December 14, 2020
2020 has been the year for the outdoors. It has been a refuge and provided solitude as we have endured a year of challenge. It has been our friend and offered comfort in times of need and allowed us to take a breath while we think about the heaviness of…
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November 17, 2020
I was riding my bike south on the Neal Smith Trail to the Downtown Farmer’s Market when I looked over at the river and saw a single sculler rowing upstream. I want to do that, I thought. So, I contacted Des Moines Rowing and they taught me how to…
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November 9, 2020
I remember the first time I visited the High Trestle Trail Bridge. I went to see the artistic, spiraling steel cribs but left even more inspired by the Des Moines River valley below. Before the blue lights lit up the bridge that night, I was illuminated by a snaking river…
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October 26, 2020
I have a confession to make. I am not from Iowa. Even after 21 years in this state, it is hard to give up my identity as a Minnesotan. And despite all of the Iowa Nice, I don’t always feel like I belong here. People here have deep roots. I…
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October 19, 2020
Every winter, as the state of Iowa goes into hibernation, we love to make big plans for when the seasons turn to “shorts weather,” or 50 roughly degrees. Each approaching summer promises to be the summer that you do the thing and hone a new skill. The summer to get…
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August 28, 2020
The West Des Moines Parks and Recreation Department completed their first of five signature projects as part of the Five Waters Project. The Raccoon River Park Boathouse opened on Thursday, July 23. The Boathouse is located in the 631-acre Raccoon River Park located at 2500 Grand Avenue…
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