This is the Greene County Freedom Rock. Completing the Freedom Rock tour of all 99 Iowa counties…read moreis something my girlfriend and I have been working on for the past few years. We are four rocks away from the end of our journey at this time. Not only do we learn about the military involvement and the contributions of veterans in each county... A lot of times we stumble on other hidden gems, that we had no idea even existed, as we venture further into our own backyard. As happy as I am going to be when hit 99 and finish our Freedom Rock Tour...a little part of me is going to really miss these trips. We'll just have to find another "tour" to pick up! When you are checking out each Freedom Rock make sure you explore the surrounding area for other points of interest. And please remember to support local businesses...! Visit https://www.thefreedomrock.com/ for more information on Iowa's Freedom Rocks and the tour!

This place is extremely beautiful. The biggest downside to here is the hours on their website are…read morenot accurate. I came here to visit the inside and the arrive to a locked door. On the door was a note saying they are only open 1 day a week. I was able to peak in the window and see all the beautiful architecture. I was also able to explore the outside grounds too. However it can be slightly frustrating if your website says it will be open but you're not actually open. Overall this place is not huge and is a walkable distance to several other things. So I recommend walk past it to see if it's open. If it's closed, visit somewhere else.

This place is absolutely stunning inside. So clean, well kept. It was our first time & we attended…read moreCandlelight The Beatles. The staff were so pleasant, & helpful. I got a small sprite for $1. They had cocktails available. The bathroom immaculate. I would definitely recommend checking this beautiful building out given the chance! The symphony played for an hour & did an amazing job. I heard there is a beautiful garden outside however we rushed to our cars because of the cold temps.

The Mahanay Memorial Carillon Tower plays music all day and an opportunity for visitors to have a…read moregreat view of the countryside of Greene County. The elevator takes visitors to the top from Memorial Day - Labor Day daily from 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. Saturdays & Sundays in May, September & October from 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. Available for tours by appointment by calling the Chamber of Commerce at 515-386-2155 Cost is $3/person and free to youth 18 yrs. of age or younger compliments of Jefferson Telecom. Host a special event for up to 12 people at the top of the Bell Tower. Rent this space for $50 for a 2 hour period by calling the Chamber of Commerce at 515-3862155. A staff member will work with you on set-up and be present during your event. There are tables and chairs available for your group to enjoy the beautiful view! Restaurants in Jefferson would be happy to cater refreshments or a meal - or bring your own.

Go to the top of this tower and see a panoramic view of the community and the beautiful countryside…read morefrom the enclosed glass observation deck. You will also see the first installation of roof top art in the community. A great tour staff can tell you the story of why Jefferson has this unique structure in the downtown square. The bells ring every 15 min. It's a fun stop and if you have kids the elevator ride is worth it for them! Kids are free and adult admission cost is $3.

Want to learn more about this amazing state? Then plan your trip to take a tour of the exhibits at…read morethe Historical Building. Conveniently located near a free parking ramp and the State Capitol building (while you're at it, take a tour there too!). This building also hosts events. I have attended a roof top wedding reception and a day long symposium is the auditorium.

There are an excellent array of exhibits here! Ranging from early Iowa settler history, to civil…read morerights war, and everything in between until present day! It's free, and there's a good amount of info in short blurbs so it's all easy to read. There's interactive exhibits and it's all very clean. Definitely check this out to learn a lot about Iowa and US history in the context of Iowa. It's very kid friendly as well.

On a weekend jaunt to central Iowa and stopped in Boone for lunch. Had previously seen the signs…read morefor this little spot, and had some extra time so gave it a try. A very nicely maintained home, honoring one of our first ladies. The home has been moved to a lot across the street from it's original location. It will not take you very long to take the tour, but between the guided talk and the interesting displays on the lower level, allow at least 30 minutes time. They also have two vintage autos in a garage that is also on the property. It is a very nice stop, especially for those golden agers who remember Ike and his Mrs.

Had a great time learning while we visited. Lots of family pictures and items that help understand…read morehow the lived and who they were. This is a nice break from a busy weekend. Nice garage with cars from the family. Even had some fishing boots that Dwight D Eisenhower wore while fishing in the rivers nearby. A special place that is worth the visit.

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.

Review Visit: September 15th, 2015…read more This blog contains a random story about how we stumbled upon this place and the strange tour we received. On a whim and after convincing someone to go on a 4 hour car ride to get burgers at Zombie Burger, we stumbled in to Des Moines with no idea what else we were going to do. Little did we know that it would entail burgers, bagels, and an tour of a governor's mansion. But no, this wasn't any ol' tour. It was by the maintenance worker. Before we got our fill at Zombie Burger, we were driving around Des Moines and seeing if anything caught our eyes. At some point, I see a brown sign that pointed to Terrace Hill. I asked the people I were with if they wanted to check it out and they all agreed. So, we ended up following the brown signs and we ended up at a place that was not a hill, but a mansion. As we parked the car and got out, we noticed some groundskeepers working on some bricks. They gave us an odd look, which I didn't find too comforting, but we progressed forward. As we approached the front door, we ran in to some other people who happened to stumble upon the place. We exchanged stories and it turns out, they also had no idea what the place was but were intrigued. At this point, a guy approaches us and asks what we are doing. We said that we stumbled upon the place and had no idea what it was. The gentleman introduces himself as the head of maintenance and that the tour guide is not there. Whether by luck or friendliness, he decided to give us a tour himself. He warned us that we will be getting a personalized tour as he normally doesn't do that. With that in mind, he took us in and started showing us around. I can't remember the minute details of the place, but he told us a lot of behind-the-scenes stories that we wouldn't have gotten during a normal tour. Stuff about how they transported a very expensive lamp as though it were any normal lamp but found out later it was worth a hefty sum of money. Stories on how they keep up maintenance around the place and all the little fixes they've done over the years. This continued as he gave us a in-depth guide of the first two floors. The 3rd floor was inaccessible as this is where the Governor sleeps. As for the 2 floors we were shown, I have to say it was excellent. There was a beautiful stained glass window between the two floors that I fell in love with. After the tour of the mansion, we were guided out the back and got a quick overview of the grounds. The yard was beautifully kept and made me wish we could walk around more to get a full view of it. As we rounded the house, the impromptu tour guide told us a hilarious story about how they had a bunch of squirrels and other small animals on the property that were acting weird. He said they were extremely lethargic and had trouble keeping balance. It turns out that these small animals were getting drunk off of some fruits that fell off a few trees and started fermenting. That mental image will never leave my head. Ha! As he wrapped up that story, he noticed the Governor's police protection people had shown up and were parked in the driveway. Upon seeing this, he told us that the time has come for us to go as the Governor was about to show up and the Security Officers might tackle us to the ground/questioned as we weren't supposed to be there. With that in mind, all of us thanked the guy profusely and went on our way. It was the best tour I have ever gotten, bar none. And that is how my friends, some strangers, and myself almost ended up tackled/questioned by the Governor's security and also how we ended up getting the best tour ever.

I visited Terrace Hill while it was gorgeously decorated for Christmas. I would recommend doing the…read moretour here if you are looking for something unique to do in the Des Moines area. There's an interesting intro video in the visitor center and guided tour of the actual mansion and governor's residence. The experience was just the right length at about 1 hour total and even though the rooms were small there was some good history behind each and the architecture and furnishings were beautiful!

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.

WOW! The Law Library looks straight out of a fairytale. I swear it looks like the inspiration for…read moreBelle's library in Beauty and the Beast. The gorgeous murals and senate chambers were also impressive. We stopped here on a whim during a recent road trip and were pleasantly surprised by its grandeur and beauty. They offered a free tour, but we opted for a self guided tour instead so we could go on our own pace. We came on a Friday afternoon and someone who worked there told us it's the best day to visit since the place is so busy Mon-Thurs when legislators are in session, that it's often difficult to find a parking spot. But on this quiet Friday morning, we parked in the front row and had no line in front of us as we went through the security metal detector.

My visits to state capitols are few and far between, but after visiting the Iowa State Capitol, I…read morewant to make a point of visiting more whenever I travel to other states. My son started attending law school in Des Moines and so I was trying to see what the city has to offer. Visiting the capitol building was one of the things that kept popping up on things to do. We decided to check it out on a Saturday and luckily they do guided tours which I highly recommend. Completed in 1886, they have done a remarkable job preserving this place and showcasing it's beauty. It sits on top of a hill and offers great views of the city from every side. One of the first things you notice from the outside is the gold dome. The ornate outside facade carries inside where it is just as beautiful. You'll notice intricate wood decor as well as marble, gold and other beautiful materials. You can visit the historic supreme court chambers and see all the offices of state officials. The law library is by far my favorite part of the building. I felt like I was in some movie like Harry Potter or something. You have to see it in person to really comprehend the beauty. The wood and gold along with the spiraling staircases and law books stacked to the high ceiling was cool to see. If you aren't afraid of heights, you can take a long winding staircase at the top of the dome. We were one of the last tours so we didn't really get to really take our time and soak in all this place has to offer. I will most definitely come back next time I am in town visiting the kiddo. It was absolutely something I did not expect to see deep in the Midwest.

This place doesn't look like much from the outside, but don't drive away...like I just about did…read more If you're into antiques and thrifting check out Gilroy's Antiques (and some furniture) in Jefferson. The owner is 95, sweet as apple pie, and will unfortunately be closing her business next summer. Art deco glass, vintage dinnerware, vintage tools, smalls of every kind, furniture, etc. Stuff in here is stacked and packed. In some aisles it's tough to turn around. Just back out slowly. If you can't find something here to take home you were just window shopping to begin with. A real hidden gem of a shop.