Nature Between Creek, Lake, and Arboretum
Eden Valley Park and Preserve stretches across 201 acres along Bear Creek. Limestone cliffs and wooded hills shape the landscape, which is home to numerous plant and animal species. The creek, cliffs, and forest offer different ways to experience nature.
Malone Park includes a 9-acre lake where fishing and swimming are possible. The park also has a wetland and a 12-hole disc golf course. You can plan around different activities: water activities at the lake or disc golf on the course; the wetland adds a distinct landscape type to these options.
Bickelhaupt Arboretum offers a different focus: It is a 15-acre outdoor museum with more than 600 conifer cultivars. It also features a monarch butterfly observation station and an area for birds. The large number of cultivars highlights the diversity of conifers; the other two areas complement this focus on plants with butterflies and birds.
River and Trails
The Blue Heron Eco Cruise takes you with naturalists through backwaters, oxbow lakes, and the main channel of the Mississippi. The river experience spans backwaters and side channels to the main channel. Public cruises are free, and reservations are required. Since reservation arrangements may change, check them before your cruise.
Eagle Point Park also brings together different attractions. The Castle is a stone tower built by the WPA in the 1930s. A stone spiral staircase leads up to an observation platform. The two disc golf courses can be distinguished by their specifications: Malone Park has 12 holes; the Eagle Point Park Disc Golf Course is a par-60 course along the park’s north entrance road. At the south entrance, about 3 miles of trails run through wetland, forest, and prairie habitats. The trail length is approximate; the three habitat types give an idea of the landscapes the trails pass through.
Lumber History, Theater, and Winemaking
The Sawmill Museum presents the history of American sawmilling, lumber, and forestry through Clinton’s rich lumber history. Interactive exhibits include a logging camp, a water table with floating logs, a video game about floating a log raft, and animatronic lumber barons. Both lumber work and log rafting are therefore among the museum’s themes. The collections broaden the focus beyond the exhibits: They include lumber finishing equipment from the 1900s, various saws and tools used by loggers, items from local sawmills, Curtis furniture, and equipment from a turn-of-the-century fire station.
The Clinton Showboat Theatre is a professional summer theater on the banks of the Mississippi in Iowa. Classic theatrical productions are presented aboard a 75-year-old Mississippi riverboat. The program also includes educational offerings that introduce young people from Clinton to the performing arts, either as participants or as attentive audience members. Both the productions and arts education are at the heart of the experience aboard the boat.
Another attraction is winemaking at Wide River Winery’s Clinton location. The vineyard covers 16 acres and grows red and white grape varieties for cool climates. The winery offers tours of the winery and vineyard. Since tour schedules may change, check the current times before including a tour in your plans.
Discover more destinations: Clinton, DeWitt, Decatur County, Iowa County, O'Brien County, Emmet County, Hardin County, Dubuque.
For the main travel overview: Iowa.
