Des Moines was incorporated in 1851 and is now the State of Iowa’s Capitol. It is home to the largest State Fair in the country that happens in August, sadly missed that one, that attracts over a million visitors. We are only here for a short visit and take in the Capitol Building. This is a spectacular building full of gorgeous detail from the tip of its golden dome, down it’s spiral staircases to the sculpture filled memorial gardens surrounding it. The Library is just wonderful and all rooms are a pleasure to behold. We thoroughly enjoy our visit before pushing on towards Madison County.
We decide to take an exit to Adel to look for a camping spot and located a couple of dodgy looking grounds. It is late so we decide they will suffice but that we will treat ourselves to a meal out and find the Italian Villages Restaurant. Put this one on your list if you are in the area. We were greeted by a lovely young woman who we find out later is the owner of this establishment with her father and brother. We could not have been welcomed any better as she sat down to hear a little about Australia and our travels. A couple at a nearby table soon joined in on the conversation and in due coarse another couple moved tables to join us. We all chatted and we entertained both our new friends and ourselves with tales of our travels. We remembered all the funny and sometimes sticky situations we had got ourselves into and so enjoyed the chance to relive them with these new friends. Our host spoiled us with a traditional sticky treat that was quite delicious. We were also given some valuable advice by everyone on what to see and do along our chosen path. It was a fabulous evening that eventually had to come to an end. After a group discussion on our camping plans everyone decided we should move on to a much nicer KOA campground and Dawn kindly convoyed us to it. What lovely people we meet along our way, Dawn was not happy until we were checked in and safe, and that she had a photo of us. Hopefully we will now keep in contact via email and maybe we will be able to welcome them to Perth one day.
Having caught up on the washing and sorted the car out we are ready to explore for another day. Off we go to find the Covered Bridges of Madison County, made famous by the movie Bridges of Madison County adapted from the novel of the same name by Robert James Waller. The area once had 19 covered bridges but only 6 now remain. They were built between 1870 and 1884 by Benton Jones and Eli Cox. They were covered because it was thought the amazing timber of the bridges was actually worth so much that the extra cost was warranted. We managed to see 4 of the 6 and enjoyed every one. They are an engineer and architects dream, each a thing of beauty and ingenuity that the builders must have been very proud of. The covers actually do a fantastic job as when you enter it is obvious that the old timbers are dry.
It is also obvious that they are frequented by lots of lovers as words of devotion are written over the walls. It is quite funny to read and then see where some people have actually returned to cross out their pledges of love or just changed the name on the other side of the heart. It is also apparent that some parts are painted out on a yearly basis as they only have 2014 pledges, whilst others are carved into the timber to last forever. Paris has it’s bridge of padlocks, as do other copy cat cities of Europe, while Madison County has its bridges. We also swing by the birth place and childhood home of John Wayne. Such a lot in a small town, such fun. The rest of our day is spent putting some miles underneath us.
This is a large country and to get from East to West requires that a good portion of the day needs to be behind the wheel. But being Australian we are quite used to this and enjoy the subtle changes in the scenery. We hit the end of Iowa near Omaha and turn right to head up through Sioux City, touching Nebraska, but our real destination is South Dakota.
We are moving from the Prairies to the Great Northern Planes and are reminded of the remote area of Western Australia out past Mt Magnet into the Great Sandy Desert, one of our favorite areas. The natural landscape is just gorgeous with the rolling hills, flat prairies and a river running through. There is just one thing that spoils it and that’s’ the touch of people. Because it is a road well traveled it is full of huge advertising signs. By the time you have read them all and get to the destination you are over it and just pass by. I guess it works for some but for us it would be much better to just enjoy the natural landscape. Perhaps the signs should be limited to a 20 mile radius of the destination, this would be more than enough to warn you of the coming attraction. Still, we were keen to have a couple of stops and chose a couple of interesting spots to stop to break up the days.
Here We Come World 