Midwest Routes

[njdaniel]

I'm looking for some official maps of good loops in the Midwest, especially in Iowa. All the official maps seem to avoid the cornfields of iowa I am definitely craving a trip, but need something that will take about a week or less (<500 miles).  

I know RAGBRAI is an option, but I'm needing a real TOUR and not a party. Thanks!

[DU]

I don't know of any specific loops but Iowa does have a wealth of paved secondary roads. The Iowa DOT offers a state bicycle map with roads color coded as to the amount of vehicle traffic. Unlike some states it is the size of the usual road map and I think easier to grasp the overall picture, rather than flipping through 8-10 map sections. It also contains bike trail info. Here is a link.

 http://www.iowadotmaps.com/msp/pdf/bikemappdf.html

At the bottom of the page you can request a free printed version.

[roadrunner]

Iowa has hundreds of miles of bike trails which are shown on the Transportation Map for Bicyclists mentioned by DU.  Several of the trails are incorporated into the portion of the America Discovery Trail (a cross-US trail) that crosses Iowa.  The ADT would make for a good tour or part of one.  The ADT website provides a description of what's along the trail in each state.

[DU]

You could also use either the Northern Tier or the Lewis and Clark routes as part of a loop.

[RussellSeaton]

Whenever I need to ride from my house to some part of Iowa I haven't been to before I always get out the map mentioned in the link above.  Used it recently to figure out the route out to the RAGBRAI starting town and the route back from the last overnight town.  Always makes me feel smug and superior to ride to the RAGBRAI start town and home from near the RAGBRAI end town.  Also get a kick out of gloating to my friends that while they were driving home in an over crowded mini van, stopping along the road to let the engine cool, I was already home eating and drinking and getting ready for the next morning's ride.