no entrance fee to Backbone. rumor is a new brewery is going in in one of the buildings in town over the summer. haven't really confirmed if it's true or not though.
Iowa off the beaten path
- Thread starter jbindm
- Start date
It's halfway between Dubuque and Davenport. It basically sits on the "equator" of Iowa. I would never consider it "north". It is eastern Iowa.
I would agree. It's in the very southern end of the Driftless Area, which most Iowans obviously associate with the northeast corner, but Maquoketa would be more east-central than north-east if you're looking at it's position on the map.
By "in town" do you mean Strawberry Point? That would be cool. I've tied a Backbone visit into stopping at Franklin Street before, but something north of the park is more in my wheel house.
Speaking of breweries and NE IA, Cresco is getting a brewery this year (no opening date set) that will be located right across from the trailhead for the Prairie Farmer trail. With Pivo in Calmar, you'd have a cool beer/bike combo, and the Fireman's Inn in Ridgeway (mid point of that trail) has good beer selection as well.
yeah in Strawberry. the building at the SW corner of of hwy 3 and 13 has been under renovation for the last few months.
West Okoboji most likely has the consistently clearest water in Iowa because of its unusual depth. Here's what Wikipedia has to say:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Okoboji_Lake#Blue_Water:_Myth_or_Fact?
Clear Lake has been anything but clear the times I've visited, though it sounds like they're trying hard to restore its original clarity.
We live equal distance to both Clear Lake and Okoboji. We go to Okoboji 10X over Clear Lake. The water, the restaurants, the small shops, the entertainment in Okoboji is just hard to beat in Iowa. Problem is everyone else feels the same way and that is why it is crazy in Okoboji on weekends June - August. Sept and Oct are a great time to visit however.
Okoboji is an oligotrophic lake versus Clear lake is more eutrophic. (This is coming from my spouse who studied natural resources).
Having lived in Mason City, Clear Lake is attempting to transition to a wetland and it has to be dredged and fish need to be reintroduced.
Okoboji is more similar to the lakes you find in MN and WI, deeper water and colder.
I've always thought of Clear Lake as a poor man's Okoboji. It's not as nice of a lake, but it's not bad and it's a fun under the radar area. There's usually something going on, and there are some fun places in town (PM Park, Lake Time Brewing). Cheaper and less congested, but still lively. Getting around Okoboji in the summer sucks.
Try visiting Sunday-Thursday if you can. Friday nights can be a blast if you're looking for a party. 4th of July on the water is impressive as well.
PM Park is a fun place to go. For me it is the water. Clear Lake is the last thing from clear and many times it is not advised to go swimming in the lake due to high levels of coli bacteria. In 2019 9 out of 15 weeks in the summer the Iowa Environmental Council recommended not swimming at their most popular beach - McIntosh Woods Beach.
I've only been to Okoboji once, so hard for me to make an assessment on which area is "wealthier". All I know is that Clear Lake seems to attract its share of "wealth" from central Iowa. Ruan's summer home is there, Kingland (i.e...Kingland Capital on Lincoln Way, Ames) has their summer home there, when Paul Rhodes was still coaching at ISU he had a house there, etc. That said, it could be a simple as CL is a lot more accessible to central Iowa given it is less than 2 hrs straight up I-35. Makes it very easy to get away for the weekend.
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FWIW....State Beach on south shore is much larger and attracts many more people than McIntosh.
Have lived not far from clear lake my whole life and never been to that beach. It’s supposed to be the most popular? I know it had the most issues and maybe that’s why I have never went there.
I've partied in Okoboji many times. All the guys I went to ISU with were from Milford or AP. I've spent a bunch of 4ths there, and hit every Winter Games for a decade straight. The 4th there is something everyone should do once.
I just think trying to get around the Lakes area when it's packed like that is slow and difficult. It's a great place, and there's a reason it's so popular.
Ooh- tell me about the places I can't go!
Seriously- we talkin' Panorama? Where else?
We live West of CL and that was the beach we always went to. It used to be really busy. Please disregard the most popular statement as it was my opinion and probably wrong.
There are some good things about CL. The Surf is a treasure and deserves a visit; Main Street has some nice restaurants; North Shore drive is very pretty.
