15. La Crescent
The 26-mile drive from Winona to La Crescent is pleasant at any time of year, but the real treat comes in spring and fall, when Apple Blossom Scenic Drive (which parallels a portion of Rte. 61 atop tall bluffs) brings visitors past blooming or blazing orchards. Two dozen varieties of apples are grown here, and all of them are sold and celebrated at the annual Applefest held during the third weekend in September.
16. Yellow River State Forest
Anyone who ever thought Iowa was all cornfields will think again when they come upon Allamakee County. Tucked away in the northeastern corner of the state, the region is so blessed with hills and valleys that some call it Little Switzerland. The pride of Allamakee is Yellow River State Forest — 8,500 acres of lush landscape traversed by an enticing series of sparkling trout streams.
17. Effigy Mounds National Monument
To honor their dead, the early Indians in this area marked burial pits by topping them with low, rounded earthen mounds. Nearly 200 such monuments — some shaped like birds and bears — can be seen at this 2,500-acre preserve. Most of the mounds are reached by a steep path that leads to 11 miles of trails. Take Fire Point Trail to the observation terrace for a memorable view of the Mississippi.
18. Pikes Peak State Park
Most explorers would be proud to have even one place named in their honor, but General Zebulon Pike could claim two: one peak in Colorado that became famous, and a bluff in Iowa that few people have ever heard of — despite the fact that Pike sighted it a year before its legendary counterpart.
During his 1805 expedition to map the Upper Mississippi, Pike chose two locations for forts, one of them atop a summit on the west side of the river. The area is now occupied by a 1,000-acre park that overlooks the site where explorers Jacques Marquette and Louis Jolliet first encountered the Father of Waters. The park offers a bird’s-eye view of the confluence point where the Wisconsin River joins the Mississippi.
19. Dubuque
Iowa’s oldest city, Dubuque, gave birth to the state’s first bank and newspaper. Among the city’s attractions are the General Zebulon Pike Lock and Dam and the Dubuque Museum of Art, housed in the old county jail. (The building is one of the few remaining examples of Egyptian Revival architecture in America.) The best views are from the top of the Fenelon Place Elevator — built in 1882 to connect bluff-top homes with downtown businesses, it is one of the world’s steepest and shortest railways — and from Eagle Point Park, with sweeping vistas that overlook broad areas of Iowa, Wisconsin, and Minnesota.
