When worries are many and problems loom large, there's nothing quite like star-gazing to help put things in perspective. And one of the best dark sky parks for that in the whole midwest is at Palisades-Kepler State Park in Mount Vernon, Iowa.
Located along the beautiful bluffs of the Cedar River near Cedar Rapids, Iowa, Palisades-Kepler State Park is a majestic park filled with scenic views, beautiful forests, wild animals, and dark skies.
With five miles of trails for hiking, a long stretch of river for fishing, and both a campground and four rustic family cabins, including an ADA accessible cabin, Palisades-Kepler State Park has everything you need for a peaceful escape into nature.
Bring your own linens for both cabin and campground stays. Both the cabins and the campground feature showers and restrooms.
The cabins also have stovetops and refrigerators. The campground provides a trailer dump station, and a quarter of the sites are first-come, first-served. Still, we always recommend playing it safe with a reservation!
There are also two picnic shelters and a large stone lodge event venue available for reservation at the park.
Many of the structures in this park were built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s. Well before that, early Native Americans constructed earthen Indian mounds here.
All of these things make this park uniquely suited for budding astronomers - you can step right outside your camper to view the skies in your very own dark sky park.
But they aren't the only things that set this park above the rest for star gazing. There's also the full sized observatory perched on the far end of Palisades-Kepler State Park on the Palisades-Dows Preserve.
Featuring several permanently mounted telescopes and a learning center, this facility offers unparalleled views of the universe! Note that the observatory is open to all during publicly scheduled events, but to visit at leisure to use the equipment, you must join the Cedar Amateur Astronomers club.
Have you ever taken the time to explore the many hidden treasures this park contains? Did you remember to look up at the sky once the night fell?
To learn more about booking a stay at Palisades-Kepler State Park, head over to the Iowa State Parks website. Learn more about the night sky observatory perched on its border here.
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