The Grant Wood Scenic Byway begins at Iowa's eastern border in the town of Bellevue. Traveling westward, the byway picks up Route 64 at Maquoketa as it heads west to Anamosa, taking sightseers through rolling hills, prominent limestone outcroppings, scenic farmlands and small Iowa towns. The succession of hills, slowly rising upward from the Mississippi Valley, eventually broaden out as they roll westward. This byway is named for the artist, Grant Wood, who spent his years applying his eastern Iowa memories to a canvas. If the name Grant Wood eludes you, surely his American Gothic painting of a stoic farmer with pitchfork in hand, standing beside his daughter, will make the connection.
     This muted scene was found in Jackson County, nearby Route 64, and reveals a bare tree-line that has been affected by drought, well before the fall season arrived. The natural expectation of seeing a corn crop in the Hawkeye State is certainly fulfilled in this early morning view.