Waterloo Times

The journey of two University of Nebraska at Omaha juniors to visit every town in Iowa is over but the book is coming and T-shirts are still available.

Seth Varner and Austin Schneider made their final stops of "Visit939Iowa" earlier this month at the courthouse in Pocahontas, the Freedom Rock in Albert City and Carter Lake, not far from their hometown in Omaha, Nebraska.

Seth Varner, left, and Austin Schneider, with "Mr. Energizer Bunny" outside the Blackhawk County Courthouse in Waterloo in early August 2021. | facebook.com/Visit939Iowa/

"We're at a loss for words at just how much support we've received from y'all," Varner and Schneider said in the final post on the journey's Facebook page, which they used to chronicle the journey. "I don’t even know where to begin. From donations to tours, from free meals to hotel rooms, to snacks to souvenirs to free gas, we have been absolutely spoiled. Never in a million years would we have expected Iowa to welcome a couple of Nebraska boys into their communities with such open arms as you have. The outpouring of support is nothing we could have ever foreseen coming, and for that, we thank you from the bottom of our hearts. This adventure has truly been the journey of a lifetime."

The Visit939Iowa book now is in pre-order and T-shirts can still be ordered through the end of this month.

Visit939Iowa was the second such journey the two made in the summer of last year and this past summer. "Visit531Nebraska" kicked off when the COVID-19 pandemic sent the two home from school in March 2020 and Varner and Schneider decided to fulfill a lifelong dream of Varner's: to visit all 531 incorporated communities in Nebraska.

Visit939Iowa was a bit more daunting given the number of incorporated communities across the Hawkeye State, approaching twice as many as in Nebraska. The two started out on March 30 with their plushie "Mr. Energizer Bunny" along for the ride.

Among many other things, the two rode the Fenelon Elevator in Dubuque, saw the World’s Largest Popcorn Ball in Sac City, explored caves in Maquoketa and climbed atop the highest point in Iowa at Hawkeye Point in Sibley.

They stopped in Waterloo, home of IowaLove which sells their T-shirts, in early August.

Their journey through Iowa ended on Sept. 12.

"I think it’s safe to say that the #1 goal of our project to visit every incorporated city in Iowa has been a wild success," the two said on the journey's Facebook page. "On top of the handful of attractions I mentioned earlier, we have seen and done many things that most can only dream of doing in a lifetime. But, as we’ve learned over our two adventures, there is always something more to be discovered."

They didn't get to do it all and missed out on some museums, memorials, restaurants, churches and state parks.

"And that’s not a bad thing!" the two said. "Iowa has so much to offer that it shouldn’t be possible to see and do it all in just half a year. It would take many lifetimes to fully experience everything that this state has to offer. We were able to do a nice little chunk of that, but now we want to challenge you, our followers, to go out and do the same."

Their book based on Visit531Nebraska is due out next month.