Tamu and I spent another great week at the Iowa Summer Writing Festival in Iowa City, this time in hands of poet and master teacher Diana Goetsch. We got up on the Saturday after the class ended with no plans for what to do with our remaining time in Iowa before heading home and returning to work on Monday. I asked the woman at the hotel front desk, who suggested casinos. I asked her if there was any value in heading up to Dubuque, and she assured me there was not.
So we headed out, uncertain where we would wind up. Our first stop was for a walk and small 
breakfast in Mt. Vernon, a town of about 4500 near Cornell College. I was thoroughly charmed, and Tamu seemed to have a good walk as well. Coffee and muffin in hand, we climbed back in and I consulted maps and the limited tourist information I had. Despite the recommendation of the clerk, we headed to Dubuque. I am glad we ignored her advice. It turned out to be the start of a very charming day.
Dubuque, a Mississippi River town, has a lot to offer to tourists, even those who do not visit casinos. After a stop at the Welcome Center to get oriented, Tamu and I headed to the Fenelon Place Elevator Company, the shortest and steepest incline railway in the world. Because Dubuque was built on bluffs overlooking the river, citizens had to spend considerable time during the working day traveling from 
the town at the bottom of the bluffs to their homes at the top. So one of its prominent residents built a railway for his own private use, modeled on cables cars he had seen in the Alps. After a fire forced him to rebuild it, he opened it for public use, charging 5 cents per ride. It still operates, and 
Tamu and I were delighted to ride up together. We got out at the top station and enjoyed a view of the town and river below.
Once we were down at the bottom, we wandered around the neighborhood, visiting shops and people, then heading for The National Mississippi River Museum. Unfortunately, between Tamu and the time we had available, a proper visit there was out of the question, as was the casino. Instead, we 
walked along the Mississippi Riverwalk, enjoying the public art on display. Tamu made a few friends as we walked, but it was also turning quite hot, and I got divebombed by red-winged blackbirds (no idea why). So we headed back toward the elevator company and treated ourselves to 
ice cream and a big bowl of water.
At this point, I could head back one of two ways, due east from this northern point, turning south on the Pennsylvania Turnpike much later in the trip, or heading south now and staying in Iowa, then heading due east on Route 70. There was plenty of daylight, so we lingered in Iowa, and headed south on the Great River Road, which follows the Mississippi from Minneapolis and Wisconsin down to Mississippi and Louisiana. (I think the hotel clerk told me nobody ever drives this. If true, it’s a real shame as driving a good US scenic route is one of the nation’s great joys.)
We ambled along, drawing out our vacation, and stopping in Bellevue for a walk, at Wide River Winery in for a tasting, then onto Clinton 
for another stroll. We made a final stop in LeClaire for dinner. Never have I been so glad that I ignored local travel advice. It was such a beautiful day, and wandering along the Mississippi was 
the perfect way to spend my last day in Iowa.
We arrived in Davenport just as the sun was setting, and crossed back over to the river’s eastern shore, steeling ourselves for the long drive home and normal life. I hope to be back to Iowa soon.