like
Park in the lot behind the old Westar power plant building off West Central Avenue, pick up the river path, and bear right toward the water. You're hunting for a large, flat iron storm grate set into the upper sidewalk. Daytime visits offer enough natural light to make out his greenish sheen, but coming around dusk or after dark is far eerier—just remember to bring a pocket flashlight or phone light to beam down into the dark chamber. After checking him out through the top bars, walk down to the lower path by the riverbank to look through the vertical wall grate for a direct, eye-level encounter.
The move: Go troll-hunting after dusk: find the grate on the upper river path (he's looking up at the purple martin house), peer down through the bars with a phone flashlight, then walk down to the lower path by the water for a closer, eerier look together.
📍 Before you go Look for the troll on the east riverbank near the Keeper of the Plains, along the walking path behind the old Westar power plant building off West Central Avenue; park in the lot behind that building and bear right to pick up the path and spot the big sidewalk grate. He shows two ways: from above through that grate on the upper path, and from the side through a wall grate on the lower path by the water, so bring a phone or pocket flashlight either way. Daytime is easiest for footing; dusk is eerier. Pair it with the Keeper of the Plains just upstream, whose fire pots light nightly, weather permitting.
- 📍 Riverside (Arkansas River east bank, near Veterans Memorial Park)
- 💸 Free
- ⚡ Low-key
- 🌗 Outdoors
Pair it with
- Stonehenge Jr. (Solar Calendar) — Follow the river park network slightly north to central Riverside Park to find another local artist's outdoor oddity—a circle of limestone megaliths and mosaic markers.
- Giant's Footprint at Oak Park — Extend your strange Riverside walk north into Oak Park to search the woods for a lily pond shaped like a giant's footprint.
- Chainlink Gallery Place — Head south into downtown to trade underground bronze folklore for an open-air, experimental community art lot on Douglas Avenue.
Good to know
How much does it cost to see the troll?
It's completely free and sits on public park land along the river trail.
Where do I park to find him?
Park in the lot behind the old Westar power plant building off West Central Avenue, then head right on the upper walking path toward Veterans Memorial Park.
Can you see the troll after dark?
Yes, but there is no interior lighting in the grate, so you must bring a flashlight or shine your phone light through the bars to see him.
Is the troll part of the Keeper of the Plains site?
He sits just downstream on the east bank of the Arkansas River from the Keeper of the Plains, making it easy to visit both on the same riverwalk trip.
Plan a visit & invite your people →
Further reading: Atlas Obscura · kmuw.org
last checked: 2026-06-06