Iowa

Like the rest of the Midwest, Iowa has a four-season climate. Winter weather gives its first hints of what's to come around October 1st, when you can expect to see frost on windshields some mornings. What the gardeners call a killing frost – and hay fever sufferers call the best day of the year – usually follows about two weeks later. The afternoons in October can still be warm enough to wear short sleeves outdoors. In the core winter months of December, January, and February, it is typical for the highest temperature to be somewhere around the freezing point. The first good snow usually appears in late November, and it will continue snowing off and on until sometime in March. All together, it's typical to get two to three feet of snow spread out over the winter, with less in the southern parts of the state and more in the northern areas.

The first sign of spring is the mud revealed melting snow, followed by the plum and cherry trees beginning to blossom. It will usually gets up into the low 70s for the first time around April 1st, but you will want to keep at least a jacket, sweatshirt, or other warm clothing through early May, as it's normal for the temperatures to occasionally dip below freezing overnight until past Mother's Day in May. April through July are the wettest months, with some amount of rain on more than a third of the days. Tornadoes are possible any time of year, but most common in spring and summer. From May to September, you will want to have mosquito spray handy if you are going to be outside around dusk.

While it has occasionally snowed and hailed during the summer, that is due to cold temperatures in the upper atmosphere, rather than what it feels like on the ground. Summer afternoons tend to be hot and can be extremely humid. When it's particularly hot and humid, you can sound like a local by turning your complaint into reminder about the benefits: "It's good corn-growing weather". June, July, and August will all see some days in the 90s, but most days, the late afternoon temperature will be in the low 80s, and the overnight temperature will dip into the 60s.

Children start going back to school in the latter part of August, and the state fair in early September marks the turning point in the seasons, when summer is truly over and winter is on its way again.

• Travel Iowa website

The biggest airport in Iowa is centrally located, in the state capital of Des Moines (DSM ^IATA). The second most popular is the Eastern Iowa Airport (CID ^IATA) in Cedar Rapids, on the east side of the state. There are also very small airports in Dubuque (DBQ ^IATA), Sioux City (SUX ^IATA), Waterloo (ALO ^IATA), Burlington (BRL ^IATA), Fort Dodge (FOD  ^IATA), and Mason City (MCW  ^IATA) that support scheduled passenger service.

For travellers flying their own planes, there are dozens of general aviation airports, and hundreds of flying strips.

Most people enter (and leave) Iowa via I-80 if coming from the east or west, or I-35 from the north or south. Both interstates are easy to navigate, as are many Midwestern states. A couple of 50-mile-long straight sections on the former has done more to perpetuate the stereotype that Iowa is nearly flat and empty than just about anything else, but the perception is not true: Iowa wouldn't even make a top-10 list for flattest states. Its neighbor Illinois would, however; Illinois is flatter than any US state except Florida and Louisiana.

If you want to see the true face of the state, get off the interstate, ignore the fast-food signs, and find one of the small towns that make the Midwest so charming. Driving US Highway 6 across the state takes about 5.5 hours; it runs parallel to I-80 through most of the state but lets you see more variety. For a north–south trip, consider US Highway 69 through Des Moines or US Highway 218 through Cedar Rapids and Waterloo. State maps are available free of charge at state "Welcome Centers" and rest areas. State maps list such points of interest as Cedar Rock, a rare Usonian example of Frank Lloyd Wright architecture, and scenic routes, often found on county roads.

• Burlington Trailways
• Greyhound
• Jefferson Lines

• Amtrak (Amtrak code OSC) (I-35 S to US-34 E exit, turn right at S Ridge Rd), toll-free: +1 800-USA-RAIL (872-7245). Amtrak station, in Osceola at Main and E Clay Sts, is 45 mi (72 km) due south of Des Moines via I-35. In the town there are not many traveler services, unless you count the casino. Greyhound runs through Osceola. 

Amtrak's Chicago/Denver/San Francisco route also makes stops at Omaha (just across the Missouri River from Council Bluffs), Creston (south-central Iowa), and Ottumwa, Mt. Pleasant and Burlington in southeastern Iowa. The Chicago-Los Angeles route stops in Fort Madison as it clips across the southeasternmost corner of the state in route to Kansas City.

• The American Discovery Trail connects Iowa with Nebraska, Illinois, and both coasts.

Most people get around Iowa by car. The roads in much of Iowa – like much of the Midwest – are laid out on a grid pattern. Drive on any of the state's outer highways, and you will quickly come to realize that there is an intersection at nearly every mile. This makes figuring out where you are, and getting from there to where you need to be, a relatively simple undertaking. It also means that if you ask for directions, people are likely to give directions according to the points on a compass. If someone says to go one mile east and three miles north, and you're feeling all turned around, don't be shy about asking which way you need to go.

Travelers unaccustomed to ice and snow may have trouble driving in Iowa winters. Plan ahead if you need to travel during the colder parts of the year. Special snow tires or chains aren't usually needed, but you do need to know how to drive in winter conditions. Check the weather reports and road conditions well in advance, and give yourself plenty of time. If the snowplows have been called out, you should wait until they've cleared the roads. Drive slower than normal, and triple the amount of space you leave between your vehicle and the one in front of you. Turn and brake gently, and be ready to cope with an unseen patch of ice, especially on and around bridges.

Major routes in the state include:

• Interstate 80: The state's major east-west interstate, it services major cities including Davenport, Bettendorf, Iowa City, Des Moines and Council Bluffs. Most other major cities including Cedar Rapids and Ames are within a half hour drive of I-80.
• Interstate 35: The state's major north-south interstate, it services Ames and Des Moines as well as regional cities such as Mason City and Indianola.
• Interstate 380: A branch of Interstate 80, the route connects Iowa City to Waterloo via Cedar Rapids. The route terminates at US 20.
• Interstate 29: Connecting Kansas City to Omaha and Sioux Falls, the route mostly traces the Iowa–Nebraska border and connects Council Bluffs to Sioux City.
• US 30: America's first transcontinental highway, US 30 runs through the center of Iowa connecting Clinton, Cedar Rapids, Marshalltown, Ames, Denison and Missouri Valley.
• US 20: Another major transcontinental highway, US 20 enters Iowa at Dubuque and services Waterloo, Fort Dodge and Sioux City.
• US 151: Originating in the Amana Colonies, this route heads northeast connecting Cedar Rapids and Dubuque.

Information on transit can be found here.

• 50 Most Significant Iowa Buildings of the 20th Century, Iowa. As published on the Iowa Public Television website. A complete list of the 50 buildings selected by the AIA-Iowa Chapter as the most significant Iowa buildings of the 20th century. 

• Field of Dreams, Dyersville. Various Websites. Considered one of baseball's most-treasured landmarks. The field is the same used in the film, Field of Dreams, nominated by the Academy Awards for Best Film of the Year of 1989. The film, based upon W.P. Kinsella's book Shoeless Joe, starred Kevin Costner and James Earl Jones. The field is owned by two families amid much controversy. No admission is charged to visit the field. Various events, including baseball and softball games, take place on the field at various times during the year. 

The rural parts of Iowa are quite safe, with many people not bothering to lock their car doors. A traveler should take a more common-sense approach when visiting more populous areas, such as Council Bluffs, Davenport, or Des Moines, as these areas have crime rates resembling those of typical mid-sized American cities.

For the most part, a traveler will find that most Iowans are friendly, warm, and happy to help if you have trouble.

Iowa experiences all four seasons in abundance: winter, mud, road construction, and football. Football season produces few travel-related problems beyond a weekly traffic jam near each football field. The first hard frost arrives during football season, which makes things a bit slippery underfoot early in the morning, but it also releases thousands of people from the months-long grip of hay fever. However, the other three seasons can present travelers with severe weather and unexpected changes in conditions.

Thunderstorms are common. Thunderstorms are possible at any time, as long as the temperature is above the freezing point.

Flooding can block roads. This is mainly a problem in the spring, when the combination of melting snow and additional rain saturates the ground and fills the rivers.

Iowa resides in the unofficial "tornado alley" and sees about 50 tornadoes each year. The tornadoes are mostly considered weak (which is still very strong, by everyday standards for wind) and typically damage some trees, break a few windows, and blow over signs and other things. They primarily appear in the southwest edge of the state, but tornadoes can be found occasionally elsewhere in the state, especially in spring and summer months.

With that in mind, pay attention to weather conditions and frequently update yourself via television or radio of any potential severe weather threats while traveling to or through the state. Conditions can change rapidly, and you do not want to find yourself inadvertently in the path of a dangerous storm.

For more information on this issue, read the Tornado safety page.

While perhaps neither as cold nor as windy as the Dakotas, Iowa winters can still be brutal. Frequent heavy snow storms are possible throughout the winter and even occasionally into April. Ice storms and freezing rain can make roads extremely treacherous. Most major highways are well maintained, but driving on country roads in the wake of a winter storm can be nerve-racking to say the least. If you choose to travel in winter, keep yourself informed about local weather and road conditions through television, radio, and/or the Iowa DOT website.

Most heavy snow storms in Iowa aren't quite windy enough to qualify as blizzards, but the best advice for traveling during these storms is the same: avoid leaving your home, hotel, or other building, if at all possible. If you do go out, take extra clothes or blankets, bottled water, a cell phone, and a shovel in your vehicle. If you find yourself stranded, stay with your car, bundle up, and wait for help to arrive. Low visibility makes it easy to get turned around and lost if you set out on your own, and dangerous wind chill can cause a person to freeze very quickly.