Exploring Iowa: Bentonsport Cemetery

After grabbing lunch at NewBo City Market, we wandered around the adorable Cedar Rapids neighborhood of New Bohemia. Before we hopped back in the car to embark on the next leg of our adventure, we stopped in at a few shops and took in some of the adorable atmosphere of this unique neighborhood…

If you happen to be a Star Trek fanatic—or even if you aren’t—you probably know that Captain James T. Kirk is on the roster of proud Iowans. Granted he won’t be born for another 215 years, but the people of Riverside, Iowa hasn’t let that stop them from celebrating their (future) local celebrity…

One of my favorite parts of an Iowa road trip is exploring the small, often forgotten downtowns of the towns I pass through. While exploring the White Pole Road I found myself in the heart of…

I’m a bit of a compulsive planner, so in anticipation of our road trip to southeast Iowa, I started searching for someplace we could grab a bite to eat on Saturday night. Since both my mom and I don’t do exceptionally well driving in the dark, I knew we’d have to find someplace relatively close by.

A quick Google search is all you need to see there aren’t copious dining options in the immediate vicinity of Bentonsport or Bonaparte, Iowa. But let me make things even easier for you—Bonaparte’s Retreat Restaurant is all you need…

If you head south of Fairfield, through Keosaqua and along rustic Route J40, you’ll find yourself in the heart of Bonaparte, Iowa. I’d be lying if I said I was expecting to be charmed by this tiny, riverfront town.

But at this point, charmed may be an understatement…

Even though I’ve traveled through the eastern part of Iowa on my journeys to Chicago to visit family, somehow I’d never made it south to Burlington, Iowa. So when my mom and I spent the weekend in the Villages of Van Buren we made a slight detour to tick something off my 2015 travel bucket list…

To celebrate the first official day of autumn—though the temperatures in Iowa have still been in the mid-70s and 80s—I hopped in the car with a friend and headed to Wilson’s Orchard near Iowa City. We arrived just after the orchard opening and snagged a few fresh apple cider donuts for our rumbling stomachs…

One of the best things about Bentonsport, Iowa—aside from the Village B&B—is it’s size. The unincorporated community has a population of about 40 and even if you’re moving pretty leisurely, you can make a lap around the whole village in less than half an hour.

While there’s a pretty small chance of you missing something on your exploration of Bentonsport, I wanted to put together a small walking tour of some of my favorite places…

Other than Kirsten the American Girl Doll or my love for Pippi Longstocking, I have no real ties to Sweden. And while I do love Swedish meatballs, I don’t have any real Swedish heritage.

So it might seem a little strange that I drove a bit out of my way to visit the Swedish Heritage Museum in Swedesburg, Iowa. But Swedish or not, the trip was definitely worth it…