Friends and Family Tour: Iowa and Nebraska

8/18/24 – On the way across Iowa, we visited the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library in West Branch, Iowa. 

It was a relatively small museum (compared to Bush and Clinton)

We learned a lot about his life: before (born in West Branch, engineer in Australia and China), during (elected 8 months before the Great Depression), and after (continued humanitarian efforts) his presidency.  

We set up within North Overlook Camp (a very nice federal campground) in Pella, Iowa, before heading over to see our friend from Encanterra, Jackie Whitham. 

We hung out on the patio with Cooper for a bit before going to dinner in town

8/19/24 – We picked Jackie up in the morning and drove about 45 minutes into Des Moines for a tour of the impressive Iowa State Capitol building. 

With Jackie Whitham at the Iowa State Capitol. The dome has 24 karat gold on it.

Our tour guide was excellent and took us all over, including up the stairs into the inside of the dome.

The three of us walked to a fun lunch place and window shopped in Des Moines before heading back to Pella. 

Fellow mid-westerners may get a kick out of this map "made by people not from the midwest"

We brought Cooper with us for a walk around the cute town of Pella that celebrates its Dutch roots with several windmills and an annual tulip festival.   

After dropping Cooper off, we had beer at a place with 70 taps (and where you throw peanut shells on the floor)

We also had dinner at a great restaurant and reminisced about Jackie’s husband, Wayne, who we visited a year ago before he passed away from cancer.    

8/20/24 – We hit the road pretty early to complete the drive to Brady, Nebraska, where Brittini and Dan Schuldt (also from Encanterra) have a family house on a beautiful reservoir. 

With Brittini and Dan Schuldt on their boat

The view from their lake house

They toured us around the lake before a delicious dinner and another cruise at sunset.