Road Trip Recap: Captain Dapper Loves Decorah, Iowa

Over the weekend, The Mister and I hopped in the Prius and headed west. Destination: Decorah, Iowa. We had recently learned about this charming little town and, with an ever present itch to get out of the city, we made it a road tip weekend. Just a five hour drive from Chicago, Decorah is in the northeast part of the state, an area that is known as the "driftless region." Once we crossed the Mississippi river, the landscape changed and the charm began.

It all started when someone recently said to us, "Oh, you guys would love Decorah, Iowa. They have a charming downtown with thriving small businesses, a recently renovated grande hotel and a food co-op." He had me at charming downtown. But as it turns out, there's a lot to love about this little burg beyond its old downtown. But let's start there...

Downtown Decorah is indeed charming. While most small towns are practically deserted, with shoppers choosing strip malls and Wal-marts over smaller downtown retailers, Decorah's is thriving. Almost every single old building along the little retail strip is occupied. There's an old JC Penney store mixed in with little indie businesses selling everything from clothing to kitchen goods. The anchor to downtown is the restored Hotel Winneshiek. The 31-room hotel is beautiful inside and out.

The town is very proud of its Nordic heritage. The Norwegian flag is proudly flown in shop windows and from front porches. And then there's the Vesterheim Norwegian-American Museum, which houses over 24,000 artifacts that "explore the diversity of American immigration through the lens of Norwegian-American experience."

After we pulled into town, we parked the car, grabbed the cameras and walked around. If you're a house gawker, you'd love Decorah, too. From gorgeously maintained Victorian houses to historic old churches, the town feels like a set from a Disney theme park. And not only is everything beautiful (with an assist from the colorful foliage of fall), but the people are quite friendly. As we walked around town, these two urban gay guys with cameras hanging from our necks, we were met with warm greetings and waves from passersby.

As we were standing at a stop light, waiting to cross the street, I remarked to The Mister that it felt like we had stepped back in time. And then this old car drove by. It felt as if we had passed through some sort of time warp on our drive from Chicago to Iowa. At the food co-op the next morning, we were talking with one of the employees, telling her how much we love the town.

"I saw you guys standing on the corner yesterday," she said. "I was driving the old white car."

"I got a great shot of your car!" I exclaimed.

Sadly, we had just missed the Northeast Iowa Artists' Studio Tours. The town and surrounding area play host to a long list of artists and signs dotted the streets to point out which studios were on the tour. Still, we were perfectly happy to walk the hilly streets of Decorah, snapping photos and slowing down.

So let's recap: what is there to love about Decorah, Iowa? Besides the thriving downtown, beautiful old architecture and gorgeous scenery, the town supports the arts, has a busy little food co-op and is as friendly as any place I have ever experience. Oh, yes, there's a lot to love! There's probably even more that we missed in our short little overnight stay.

I'll be back, Decorah. And maybe next time I won't leave.

Fore more information about Decorah, Iowa, check out these sites:

• Visit Decorah
• City of Decorah
• Luther College
• Inspired Media

Images: Jason Loper