Bernie's Week 7: Trail Angels and Iowa's Open Road

All photos by Bernie Krausse

The Great American Rail-Trail moves through Iowa in long, quiet stretches — rail corridors turned recreation paths, county roads flanked by fields being turned for planting, and small towns that don't appear on many maps but somehow feel like the center of something important. Bernie Krausse has been out here seven weeks now, logging more than 1,300 miles since leaving the Capitol Reflecting Pool in Washington, D.C. on March 28th. And Week 7 may have been his most human one yet.

Bernie Krausse

Great American Rail-Trail - Westbound
Started: March 28, 2026
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Days 43–44: Into Cedar Rapids and Beyond

Bernie left Solon at 5:15 a.m. on May 9th, a Friday, walking into quiet Iowa countryside while coyotes finished their overnight shift and a farm dog stood down from a long night of standoff. The Hoover Nature Trail carried him toward Cedar Rapids — one of Iowa's larger industrial cities — but it was the road walk in that set the tone for the week.

A women's cycling event was underway between Cedar Rapids and Solon, and somewhere near Ely, Bernie came upon an aid station. The volunteers handed him two breakfast sandwiches and an orange without hesitation. A retired couple he met there — Polly among them — pressed a twenty-dollar bill into his hand after hearing his story. That's the thing about this trail: the generosity tends to find you.

At the Cedar River Crossing, one of the passing cyclists called out "Buen Camino" — spotting the scallop shell on Bernie's pack, the universal symbol of the Camino de Santiago. Bernie has walked pilgrimage routes on multiple continents. Here in eastern Iowa, the gesture landed just right.

Mother's Day brought a quieter trail on May 10th. Bernie moved through Center Point, Urbana, Brandon, and La Porte City — 34 miles in all — on a route newly paved just two summers ago. At Casey's General Store in Urbana, he talked trail philosophy with the young guys behind the counter while his phone charged in the corner. They told him to write a book. He finished the night in Greg's backyard, tent pitched by invitation from the local American Legion commander.

Days 45–46: Cedar Falls and a Fulcrum Point

The stretch from La Porte City into Waterloo and then Cedar Falls is where the trail starts to feel different. Cedar Falls marks the northernmost point on the American Discovery Trail — though Bernie noted it's not the northernmost point on the Great American Rail-Trail, which continues its arc toward the Pacific Northwest. (He was wondering about Port Townsend, Washington. Worth noting for our mapping work.)

May 11th was a 19-mile day. May 12th brought light rain and a late start from the hotel in Waterloo, but the weather cleared, and Bernie followed the Cedar River into Cedar Falls — a stretch he described as feeling like a fulcrum point, something shifting underfoot. The high was 80°F. He stocked up at Walmart, charged up at McDonald's, and pushed out onto the Sergeant Road Rail-Trail toward Hudson.

Day 47: Grundy Center and the Saint Bernard

May 13th was a 38-mile day — one of the longer ones on record for this hike — from La Porte City into Steamboat Rock. Strong northwest winds, limestone trail surface on the Pioneer Trail, and two roadside parks along the way that permit overnight camping (both now in the Hiking America waypoint databasecoffeehouse).

In Grundy Center, Bernie stopped into Natural Grind, a coffeehouse run by a woman named Natalie. Her father had been a German named Bernhard. People called him Bernie. Natalie served him the best meal he'd had in weeks, free of charge

A few miles later, a man named John pulled over his truck on the road outside Steamboat Rock. He'd just heard about Bernie at the bank — Natalie had mentioned him. John and his wife Joan live right on the trail corridor near the Iowa River. They invited Bernie to stay.

Three miles before town, a Saint Bernard came barreling across a field toward him. Given that he'd just spent the day in a town where the coffee shop owner's late father shared his name — Bernie couldn't help but notice.

Day 48: John, Joan, and the Cookie Lady

Joan is known on the trail as the cookie lady. She and John set out water and cookies for anyone passing through on the Great American Rail-Trail. Bernie arrived to grilled chicken, asparagus, and homemade rosemary sourdough bread. He got a shower, clean clothes, and a bed in a small guest cottage on the property.

Before the night was over, John mentioned he wants to walk the Portuguese Coastal Camino to Santiago de Compostela next year. Bernie helped him get the apps he'll need. John and Joan are now listed in the Hiking America waypoint database as a trail angel resource for hikers who come through after Bernie.

John and Joan also shared that the Rivers Edge Trail from Eldora to Union is scheduled to be paved next year, with future plans to complete the connection all the way into Marshalltown. That's the kind of on-the-ground intelligence that field verification is built for — and exactly why Bernie's hike matters for the hikers who come after him.

Day 49: Heart of Iowa, Road Gaps, and 35 More Miles

Bernie closed out Week 7 on May 15th with 35 miles, moving through Rhodes, Collins, Maxwell, and into the approach toward Slater on the Heart of Iowa Nature Trail. A section poured two years ago — roads when Bernie was last in this area — was now paved trail. Progress is measurable in concrete.

The day included a close call with an aggressive bulldog near the highway outside Marshalltown. Bernie handled it with the trekking pole he's carried since the Camino in Budapest. A few miles later, a farm puppy came to a fence for a proper hello. The trail has a way of balancing things out.

Two cyclists — Sonja and Tammy — were the only people he saw on what he called some of the nicest rail-trail in the country. A storm was rolling in overnight.

What This Week Adds to the Map

Week 7 gave us field-verified data on the Hoover Nature Trail segments in eastern Iowa, the Cedar Valley Nature Trail, the Pioneer Trail limestone surface, the Sergeant Road Rail-Trail, the Rivers Edge Trail corridor, and the Heart of Iowa Nature Trail. It also confirmed two roadside camping parks along the Pioneer Trail and added John and Joan's property as a verified trail-angel waypoint in Steamboat Rock.

This is what boots-on-ground verification looks like in practice — not just confirming what's on the map, but filling in what isn't.

Added this week alone

183 new waypoints - Hiker Notes, Services

If you're planning a Great American Rail-Trail hike, our GPS data is updated continuously as Bernie moves west. The trail is being documented in real time, one day at a time.

Hike Your Hike - John.🥾

Bernie Krausse is a Double-Triple Crown hiker who completed the AT, PCT, and CDT twice, hiked the American Discovery Trail in 2022, and is now conducting what is believed to be the first known thru-hike of the Great American Rail-Trail. He started on March 28, 2026, from the Capitol Reflecting Pool in Washington, D.C.

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