Madison County Covered Bridges · covered bridges
Madison County Covered Bridges
Madison County, Iowa, is the Covered Bridge Capital of Iowa and home to six remaining covered bridges (five of them original), built between 1868 and 1889. Centered on Winterset, the bridges link together along the Covered Bridges Scenic Byway, an easygoing RV loop through rolling farm country. The bridges are open to the public year-round, and most are reached on foot or by bike. Early fall, around the second-full-weekend-of-October festival, brings the prairie color and the biggest celebration.
Best season
September through October; the Madison County Covered Bridge Festival is the second full weekend of October
Bridges & era
6 covered bridges remaining (5 original) · Built 1868-1889
Where
Winterset and surrounding Madison County, south-central Iowa
Nearest RV base
Pammel State Park and the Winterset City Park campgrounds near Winterset offer RV-friendly bases close to the bridges and the Covered Bridges Scenic Byway.
Drive it safely
The county is explicit: only Cedar Bridge is still open to vehicular traffic, and even there you must heed the posted height limitation — the rest are for crossing on foot or bicycle, and no ATVs are allowed because of potential damage to the timber structures. Park your RV and walk; never try to drive a motorhome onto a 19th-century covered bridge.
Plan the route with the official source: Explore Madison County — Official County Tourism .