The last stop on the Inner Elementary Teacher/History Geek Road Trip was not a historical site, didn't tie back to a Kiddie Lit book, or required an admission. It was merely added to the trip to get me to another county in Wisconsin (64 out of 72). Honestly I didn't care if it was even on the bucket list. I wanted to cross of Buffalo County and originally planned on just driving back through Mondovi just to cross it off. However, while exploring the Internet, I discovered Alma wasn't all that far from Pepin and that I would get to travel part of the Great River Road (Hwy 35). Then I saw that you could actually stop at an overlook in Alma, it sealed the deal. Later I discovered that Buena Vista Park and Overlook was on the bucket list.
Great River Road
This was the best part of the entire trip. The drive and the views were amazing. My original plan was to hike to the top of the overlook and back down. However, some how I missed the the Nature Center where the trail began and ended up driving to the top of the overlook. In hindsight, this was probably for the best. It probably would have taken me longer than I had time to hike to the top. It was a long way up and I wasn't prepared for quite a hike.
The view of the dam.
Once I made it up windy road to the overlook, I was greeted with an amazing view of the dam and the Mississippi. There was no guard rail at the end of the over look and I was afraid of slipping and tumbling down over the steep embankment. So I didn't get very close to the edge. I don't think the hubby would have been too happy if I killed myself by trying to get the perfect picture.
The Mississippi
When I got to the top, I found the end of the trail, I thought for a second to hike down and back up. Then I realized that once I got to the bottom, I would have climb back up and that just didn't sound like fun. As I was heading back down into Alma, I saw a hand written sign for winery up another windy road and I thought as much as I like to visit a winery, it didn't sound a fun thing to do alone. Nor did I want to navigate the windy roads after some wine.
Unless you're afraid of heights or get motion sick, go for a Sunday drive over to Alma and check out the views from the Buena Vista Overlook. All it's going to cost you is gas. If you are real ambitious try hiking the trail to the top. Alma seems like a quaint little town that I'd check out too. I didn't have time to find a parking spot and explore. The dam looks to be worth checking out. There's cute shops to stop in and don't forget that winery on top of the hill. One day I will get back and explore the little river town.
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