An Underrated Iowa City Brims With Outdoor Adventure, Wilderness, And A Lively Downtown

Iowa is one of the best places to visit if you are looking for some under-the-radar Midwest travel. With destinations like Rock-n-Row Campground in Eldora, one of the most talked about places to go tubing, and Waterloo, an underrated arts hub filled with award-winning museums and restaurants, Iowa offers no shortage of fantastic surprises. However, there is one location in Iowa that has outdoor adventure, wilderness, a lively downtown, and even a barn featuring the famous American Gothic painting. That place is Mount Vernon.

Just 25 minutes east of bustling Cedar Rapids on US-30, Mount Vernon is a historic town that was first settled in 1838. Originally called Pinhook, the town was an established rest-stop on Iowa's early highway system. Trade flowed through the city, which was eventually renamed Mount Vernon in honor of George Washington's famous estate. Mount Vernon was also built up around Cornell College, a former seminary and today an innovative liberal arts school.

Mount Vernon has remained a small, lively community. The town blends its long history with plenty of modern experiences and cultural quirks. The nature surrounding the city also offers up some great outdoor activities. And at only a two-hour drive from the international airport in Des Moines, Mount Vernon is easy for any traveler to access.

While the nature surrounding Mount Vernon may not be as dramatic as that found at the Lost Canyon to the north near Dubuque, the college town still has much to offer outdoor enthusiasts. The best access anyone will get to the outdoors in Mount Vernon is at Palisades-Kepler State Park. Nestled along the banks of the scenic Cedar River, the park's five miles of hiking trails provide access to dramatic river bluffs, ravines, and beautiful hardwood forests. A boat ramp allows kayakers to get out on the water, and an abundance of native catfish, walleye, and bass make for some exciting fishing. The Eastern Iowa Observatory on the park's southern side also holds events that are open to the public, allowing everyone a chance to gaze into the night sky through powerful telescopes. Nearby, Bass Family Farms is a great place to stop for food and wonderful family-friendly seasonal activities, including a corn maze and festival in the fall.

For a gentler, but no less beautiful walk, consider strolling the grounds of Cornell College. Here, historic buildings blend perfectly with the sweeping lawns and hardwood trees. The college also has a disc-golf course open to anyone who loves a good game. For a charming residential walk, check out the Ash Park Historic District for its tree lined streets filled with beautiful Victorian-era homes. 

Filled with lovely Victorian-era homes, brick storefronts, and friendly locals, Mount Vernon's downtown contains enough culture to rival the vibrant, Dutch-themed city of Pella just two hours to the west. Thanks to its status as a college town, Mount Vernon's business district is loaded with unique boutiques absolutely dripping with small-town charm. Art galleries, a handmade stationery store, yarn and sewing shops, espresso bars, wineries, and a local general store are the types of businesses you can expect to find on Main Street in Mount Vernon. Antiquers will find a haven at Polly Ann's Vintage Market, the largest antique store in town. 

Furthermore, for cinephiles, the famous Bijou Movie Theater shows the best of classic, independent, and foreign cinema for an affordable price of less than $10. Back on the campus of Cornell College, the Anderson Geology Museum houses millennia-old rocks and fossils, and the Russel D. Cole Library puts on unique programming for students and locals throughout the year. So, while it might not be as busy as Cedar Rapids or as wildly unique and progressive as Maharishi Vedic City, Mount Vernon offers plenty of rural Iowa charm with great access to outdoor adventures.