Panora, IA: Guthrie County (Our 32nd County!)

Team Goodvin steps aside and lets Team Panora take the lead on this Gallivant. And why not. They traveled all the way from Ecuador via Minneapolis to see this Iowa town. You heard that right. Members of the Panora family flew in to visit their son and daughter in-law, who live in the Twin Cities, and found their way here for the day. They arrived in the Land of 10,000 lakes, Mall of America, and one of the biggest metro areas in the country with an unlimited amount of entertainment. What does this family say to that? Eh…”We’ll get to all that other stuff later. What do you say to the idea of spending hours and hours on a trans-continental flight to MPLS, hopping into the car and driving 5 hours to the middle of Iowa just because there’s a town that has the same name as ours?” I have three words for such an outlandish idea. ROAD TRIP, BABY!

A 5 hour road trip leaves a family hungry and in need to stretch their legs. The Panoras brought some picnic material from home base in Minnesota and also loaded up on more supplies at Panora Hometown Foods. They quickly found Lake Panorama and dug in on its shores. After a stroll around the lake, they headed into town and went on a little scavenger hunt, finding as many places as they could with their family name.

Next on the agenda is to bone up on some Panora, IA history. You’ve come this far you might as well get a lesson in. The Gutherie County Historical Village provided some great Iowa history that the whole family enjoyed. The Iowa Gallivant Research Department is still looking into whether Mr. Panora is related to the person this town is named after….keep combing the village. The answer has got to be there!

The Panoras came to visit Iowa during an incredible heatwave. It was almost as if we were right on the equator. I mean you’d have to be from Ecuador to be comfortable in this heat….oh yea. Party on! And how about a cold one anyway!

What’s on your bucket list? We all have one whether we intend to accomplish any of the ambitious goals that may be on it. Whatever may be on someone’s list, I always like hearing the story of when one of those goals gets checked off no matter how obscure it might be. In our travels, we’ve written about a few of these once in a lifetime opportunities that folks have been eager to do. Skydiving, volunteering for the local historical society, completing RAGBRAI, constructing a pyramid tomb for you and a friend, and so on. Now we can say that we’ve met a family that needed an Iowa road trip for no other reason than to showcase their proud family name. Come back anytime, Panora family. Lake Panorama could use another visit. Is high speed synchronized water skiing something you’ve always wanted to do too? If it is……Challenge excepted, Panora family! -Team Goodvin

Thanks for reading! -Team Goodvin