Corn and soybeans hug the hillsides, while cattle graze the windswept slopes. Flanking Iowa's western border, corrugated hills of windblown silt form a unique and spectacular landscape. Jim Patrico Names of communities reflect the surrounding terrain-Climbing Hills and Council Bluffs. Locals contend that the Loess Hills hold much the same beauty of America's most majestic peaks, yet, like the people who live here, are less pretentious. But a growing dispute over the future of the hills threatens these fragile giants.
Developers covet the panoramic views for homesites.
Others desire the hills themselves to haul away as fill dirt or to quarry the limestone beneath them. Conservationists and preservationists want to protect the natural splendor of the Loess Hills, even return them to the prairies that once covered the hills. Farmers and other landowners raise concerns over property rights. Finding common ground won't be easy. But you don't have to put a house on every hilltop.