Anything but Corny...The Heartland Has Lotsa Heart

You might have thought Nebraska and Iowa would be boring...Think Again! Nebraska was much cooler, prettier, hipper and more exciting than we ever anticipated. One of our journey goals was to see every state in the USA so it made logistical sense to hit Nebraska and Iowa on our way to the Great Lakes. It was a 205 mile RV ride from KC to West Omaha that took us about 3.5 hours to get to. We split our Cornhusker touring time between the cities of Omaha and Lincoln.

Among other things, Omaha had some beautiful historical sites. We took an awesome bike ride that believe it or not we started in Iowa and we biked to Nebraska all in one ride. Of course, we went to the Capitol building in Lincoln and while there, we also toured the University of Nebraska. Then, between the #1 zoo in America, magnificent roaming gardens, and a beautiful Cathedral, the visit to the Cornhusker state was everything but corny..

First things first, Brad got to put his color-form/sticker of Nebraska on our travel map of the USA.

Ohh, Cecelia you're breaking my heart🎶...our first stop was St Cecelia Cathedral on our way to the Gold Coast Historical District. A beautiful church and a row of wonderful estates brought us to Jocelyn Castle. The inside of the Castle wasn't available to us at the time of our visit so we walked the grounds instead.

From there we went to the Old Market area of the city which was an eclectic, early American authentic and hip area. Yeh, hip! Nebraska had hip. We popped into Plank Seafood Provisions where Brad had four different kinds of oysters and Kathy had a crispy rice cake appetizer with salmon, chile aioli, and tempura rice. Yum!

We spent 5 days in Nebraska which in Axelrod RV terms means 4.5 days of touring time. Often after a 3.5 hour drive, leaving around 11am-12pm, and then setting up the Rv in the new spot, the day is often shot. Dinner, R&R and further developing our plan for the remaining days. Our plan is often based on weather, what's opened or closed, along with the proximity of all our To-Do's. On these travel days we often end up binge-watching some Tv, playing a board game or cards.

We couldn't find a comfortable parking spot in Nebraska to leave our car for our planned bike ride. So we drove to Iowa. We e-biked over the Bob Kerry Pedestrian Bridge and Riverfront and it was one of the highlights of our stay. It was beautiful out, the bridge was awesome, and the ride around the Missouri River was very-very pretty. It also took us through the Iowa country side, train trusses, and to a lakeside little park. It was a great ride and our batteries held out with some to spare.

Lincoln, is the Capitol of Nebraska and it was about a 1/2 hour from our RV Park. But since we initially headed in the wrong direction it took us an hour.

The staff at the Capitol were very cordial and when we asked about a tour they offered us one that was just about to get started. The only catch was it was with a class of 4th Graders. We're in! The kids were adorable, attentive, smart and intuitive. We hung with them a bit and then broke off on our own. We immediately elevatored up to the top floor and mind you, this was the first Capitol in our 17 Capitol visits that was in session. It was good to see some politicians actually working.

We did a peripheral drive around the University of Nebraska. At the time it wasn't very available to visitors. After getting tired of driving around with little payback we decided to hit a nearby sunken garden.

While taking the last pic above at UofN Brad hit his head on the Coach's bronze finger. He came back to the car holding his head. Haha...no blood. Just stars!

The Omaha Zoo is often referred to as the #1 zoo in all of America. If you don't believe us, Google it! It was definitely better than the more famous San Diego Zoo. The Cincinnati Zoo was fantastic but what Omaha had over both was simple. More Animals! 5 giraffes, 7 elephants, 15 Gorillas and the animal's closeness to the guest and that made the experience unique. The birds, reptiles, butterflies and amphibians were fun but the big animals got top billing below please scroll through the pics below).

The gorillas get a paragraph and pics all to themselves (please scroll through). What a great bunch of displays these primates had. They had tunnels, activities, and close viewing areas that were overly entertaining.

On our last day in Nebraska we went to a Wildlife Safari Park and the Lauritzen Gardens. Guess which one was lame? Not the Gardens! The best thing about the Safari happened in the first five minutes and the last 5 minutes of our drive-thru. Elk bathing with a couple handful of sun worshipping elk bystanders and closing with a heard of buffalo. In between the best part were all the prehistoric dinosaur displays.

Des Moines, Iowa was only 142 miles down the road apiece. After the 2.5 hour drive and RV Park check-in we went to a Winery recommended in our "50 States and 5000 Ideas" book. It was called Jasper Winery and was a cute little Iowa vineyard. We both had flights that we both agreed on a bottle purchase to-go.

Iowa had the most beautiful Capitol building inside and out of all 18 we visited and was the first star of our Iowa visit. And, out of every Capitol we've visited, this was the first one that you weren't screened for prior to entry. All the doors were open to visitors. We were amazed! Probably because everyone inside had a gun. Ha! God bless America and our right to bare arms...not a political statement just an outsider analysis! Ha! The congressional floors, the library and these huge 12"x6" mosaic art pieces were magnificently beautiful.

The second highlight of our Hawkeye State visit was our tour of the Covered Bridges of Madison County. It was a self-guided thing that took us to many unpaved roads and panaramic views of farmland and the countryside. It was a fun adventure and during our travels we ran into the John Wayne Museum and his birthplace. The museum was closed but we took some pics of it and of the "Duke's" house.

We're a little behind on our blogs so please accept our apologies and thank you so very-very much for following our journey. A combination of poor internet service, fast moving stops, a little "blog fatigue" along with over 620 days on the road is our explanation. We promise we will get all of our stops in our journey out to you!

Our next stops are Minneapolis, and St Paul Minnisota. After the Twin Cities we will be traveling to Duluth, The Apostle Islands and Pictured Rocks which will be our first three stops in the Great Lakes! We can't wait to share it with you.

Peace, love and Soul Train, Kathy and Brad