Voc Exile Main Menu / Loess Hills / Sioux Cut Hike
By Ed Perley
It was a hot, sticky Iowa day in August. There were no trails. There was heavy brush in places, lots of insects and no wind. Just a perfectly typical summer day for a long climb to the top of a ridge rising 430 feet above the valley below. My brother and I parked our car along the side of the Sioux Cut road, just east of Little Sioux, Iowa, and climbed up from there to the summit.
The photographs show the process of our hike. They start at the upper left hand corner and go around counter-clockwise. The four larger photographs in the center show views from the ridge top. The towns of Little Sioux and Blencoe are visible in the valley below. If you look closely, you can see some indication of the wide variety of vegetation that is found on these slopes. You can also see how new forest growth is threatening the remaining prairie, a situation that is widespread throughout the Loess Hills.