What are some small Iowa towns that are cool to drive through and why? I am thinking about a tour of Iowa this summer.
Cool Iowa small towns
- Thread starter yoteforever
- Start date
That's a tough question to answer.
I don't know if it would qualify as cool, but Pella.
Not really much to do there, but the town square looks like a dutch village and there are some windwills.
If you like baked goods go to Jaarsma bakery on the square and by some cookies and a banket.
I don't know if it would qualify as cool, but Pella.
Not really much to do there, but the town square looks like a dutch village and there are some windwills.
If you like baked goods go to Jaarsma bakery on the square and by some cookies and a banket.
I've always thought Mt. Vernon was a cool little town. There is a camping area close by that I go to now and then.
If you can, head over to Wisconsin. Micro brews, and big boy breweries everywhere + cheese = good idea.
Decorah is a cool town. Very, very scenic. Decent restaurants and bars as well, for a town its size.
Brooklyn is pretty nice, just East of Newton. They have a big plaza in the middle of town with all the state flags.
In my line of work I'm in and out of a lot of smaller towns every day, so I've gotten familiar with quite a few of them.
In my line of work I'm in and out of a lot of smaller towns every day, so I've gotten familiar with quite a few of them.
Adel has probably one of the coolest courthouses in Iowa I think:
It's also surrounded by the original brick roads and old looking store fronts:
It's also surrounded by the original brick roads and old looking store fronts:
I'm in a similar situation and I agree Brooklyn in great. Awesome people too. I also think Dyersville is a great small town. Even though relatively small, it has a big town feel to me. I look forward to my Dyersville trips.
Lake City: Home of Dobson Organs, the world's largest mechanical organ manufacturer (designing the organ for the National Cathedral), restaurants ranging from Sweet Things where all is homebaked daily to truly upscale Carnegie Restarant (very reasonable prices with locally-made pottery available), Rainbow Bridge (famous due to three arches), Capri Theatre (near first-run movies on weekends at extraordinary low prices totally run by volunteers), God's Wood (beautiful hand-crafted furniture made-to-order), Cornerstone Suites (two two-room hotel suites that would fetch two or three times the cost in Des Moines or Omaha), Lake City Flowers (home decorating accessories), a quilt shop, and the prerequisite town square with fountain and gazebo.
Someone mentioned it already but the Grotto of the Redemption in West Bend is one of the coolest things I've ever seen.
I lived in Hampton for a few years, I would agree worth taking a trip too. Beads Lake just northwest of town is always a fun campout. I have been through a lot of small towns also. I like the area around winterset, set in a hilly rural region. Mount Ayr in southcentral Iowa also has a cafe on the square that has the front end of a 57 chevy coming out of the building. Never eaten there, but looks pretty cool.
I lived in Sac City most of life growing up, and besides the movie theatre and rainbow bridge, I never thought of Lake City being that interesting.
Although a few years back they had the Rumbles after the rodeo... That was fun.
There is a small burger shack near Sully (I think), right off county road T-22 in Jasper county that advertises itself as Iowa's best burger barn.
I think Iowa Falls is pretty neat.
What is the deal with the castles in Ida Grove? I've driven through numerous times, but never gotten the story.
What is the deal with the castles in Ida Grove? I've driven through numerous times, but never gotten the story.
Things are changing. Small towns are fighting for survival. As the rural population declines, the small towns are losing critical mass and dying. My wife grew up on a farm south of Lytton and we are saddened by the decline of Sac, Lytton, and Rockwell City. Comparatively Lake City seems to have made the biggest effort at trying to stay alive and vibrant.
Rockwell is nothing anymore along with Lytton. It's only a matter of time before they are combining again with someone else. Don't they share baseball with Lake City... Or Southern Cal I guess??
Sac City is completely pathetic... It became nothing but a damn retirement community. Younger people tried to pump new life into it by getting into city politics, board of supervisors, and other groups, but the older folk always discredit every idea they have. Hard to revive a town when everyone in it is waiting to die. Completely a joke...
The only thing younger people have a say in is rec athletics and it's a complete joke. Most people have never played a sport in their life, are trying to coach, run, or tell people how to run stuff. Plus, summer rec is nothing more then a baby sitting service since most of the parents in town with younger kids are dead beats.
Sorry, hate to rag on my hometown. And I really don't care if someone their reads this. They would easily know who I am.
I would say... Stay clear of Sac City. It's a dead town, that keeps trying to cling to the fact they have the "worlds biggest popcorn ball". Which they have to rebuild every two years since people always have to challenge that stupid record. They care more about that then attracting people to that then the historic chatauqua building, 1 of only 3 left in Iowa.