Dave Klingensmith, of Kingsley, represents District 3 on the Iowa Association of County Conservation Boards. As a member he has visited conservation sites across Iowa. Here he takes in the beauty of Hillview Park, west of Hinton. Klingensmith is also vice-chairman of the Plymouth County Conservation Board. [Click to enlarge]

A restored hotel, a casket-making company, a roaming buffalo herd, a natural grassland -- all are conservation sites across Iowa.

Dave Klingensmith, of Kingsley, has visited those and others during his tenure on the nine-member board of directors of the Iowa Association of County Conservation Boards (IACCB).

"This has been very enjoyable, and my wife she enjoys it greatly," Dave said. "She thinks it's great to go to all these places."

Elaine Klingensmith, who pays her own way, said as a master gardener she enjoys seeing different kinds of plant life along and the scenery.

"You get to learn something every time you go," Elaine said.

For the Klingensmiths, driving about 5,000 miles a year is an adventure, not a bother.

"It's been a really interesting time," Dave said. "The expenses I paid were well worth the time."

Each year they attend IACCB's annual conference, which all county conservation board members across the state can attend. Host counties for the conference arrange tours of their conservation sites. Last month's conference was in Dubuque.

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"At Dubuque we toured a casket factory, where they cut their own trees and make their own caskets," Dave said.

Another year he drove through Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge, east of Des Moines, which contains thousands of acres and a large herd of roaming buffalo.

"We went through there and we had to wait for a herd of buffalo to go across the road," he said.

Dave said his favorite trip was in northeast Iowa, near Decorah, where he saw a restored dam and water wheel, built before 1900. The wheel along with a new generator produces electricity.

"It was just an interesting area," Dave said. "I enjoyed that better than any."

At another conference he stayed at a restored hotel, built around 1920, in the town of Maquoketa in northeast Iowa.

"You can see that being on that conservation board is a very interesting thing to do," Dave said.

In 2004, Plymouth County hosted an IACCB annual convention and offered tours of the Sioux City Lewis & Clark Interpretive Center, Loess Hills Scenic Byway and Five Ridge Prairie in the Loess Hills. There were also tours in Sioux and Lyon counties.

Dave is serving his second term, representing District 3, on the IACCB board of directors as treasurer. He is also vice chairman of the Plymouth County Conservation Board. IACCB directors must be a member of a county conservation board.

The IACCB is a nonprofit organization assisting all 99 county conservation boards in with board member education, public relations and legislation, according to the IACCB website, www.iaccb.com.

Dave was elected by conservation members in District 3, but two districts throughout Iowa don't have representatives on the IACCB board of directors.

"We have a hard time finding people that want to serve on that board," Dave said. "It would be nice to see two or three people from every county."

The IACCB advertises open seats in its newsletter, which is sent to all 99 counties.

Elaine said the opportunity to attend the IACCB conferences and serve on its board of directors is a way for people to help in preserving conservation sites.

"I think it's important that we keep some of these special places for the next generation," she said. "We have to keep them in their natural state for people to enjoy."