National Trails Day on the first Saturday in June recognizes all the incredible benefits federal, state and local trails provide for recreation and exposure nature. Events held throughout the United States help promote awareness of the wide variety of services the trails systems offer. National Trails Day encourages people to discover their local trials, become active concerning trail issues and share their excitement for the outdoors.
While hiking may be the first activity to come to mind, trails offer so much more! Trails provide access to waterways for canoeing and paddle trips. Birders find excellent opportunities for birdwatching and those seeking to test their abilities to observe and study geolocation enjoy geocaching. Others learn land navigation or use the trails for biking. Each of the pursuits creates an opportunity to spend time outdoors and generate an excellent cardiovascular workout.
Try some of these great ones below without leaving home
National Trails Day is also an opportunity to thank the many volunteers, land agencies, trail developers, park employees, rangers for their help in developing and maintaining the trails.
Visit your local trails. When possible, take a friend and try something new. Try a new trail, a new activity or introduce someone new to an activity you are skilled to pass on the experience to. Why keep it to yourself? Also, if you pack it in, pack it out. Show your appreciation to those who make the trail system possible. Use #NationalTrailsDay to post on social media.
HISTORY
The American Hiking Society sponsors National Trails Day. For more information, go to National Trails Day.
On February 8, National Iowa Day recognizes The Hawkeye State.
The 29th state to join the United States is known for fertile prairie, rolling hills, raising innovative people and some nostalgic movie moments. From the Mississippi River to the harvests in Plymouth, Harrison or Fremont counties, Iowa’s history, beauty and hospitality flourish.
For starters, Iowa is home to the oldest city in the state, Dubuque. Dubuque was founded in 1788, making it the oldest city in Iowa and one of the oldest settlements in the entire Midwest. Dubuque is also home to the oldest standing church in Iowa, the St. Mary’s Catholic Church, which was built in 1833.
Another interesting fact about Iowa is that it has the highest per capita number of bowling alleys in the United States. There are over 400 bowling alleys in the state, which is a lot considering the population of Iowa is only around 3.2 million people. This makes Iowa the perfect destination for anyone looking to spend a day or evening knocking down some pins.
In addition to its love of bowling, Iowa is also home to a number of unique festivals and events. One of the most well-known is the RAGBRAI, or the Register’s Annual Great Bicycle Ride Across Iowa. This event is a week-long bike ride that takes place in July and attracts thousands of participants from around the world. The route changes every year, but it always ends up in a different city in the state.
Another quirky festival in Iowa is the National Hobo Convention, which takes place every year in the town of Britt. The convention is a celebration of the hobo lifestyle and attracts hobos and hobo enthusiasts from all over the country. It includes a hobo parade, a hobo queen coronation, and a hobo museum.
The state was named for Iowa Native Americans who populated the area when European settlement forced Eastern tribes westward.
Acquired as part of the Louisiana Purchase, Iowa Territory settlement didn’t start to take place until around the 1830s.
Iowa Official
State Capital – Des Moines State Nickname – The Hawkeye State State Motto – Our Liberties We Prize State Language – English State Bird – Eastern Goldfinch State Vegetable – Sweet Corn State Soil – Toma Soil State Crop – Corn & Soybeans State Rock – Geode State Tree – Oak State Song – Song of Iowa
Other Fascinating Faces and Places
One of the later settlements that remain today is the Amana Colony. A congregation of the Community of True Inspiration, their faith and persecution in Germany led them to immigrate to America for religious freedom. Iowa supplied fertile farmland and a home for them to practice their skills and their beliefs. Today, they open their community to the public. Shop for handmade gifts, homemade baked goods, wine and stay for a home-cooked meal.
In the southwestern part of the state, Madison County boasts beautiful covered bridges which were featured in the movie by a similar name. While touring the bridges, be sure to stop by Winterset and take in the birthplace of John Wayne.
For fantastic performances in a historic rock and roll venue, check out the events at the Surf Ballroom. Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and The Big Bopper played their last concerts at the Surf Ballroom the night they perished in a plane crash near Clear Lake, Iowa.
Iowa is also home to a number of strange and unusual attractions. One of these is the Iowa 80 Trucking Museum, which is located in Walcott. The museum is dedicated to the history of trucking and features a collection of vintage trucks, as well as a variety of trucking memorabilia.
Another unusual attraction in Iowa is the National Balloon Museum in Indianola. The museum is dedicated to the history of hot air balloons and features a collection of vintage balloons, as well as a variety of ballooning equipment. Visitors can also take a ride in a hot air balloon at the museum, which offers some of the best views in the state.
In addition to its museums and festivals, Iowa is also home to a number of unique natural attractions. One of these is the Maquoketa Caves State Park, which is located in the eastern part of the state. The park is home to a number of underground caves that visitors can explore, as well as a number of hiking trails and picnic areas.
Nature lovers will find plenty of adventure in Iowa. Effigy Mounds National Park will satisfy those with a mystical and historical curiosity. Rockhounds should seek out Geode State Park. The Corps of Discovery’s Louis and Clark Trail come through Iowa, too.
One more unusual fact about Iowa is that it is home to the world’s largest Strawberry Shortcake. The giant dessert was created in 2009 as part of the annual Strawberry Fest in the town of Strawberry Point. The shortcake was over 10 feet in diameter and featured over 5,000 servings of strawberries, cake, and cream. It was so big that it had to be sliced and served to the crowd in pieces.
From the Quad Cities to Shimek Forest, Iowa offers city and country to explore. Join us as we examine the 29th state’s dynamic people and pioneering history. Travel byways and discovery Iowa’s stunning scenery! Use #NationalIowaDay to share on social media.
The Day the Music Died Day on February 3rd remembers the unfortunate and untimely death of singers 22-year-old Buddy Holly, 17-year-old Richie Valens, and 28-year-old J. P. Richardson, aka: “The Big Bopper.” These three artists died in an airplane accident on February 3, 1959, near Clear Lake, Iowa. Their pilot, Roger Peterson, also perished in the crash.
The Day the Music Died was dubbed so by Don McLean’s song “American Pie”
Buddy Holly’s band was on tour and had played at the Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake. They were headed to their next destination in Moorhead, Minnesota. For this leg of their journey, they decided to take a charter plane rather than go with their tour bus. Richardson “The Big Bopper”, had swapped places with Waylon Jennings, taking the latter’s place on the plane and Tommy Allsup had lost his place to Ritchie Valens in a coin toss.
Not long after takeoff, they were no longer able to be reached by radio, and they did not reach their destination. The aircraft was reported missing. The next day, the wreckage was found less than 6 miles northwest of the airport in a cornfield. Poor weather conditions and pilot error were determined, during the investigation, to have been the cause of the pilot losing control of the plane.
Pilgrimage & Tribute
The tragic event echoed through history for over 50 years. Visitors still make the pilgrimage each year to Clear Lake, Iowa, the resort town about 110 miles north of Des Moines, as this was the point of their last concert before the fatal accident.
“The day the music died” is a line in the 1972 Don McLean hit “American Pie.” McLean’s song, which he wrote in the late 1960s and released in 1971, was in part inspired by the tragic event which took the lives of three great musicians and their pilot.
“American Pie” lyrics by Don McLean
“But February made me shiver, With every paper I’d deliver, Bad news on the doorstep I couldn’t take one more step. I can’t remember if I cried When I read about his widowed bride But something touched me deep inside, The day the music died.
NATIONAL THE DAY THE MUSIC DIED DAY HISTORY
The observance commemorates the fateful day in 1959 when four young lives were cut short. When Don McLean’s “American Pie” hit the airwaves in 1972, the world came to know the day as “the day the music died’ from the line in the lyrics. Another line in the song reflected on the music of Buddy Holly & The Crickets. In their song “That’ll be the Day” the chorus goes like this:
“Well, that’ll be the day, when you say goodbye Yes, that’ll be the day, when you make me cry You say you’re gonna leave, you know it’s a lie ‘Cause that’ll be the day when I die“
In McLean’s “American Pie” his similar line appears in the chorus as well:
“Bye, bye Miss American Pie Drove my Chevy to the levee but the levee was dry And them good ole boys were drinking whiskey and rye Singin’ this’ll be the day that I die This’ll be the day that I die“
National Trails Day on the first Saturday in June recognizes all the incredible benefits federal, state and local trails provide for recreation and exposure nature. Events held throughout the United States help promote awareness of the wide variety of services the trails systems offer. National Trails Day encourages people to discover their local trials, become active concerning trail issues and share their excitement for the outdoors.
While hiking may be the first activity to come to mind, trails offer so much more! Trails provide access to waterways for canoeing and paddle trips. Birders find excellent opportunities for birdwatching and those seeking to test their abilities to observe and study geolocation enjoy geocaching. Others learn land navigation or use the trails for biking. Each of the pursuits creates an opportunity to spend time outdoors and generate an excellent cardiovascular workout.
Try some of these great ones below without leaving home
National Trails Day is also an opportunity to thank the many volunteers, land agencies, trail developers, park employees, rangers for their help in developing and maintaining the trails.
Visit your local trails. When possible, take a friend and try something new. Try a new trail, a new activity or introduce someone new to an activity you are skilled to pass on the experience to. Why keep it to yourself? Also, if you pack it in, pack it out. Show your appreciation to those who make the trail system possible. Use #NationalTrailsDay to post on social media.
On February 8, National Iowa Day recognizes The Hawkeye State.
The 29th state to join the United States is known for fertile prairie, rolling hills, raising innovative people and some nostalgic movie moments. From the Mississippi River to the harvests in Plymouth, Harrison or Fremont counties, Iowa’s history, beauty and hospitality flourish.
The state was named for Iowa Native Americans who populated the area when European settlement forced Eastern tribes westward.
Acquired as part of the Louisiana Purchase, Iowa Territory settlement didn’t start to take place until around the 1830s.
Other Fascinating Faces and Places
One of the later settlements that remain today is the Amana Colony. A congregation of the Community of True Inspiration, their faith and persecution in Germany led them to immigrate to America for religious freedom. Iowa supplied fertile farmland and a home for them to practice their skills and their beliefs. Today, they open their community to the public. Shop for handmade gifts, homemade baked goods, wine and stay for a home-cooked meal.
In the southwestern part of the state, Madison County boasts beautiful covered bridges which were featured in the movie by a similar name. While touring the bridges, be sure to stop by Winterset and take in the birthplace of John Wayne.
For fantastic performances in a historic rock and roll venue, check out the events at the Surf Ballroom. Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens, and The Big Bopper played their last concerts at the Surf Ballroom the night they perished in a plane crash near Clear Lake, Iowa.
Nature lovers will find plenty of adventure in Iowa. Effigy Mounds National Park will satisfy those with a mystical and historical curiosity. Rockhounds should seek out Geode State Park. The Corps of Discovery’s Louis and Clark Trail come through Iowa, too.
HOW TO OBSERVE #NationalIowaDay
From the Quad Cities to Shimek Forest, Iowa offers city and country to explore. Join National Day Calendar as we examine the 29th state’s dynamic people and pioneering history. Travel byways and discovery Iowa’s stunning scenery! Use #NationalIowaDay to share on social media.
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Kevin Costner (Actor), Amy Madigan (Actor), & 1 more](https://i0.wp.com/jensperspectiveblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/51srluxbxml189762718535426217.jpg?resize=133%2C160&ssl=1)
