It sounded like raindrops. Looking up from our steep path, it was leaves, dripping from the very tops of the maples and hickories and walnuts. Slowly at first, then gaining speed, they cascaded into one another as we watched them from our perched path.
More than 200 mounds are located in this national monument.
It is quiet as is fitting for a sacred place
It is breathtakingly beautiful.
The path we took was steep and strenuous in parts with many switch backs. It was worth every step.
Come with me for a spell, won’t you?
Be sure to click on the next picture to find the fisherman in the boat. You may need to click a second time.
We did not take pictures of the mounds. They are sacred and we honor that. The mounds are believed to have been built more than a thousand years ago in much of the eastern and midwestern United States. Some mounds are conical and are believed to hold human remains. Other mounds are in the shape of bears and birds. This is the largest grouping of effigies in the States. It was dedicated as a national monument by President Harry Truman in 1949.
Monuments are not always statues and stones.
Lifeonthecutoff's Blog 
That’s a pretty steep trail, my kids would love it. Beautiful pictures, with the colors starting to change. I can’t show Bill the boat, he will want to go fishing. I didn’t know you can click twice and it gets even bigger, see, learn something new every day, its that teacher in you, never stops working…
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It was quite a hike, especially for me, but, I did it. We were very high up at the point where you see the boat. It’s the Mississippi and Prairie Du Chien, WI is on the other side. The other picture Tom took and you can see the railroad tracks. It was just so beautiful and peaceful Sharon. I’m sure Billy and Wendy would love it. No cars. No camping. Lots of trails to hike.
Glad the teacher came out in me and you could see closer.
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Lovely photos and a very beautiful area for a hike. Thanks for sharing this interesting piece of history. I did not know about these effigy mounds. I learn so much from my favorite bloggers.
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I know what you mean, Sunday, as I learned so much from your blog on Duncan Grant, spending even more time after reading your wonderful article searching the internet for Grant. The mounds are quite large and rise out of the ground. I can just imagine the wonderment of those coming upon them for the first time. The effigy bears are interesting. Thanks for stopping by.
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Breathtaking photos Penny! I didn’t even know about these mounds – another great trip to make! The burial mounds sound so much like the fairy forts and ring forts in Ireland, some of which are thought to be burial mounds and some the remains of ancient settlements.
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Thanks, Janet. I didn’t know they were there until we started planning this little side trip. I am so glad we stopped at the park and took the hike. It was phenomenal. You know, it is only a four/five hour drive on I80 then up some scenic roads. There are plenty of places to stop and stay overnight and this area is really Americana!
Can you just imagine, the fairy forts being made in Ireland while effigy mounds were in Iowa!.
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You see, this is the stuff I had no idea about. What an amazing place and these mounds….must look up any archaeological work which has been done on them! A stunning set of pictures, and how beautifully you craeted the calm that goes with such a sacred site. Thanks for this beautiful post, Penny.
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Thank you, Kate. I would venture to say that many Americans don’t know about the mounds either and so many of them were destroyed over the years as farms and towns were built as the nation expanded westward. Thank goodness they were discovered and preserved. Good luck in your archeological digging. I wish you could see these – and the forest where they rest.
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What a beautiful place, and you evoke it so fully. I can feel the serenity and spaciousness from here. No wonder it became a sacred site. I love the way you begin, with the sound of the leaves falling, and that beautiful photo of a light green window amongst the trees.
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Thank you, Juliet. Your words are so kind. I’m glad you feel the serenity of the monument. It was palpable as we walked and the realization of the men and women who came there more than one thousand years ago is so humbling.
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P.S. I have just finished ‘Gardening for a Lifetime’, and thank you for connecting me with this special book, which I loved. Here is a gift back to you: in the chapter on borrowed landscapes, she says ‘What the eye can see, the heart can possess.’ That’s exactly what I felt in looking at your photos in this post.
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Oh, Juliet, this is such a special gift to receive. You are a dear. Thank you.
I’m glad you liked “Gardening for a Lifetime”, doubly so in gifting me wish such a wonderful phrase.
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Beautiful photos. What a nice way you have of extending your trip! You share it with all of us. The fisherman looks so peaceful, and the trails are amazing. This is the perfect season for this. Thanks for sharing.
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Thank you, Janet. I like to share and I get to, as you say, extend the trip in the doing of it. We really were fortunate in seeing so many things in such a short time and visiting the mounds was a special morning adventure for us. I thought the fisherman looked peaceful, too. We were about 300 feet up at that point.
Have you been to the Cahokia Mounds?
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I have had a brief drive through but not really a visit. We are near Dixon Mounds. When I was a child, they had a building over the excavation. We could actually walk around on a walkway and view the skeletons. Even as a child, I felt like that was invasive. They have since covered that, and the museum still exists. It is a lovely site now. It is one of the stops on the Spoon River Drive.
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I would feel the same way, Janet. I understand that excavation is part of the archeological process and how we learn, but, it is a violation of the burial sites. It is good to know that it is such a lovely place now.
Thanks.
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We saw some burial mounds once when we were in Georgia….these ones sound more elaborate (that’s not the right word, but it’s the best I can come up with at the moment)….it looks like a beautiful place and even without seeing the mounds themselves there is a spiritual quality about the area. Thank you.
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Elaborate works here, Sallie. I think these mounds are the only ones that have so many effigies. The bear effigies are so long, mounded quite high, and you can make out the shape. It is amazing. We have some mounds in Illinois, Cahokia, which, I am sorry to say, I haven’t been to. It is interesting that they have been found from the east coast to the Mississippi river valley. It was so very beautiful and, yes, spiritual.
You’re very welcome.
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I’ve visited many different mound sites, but never this one. I had heard it’s spectacular, and your photos illustrate that beautifully. What a wonderful thing to do. It sounds like you had a pretty nice trip!
I may need to take a little road trip next summer.
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You heard right. It is spectacular, Teresa. We saw only a portion and it wasn’t originally on the agenda. It was but three miles from the motel where we stayed the night and decided to stop. We were so amazed at the beauty and serenity of the woods, the paths, and, of course, the mounds. We did have a nice trip, seeing so many things in a very short time. I was thinking about it as I read There Is No End to Seeing on your blog just a few moments ago.
We were pleasantly surprised at this section of Iowa; the scenery, little towns, wineries. We’ve gone up the river section to the Twin Cities before when our daughter was in school up there, but, never from Iowa. Road trip!
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[…] Comments « Effigy Mounds National Monument […]
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[…] away from the Effigy Mound National Monument, we wandered a bit west, near the border between Iowa and Minnesota, to the little town of Burr […]
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