Summer adventure #5 Hiking at Geode State Park in Iowa

Geode State Park is located about 20 minutes Southwest of Burlington, Iowa. Sally and I decided to check out this park, as I have wanted to for a few years. I remembered to check in to get my 200 points on my Iowa State Park Passport 2026. It was a nice day with some humidity, but there was a nice breeze. The park has a campground, a beach along the lake for swimming, boat ramps, picnic areas for day use, and a few trails, with the main one being the lake loop. We decided to take the lake trail, and the posted map at the beach said 6.2 miles, but later I looked online, and the map there said 7.5 miles. The online map is more accurate without a doubt.

We went left from the beach. We saw a mink in a small feeder creek. That was cool because I have not seen a mink while hiking before. Going the direction we did kept us in the wooded area with no views of the lake. We were at least halfway around the lake before we got more consistent views of it.

We were probably 2 miles from finishing, and I had run out of water. This is one reason I will be getting a water filtration system. I was also feeling it because, although I have done a lot this summer, hiking hasn't been one of them. There is only so much time available to do what you want to do. At about 1.5 miles on the trail, we came upon a picnic area and bathroom. There was a water pump, but it wasn't labeled as potable. I really didn't want to drink much, but I did fill my water bottles, let them settle, and took a drink. The lesson is to be more prepared and remember your limits.

We decided to walk along the road; the GPS said it was shorter that way. I flagged down a car, and the nice family gave us a ride back to the beach area. I was thankful for them and happy to have fresh water and some food. We did manage to dodge the rain, although that might have been refreshing.

If I go back to this park, I would hike again but be more prepared. I would start at the beach again but go the opposite direction. It just had more views of the lake. I would also do an out-and-back, turning around at the road that crosses the lake.

On the way home, we stopped at Grandpa's Homemade Ice Cream. It was delicious.

Hopefully I will get some more hiking in this fall.