Adair County: Discover Prairie, Nature, and History

Adair County combines expansive prairie, wooded natural areas, lakes, and an unusually diverse history. You can spend a day of your vacation by the water, hike along mowed trails through prairie and woodland, or explore railroad, aviation, and regional history. When choosing your vacation rental or vacation home, it is therefore especially useful to consider which experiences should be the focus: nature and paddling, culture and history, or a mixture of both.

Nature Experiences Among Lakes, Woods, and Prairie

Lake Orient is a 24-acre lake stocked with channel catfish, sunfish, crappie, and bass. Lake Orient has campsites with electrical and water hookups, a shower and shelter building, a playground, and a boat ramp. An approximately 2-mile mowed grass hiking trail adds to the recreational opportunities at the lake. This allows you to combine time by the water with a walk without spending the entire day on the lake.

The Ken Sidey Nature Area offers more space for woodland and nature observation. The 107-acre forest preserve has 3 miles of hiking trails and is suitable for birdwatching as well as collecting mushrooms and berries. The Karl & Grace Correll Wildlife Area covers 45 acres, including 30 acres of restored prairie. There, 1.5 miles of mowed trails lead through tall prairie grass; a footbridge is also part of the trail.

The Hoskins Wildlife Area also has its own distinctive character. It covers 120 acres and includes a 2-acre pond stocked with fish. There is also a butterfly habitat. The Middle River Forest Area consists of 38 acres of wooded lowland and higher forested terrain. It is also the upstream starting point of the Middle River Water Trail. The 38.6-mile paddling route passes through the American heartland, alongside limestone outcrops, wooded areas, historic bridges, and wildlife.

Prairie Art and Regional History

Wallace Farm in Orient is the birthplace farm of Henry A. Wallace. It offers self-guided tours every day at any time of day or evening. Five outdoor sculptures stand along an approximately three-quarter-mile prairie walking trail. Each year, the Prairie Art Exhibit presents more than 80 paintings created by members of the local community in a 9-acre restored Iowa prairie. From June through September, the exhibit is open as a free, self-guided walk from sunrise to sunset. On summer Fridays, Pizza on the Prairie adds wood-fired pizza, farm-grown vegetables, locally sourced meat, and live music.

At Jesse James Historical Park, a 7-acre restored section of prairie commemorates a famous episode in railroad history. On display are the large wheel of a steam locomotive and a plaque marking the site of the train robbery. The Jesse James Gang carried out the world’s first robbery of a moving train on July 21, 1873, one and a half miles west of Adair, Iowa. The Adair County Heritage Museum takes a broader look at the region: The five-acre complex includes eight buildings reflecting the history of Adair County.

The Iowa Aviation Museum at the airport in Greenfield, Iowa, which opened in 1990, focuses on historic aircraft and related memorabilia. The museum also includes an Aviation Hall of Fame and a library with photographs and accounts of Iowans who contributed to the development of aviation. The Saints Center for Culture and the Arts features a restored historic Byzantine church with a main hall with a vaulted ceiling and a historic winter chapel.

Historic Routes and Varied Vacation Days

The White Pole Road connects the communities of Adair, Casey, Menlo, Stuart, and Dexter. Along the route, you can trace the history of an abandoned wagon trail, former parallel railroad lines, and the development of road transportation in rural Iowa. The road recalls an unpaved route from the early 20th century; in suitable weather, you can explore remaining sections of the officially planned 1913 route. This creates an excursion theme that combines landscape with transportation history.

When searching for a suitable vacation rental in Adair County, you can use these differences as a guide for your decision. Those who want to combine water activities and wildlife observation will find several different nature themes at Lake Orient, the Wildlife Areas, and the Middle River Water Trail. For days focused on cultural history, options include Wallace Farm, the Adair County Heritage Museum, the Iowa Aviation Museum, Jesse James Historical Park, and the White Pole Road. You can also visit Adair for further orientation in the area.

Compare More Destinations

For further travel planning, Carroll, Polk, Jackson, Kossuth County, Hancock County, Jefferson County, and Ida County are also available.

To the higher-level travel overview: Iowa.