Now that summer is in the air, it’s a great time to get out and take a road
trip! Here are just a few things you can do in the area around Palmer’s
Davenport Campus. Included are the miles away from campus for each location.
• West
Lake Park – Davenport, Iowa (7.61 miles)
West Lake Park consists of 620 acres and has four
lakes for swimming and/or fishing, picnic facilities, playgrounds and
campgrounds.
•
Scott
County Park – Eldridge, Iowa (9 miles)
Scott County Park is made up of 1,280 acres, has 12
picnic areas, a baseball field, playgrounds, a radio-controlled airplane site,
nature trails, an equestrian area, an Olympic-size heated swimming pool, and
five camping areas. Also located on the grounds is the Walnut Grove Pioneer
Village, which has 18 historic buildings and is the location of a Scott County
cross-roads settlement and stage coach stop of the 1860s.
• Niabi Zoo – Coal Valley, Ill.
(12.08 miles away)
Niabi Zoo is home to
more than 900 animals representing more than 160 species. The zoo grounds cover
40 acres, and an additional 200 acres is set aside for native flora and fauna
preservation. The animals include: elephants, giraffes, Bengal tigers, lions,
bald eagles, American bison and much more.
• LeClaire, Iowa(17.14 miles)
LeClaire is a Midwestern historic river town alongside
the Mississippi. It’s the birthplace of Buffalo Bill and is currently receiving
acclaim as the home base for the History Channel’s hit show “American Pickers.” The town offers antique and
boutique shopping, a gallery, the Mississippi River Distilling Company, Buffalo Bill Museum and more.
• Wildcat
Den State Park – Muscatine, Iowa (19.62 miles)
Wildcat Den offers camping, trails, picnicking,
cliffs, rock formations, and historic structures. The 1848 Pine Creek Grist Mill and Pine Mill Bridge are
both on the National Register of Historic Places.
• Bishop Hill, Ill. (46.39
miles)
Founded in 1846 by a group of Swedish
immigrants, Bishop Hill is a National Landmark Village, listed in the National
Register of Historic Places and is an Illinois State Historic Site. The small
village offers museums, unique gift shops, art galleries and seasonal
festivals.
• Herbert Hoover National Historic
Site– Westbranch, Iowa (46.53 miles)
The Herbert Hoover Presidential Library and Museum is
located on a 187-acre park administered by the National Park Service. The Museum
is one of 13 Presidential Libraries administered by the National Archives and
Records Administration.
•Iowa
City/Coralville, Iowa(57.05 miles)
Attractions include: the Englert
Theatre, museums (including the African
American Museum of Iowa), international cuisine, night clubs, shops,
pedestrian mall, and Hancher Auditorium, Coralville Mall, Sleepy
Hollow RV Park & Campground, Riverside Theatre, and more.
• Amana Colonies – Amana,
Iowa (78.71 miles)
The Amana Colonies are
seven villages that were settled by German Pietists in 1855. The Colonies were listed
as a National Historic Landmark in 1965. They are one of America’s longest-lived
communal societies (1855 to the mid 1930s). Today’s Colonies offer historic
homes an buildings, the Amana Heritage Museum, Communal Kitchen and Cooper Shop,
High Amana General Store, Communal Agriculture Museum, Amana Community Church
Museum, Homestead Store Museum, Homestead Blacksmith Shop, and more.
• Galena, Ill. (85.33 miles)
Featured on Yahoo Travel as a “time-warp town,” Galena was a
lead-mining town established in 1826. Galena’s historic district is on the
National Register of Historic Places and includes more than 1,000 mostly brick
and stone buildings. The town is home to antique stores, boutique shops, art
galleries, spas and more. The area is very scenic and offers opportunities for
hiking, biking, kayaking, golfing and winter sports, including downhill skiing
and snowboarding. Historic locations include: Galena’s oldest home (Dowling
House), Old Blacksmith Shop, Old Market House, Old Stockade, and Ulysses S.
Grant Home.
•
Starved Rock
State Park – Oglesby/Utica, Ill. (95.06 miles)
Starved Rock State Park contains 2,630 acres of
forests with waterfalls, canyons, sandstone rock formations, river and bluff
trails, and amazing views of the Illinois River. The 18 canyons wee formed by
glacial meltwater and stream erosion. In 2010, more than two million visitors
came to Starved Rock to hike, horseback ride, cross-country ski, fish, boat,
camp and more.
•
The House on
the Rock – Spring Green, Wis. (130.79 miles)
The House portion of House on the Rock was designed
and built in the 1940s by Alex Jordan. The 14-room house rests on a 60-foot
chimney of sandstone rock, overlooking the Wyoming Valley. Over the years, the
attraction has expanded to include the Infinity Room (with glass walls
projecting over the valley), gardens, exhibits, and a massive collection of
unique items (including “the world’s largest indoor carousel,” 200-foot model of
a sea creature, “Streets of Yesterday,” a collection of automatic music
machines, and much more).
Looking for something off the beaten path? Check out
these unusual attractions:
• Raven’s Grin Inn –
Mount Carroll, Ill. (64.13 miles)
Raven’s Grin Inn is a haunted house like no other.
Open year-round, Raven’s Grin isn’t your usual haunted house filled with gore
and people jumping out at you in costumes. It’s combination of junk art and an
old-fashioned spook house. The Chicago Tribune calls it “something resembling
The House on the Rock (see listing above) as remodeled by Beetlejuice.” Call
before you go. Specialty group tours are available.
•Future Birthplace of James T.
Kirk – Riverside, Iowa (79.71 miles)
If you’re a “Star Trek” fan, you will definitely want
to visit the future hometown of Captain Kirk! And don’t miss the annual TrekFest, June 24-25.
• Field of Dreams
Movie Site® – Dyersville, Iowa (88.52 miles)
“Is this Heaven? No, it’s Iowa.” Relive the 1989
Academy Award-nominated movie during a visit to the baseball diamond in a
cornfield. Field of Dreams is open April 1 through Nov. 30 from 9 a.m. to 6
p.m.