Terre Haute Cemetary is weird. It's supposedly haunted. I've spent many a drunken night in this…read morecreepy place. I've heard a little boy plays on a swing here and then when he sees you he leads you to his grave then disappears. I have never witnessed this. Check it out sometime if you're in the middle of nowhere in Iowa. Oh yeah and it's pronounced "Terry Hut". Just FYI.

We visited the bridges of Madison County entirely by accident during the Covered Bridge Festival…read more That just happened to be the time that we were driving through the area and we honestly had no idea until we arrived. I honestly think the timing kind of put a damper on our experience. Instead of being able to take in the bridges quietly and enjoy this scenery, there were people everywhere including loud groups and dust was getting kicked up on us constantly. It was really difficult to find parking and there was just a general sense of disturbance of the piece and the beauty of the nature surrounding us. It was also virtually impossible to get any good photographs. I know we've come a long way and our phones can remove a person or two from a picture, but crowds of people make it much more difficult. After the first few Bridges, we figured if our visit was going to be disturbed in this way, we might as well balance things out by checking out the main festival in winterset. Unfortunately, when we arrived we realized that dogs are not allowed even though it's an outdoor fair. That made it even more frustrating because we couldn't even enjoy some kennel corn to make up for the overcrowded bridge visits. All that said, the bridges themselves are still really lovely and historical and I can see why this area is loved and that people would come from all around to celebrate the bridges. I would still recommend coming to take a look at them, but definitely to avoid the festival weekend if you're looking for a more peaceful, reflective experience.

I took a tour through the chamber of commerce and had Jewel as my tour guide. She was very…read moreinformative and fun to be around. I loved all of the history that she shared with me and all of the personal stories in between. Highly recommend!

Great place to visit I was surprised they didn't have the Indians they use to have Car show was…read moregreat

We went on national museum day, so admission was free. Very cool museum. Surprisingly, it is full…read moreof conservation information. A beautiful mansion. We also went to a fire-dancing performance in the yard there this summer. Love the community events!

Get off the road a couple extra mikes and park and enjoy the 1/4 mile walk back to bridge and enjoy…read morethe outside beauty on your long drive. Well done park.

Gayle and I recently took my Dad out on a road trip from Ames to Winterset. He'd been here before,…read morebut we took him along anyway as he enjoys the ride. Our 2nd stop along the Covered Bridges Scenic Byway was the Cedar Covered Bridge, which you can drive through. The Cedar Bridge (previously known as the Casper or Storrs Bridge) was built in 1883, with a span length of 78 feet. Cedar Bridge originally crossed Cedar Creek 2.7 miles northeast of Winterset, on what is now Highway 169, before being moved in 1920 to its present location. The original cost of the bridge was $2,964.73. The Cedar Bridge carried traffic until 1920, when it was moved to its current site over Cedar Creek. Here it functioned in place until it too was bypassed in 1964 by another bridge. It now acts as the centerpiece of a small park. An illustration of Cedar Bridge graces the cover of the novel, The Bridges of Madison County, by Robert James Waller. Oprah Winfrey came to Winterset in the spring of 1993 and filmed an episode of her show from the lawn around Cedar Bridge. A set of stairs descending the bank near the bridge was built for Oprah to make her entrance and these are now known as "Oprah's Steps." The 2 Covered Bridges featured in the Bridges of Madison County movie were Roseman and Holliwell.

This is the only covered bridge you can still drive across. There is a small park with it and it…read morehas a grill and tables if you want to picnic.

Neat little home on the main drag into town once belonged to the MIA famed big band conductor Glenn…read moreMiller. One of the many now famous folk who hailed from a place I call my home town, Clarinda. Always makes me smile when I drive by. Found memories.

Can visit when open or make arrangements for a volunteer to show you around. Johnny's 100 birthday…read moreis coming Oct 23, 2025. Make it a day. You can also visit Corning Center for the Fine Arts and the Opera House, noth on Davis Ave, the main street in town.

I like to squeeze in a museum when I can in a city that is unfamiliar to me. This stop was truly on…read morea whim. My main reason for dropping by Des Moines was to see an Iowa Wild game. The following day, I had to leave the city and head back to Bloomington. I wanted to do a quick touristy visit somewhere. I did a search and found Jordan House Museum. Driving over here was enjoyable. The leaves were a gorgeous deep red in the area. I had no problem finding the museum. When you are pulling into the parking lot, you do not want to come in at full force. I didn't because I was checking the house out. The lot where you park your car is all gravel. When you walk up to the museum, it is thankfully cement. If you want a tour of the museum, you do need to book online. Even if you book online, it's based on demand. If there aren't enough folks who want to do the tour, it gets cancelled. I saw the cancellation sign on the door. Since I visited because I felt like it, I still learned a lot with the signs and information presented to me. I was not disappointed. I also like self-exploration, which may not be for everyone. Jordan House was built by James Cuttingham Jordan, who was an abolitionist. This house was a station on the Underground Railroad in Iowa. It ended up being listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973. James Jordan was a cattle farmer from Virginia. He settled in central Iowa in 1846. He was a businessman, organizing the State Bank of Des Moines. He helped bring the railroad to Des Moines. He ultimately ended up being a civic leader, and was elected to both the Iowa Senate and the Iowa House of Representatives. He helped move the state capital from Iowa City to Des Moines. I had no idea that Iowa City was once the state capital. Cool! There is a pathway to history in front of the main entrance of this house, where you can reserve a brick and have it dedicated to a special loved one. I spent a lot of time reading the messages on this pathway. It was highly enjoyable and moving on a Fall day. My favourite saying came from the Caruthers family: Be so awesome today that tomorrow is jealous!!! Three exclamation points. Love it! There was one other woman who had pulled into the lot next to my rental car. She did not do any self-exploration. She went to the main door, saw that the tour was cancelled, headed back to her vehicle, and left. The house is well-maintained on the outside. It has a veranda with a bunch of green chairs. The lawn was recently mowed. The small shrubs around the flags at the front were perfectly trimmed. I had a nice, off-the-cuff visit to this museum. I learned a lot and hope to do a tour inside the museum whenever I'm back in Des Moines for hopefully a longer visit. (458)

Great tour. Guide was very knowledgeable. Home has several of the original articles. We took our 3…read moreteenagers, 2 girls(12&14) and a boy (15), and they all enjoyed it. Not once did they get on their phone due to boredom.