The Day the Music Died

July 26, 2015

Gravel Road through the fields of Iowa

There are four kinds of roads in Iowa - dirt, gravel, blacktop and pavement. We drove on all of them. One thing in common - the lightly rolling roads all travel through fields of feed corn and soybeans. There's a new way to grow corn. I remember as a kid visiting Uncle Lou's farm in Westminster, we could walk between the rows of corn. We'd get lost in the tall corn. Today, the corn is still planted in rows, but they are tightly packed up against one another to increase the yield per acre. So, there's no getting lost in the corn maze, 'cause you can't even get in-between the rows of corn.

Wind Turbines are big business for the farmers of Iowa

The other big product of farming is wind energy. The alternative energy companies have all swept through and given the farm owners a new way to make money. If the farmer gives them the right-of-way to put one of their million-dollar wind turbines in the middle of their corn field, the farmer will collect $3,000 a month in rent. So now, when you look out over the fields of Iowa, you see the area dotted with wind turbines, making energy for America's future.

Dolly settles in at Clear Lake State Park

Clear Lake Soft Serve Stand

We camped in the lovely Clear Lake State Park. Just about all the license plates on the vehicles in the park campground were Iowa plates. It certainly is a place that is the opposite of the farm communities of Iowa. It felt more like being on the Jersey Shore. Lots of fun beach shops, burger stands, ice cream stands, and a sweet little downtown area right on the lake. Every night we went downtown, there were activities - music in the band shell, families picnicking, strolls along the waterfront and out on the piers.

A reminder of that night

Original ad for the show

And then, there's the legendary Surf Ballroom. It's a large venue for such a small town. The capacity is 2200. They were booked every night we were in Clear Lake. Kenny Wayne Shepherd played a concert Thursday night. Sir Mix-A-Lot was there Friday night. We stopped in Saturday night and got to tour the venue. The walls are covered with remembrances of "the day the music died." February 3, 1959. Buddy Holly, Richie Valens, Dion and the Belmonts and The Big Bopper played the Surf Ballroom. Buddy Holly, Richie Valens and The Big Bopper got into a small plane with an inexperienced pilot to fly ahead of the rest of the musicians to their next gig in Fargo. The rest is history, as chronicled in Don McLean's "American Pie."

Winnebago Lutheran Church

Iowa is also the home of Cheri's parents, Dean & Carol. We drove through the corn and soybean fields to visit her grandparent's home, her Aunt and Uncle, and Winnebago Lutheran Church, the church she and her family attended. It was a beautiful church, built 150 years ago and still looking as beautiful as ever. Cheri spent an hour walking through the graveyard pointing out all her relatives.

Iowa Skies are full of emotions

One strong memory I will have is one of the most amazing storms I have ever been in. It happened on Friday morning of our visit. We were awakened in the middle of the night by constant flashes of lightning. It was a light show I've never seen before. One flash would start before the previous flash ended. A constant light from the night sky coming from all different directions. And a rolling thunder that just rumbled and rumbled with no real distinctive thunderclap. This went on for about a half hour, and then the rain came. Terrential downpour, and now with distinctive lightning flashes and loud thunderclaps. It went on for an hour or so, then a reprieve, and then another wave of the storm. When the second wave hit, our phones both had alarms going off that flash flooding was expected. And sure enough, the roads around Clear Lake were flooding and South Shore Drive was closed.Over 4 inches of rain within a few hours.That's as much rain as San Francisco gets in an entire winter month! It was an exciting storm to go through. However, it also reminded me how vulnerable we are in our little home. I can only imagine the fear a tornado would bring.

Clear Lake at sunset

I did not know what to expect visiting Iowa. I was pleasantly surprised how beautiful it was. It's very green. The people are friendly as can be. "You drove all the way here from California? WHY?" We went into a coffee shop in Mason City that could have easily been in Portland or San Francisco. Tons of 'tats and hipsters.

We now head North into Minnesota where tonight we'll be camping on another lake. There certainly are a lot of them around!