Iowa, as a state, is blessed with many attributes and plenty of things to see and do, but it is often overlooked when people are looking for places to visit. Taking time to explore Iowa’s historic Loess Hills region, though, is recommended for anyone who wants to experience something that can only be viewed in very few places worldwide.

Stretching more than 200 miles along the western side of the state, the Loess Hills are a geological rarity formed by deposits of very fine, windblown soil that is a result of the last ice age. Heavily wooded, covered by prairie grasses and flowers, or being used for agricultural purposes, they may look like common rolling hills, but there is much more to them than meets the...