Sunday was the perfect fall day in Indiana. Crisp weather but plenty of sunshine! With nothing to do until late in the day, my daughter and I took off to see what type of fall fun we could find. We drove to nearby Miami County as part of my Explore Indiana series.
Coffee, Music and the Circus
Our first stop was of course for coffee. Both of us love coffee and we especially love local coffee shops. Aroma Coffee Shop in Peru, Indiana was the perfect start to our day. Thanks to decadent coffee drinks and delicious Apple Cider donuts (look at all those spices inside!), we thoroughly enjoyed our stop at this cozy shop.
With a fresh coffee in hand, we took off walking around downtown Peru. I noticed a few stores, but overall the downtown was pretty empty. I always find this depressing as I love a vibrant downtown area and from the buildings can imagine how lovely it was years ago. Hopefully, the city will be successful in revitalizing in the coming years.
The Miami County Museum is located right across from the courthouse, but it was closed. We checked out the large photos in the windows as well as a few window displays on woman’s suffrage. I’d like to get back someday soon as it looked quite interesting as we peeked in the windows!
Just outside the square, we stumbled across a circus museum. Peru, Indiana has a unique annual event where local children train and perform in a summer circus. What a cool experience for them, I’m sure. The museum was closed, but we enjoyed the murals on the building itself.
Also near downtown Peru is the birthplace home of Cole Porter. Cole Porter was an Indiana composer and songwriter. The home now operates as the Cole Porter Inn, which would be a fun place to spend a night! As we headed to our next stop, my daughter pulled up a few of his songs on her phone. It was a fun addition to our drive.
Fall Fun and Pumpkins
McClure’s Orchard is located right off of US 31, so it’s super simple to find. It’s easy to spend quite a bit of time exploring all it has to offer. With several shops full of pumpkins and other fall favorites, it’s an easy way to find your fall decor. There is also a small petting zoo with various farm animals, a ride out to the pumpkin patch, a corn maze, a cafe, and a tasting room where you can sample their wines and ciders.
It was quite busy (It was a beautiful Sunday afternoon in the fall!), so we didn’t stay long, but we did enjoy walking the grounds and checking out the animals.
Insider tip: I’ve visited here in the past (pre-COVID) and enjoyed tasting several of their wines and ciders along with indulging in an amazing apple dumpling. Although it was too busy for our comfort level right now, I can vouch for the deliciousness of the drinks and desserts! Might be worth getting a few treats to go if you decide to visit.
Airplanes Everywhere
Grissom Air Museum was the perfect stop after the busy orchard. With a very large outdoor ground and dozens of different planes, it was peaceful and super interesting.
The Museum was quite well done and apparently, they switch up their exhibits regularly so a repeat visit is in our future plans! I especially loved checking out the variety of planes and enjoying the fresh air.
If you have a family member into military planes, this museum is a must visit. We learned quite a bit during our short stay! Even if you don’t live nearby, you can currently watch a virtual tour on their website!
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Small Town Treasures
On our way home, we saw a sign for Oak Hill Winery, so of course, we took a detour to check it out. Not only the winery but the entire town of Converse, Indiana was a wonderful find! Downtown Converse is small but full of intriguing shops and restaurants. Sadly most of them are closed on Sundays, but there is always next time!
We did grab some tasty breadsticks at the local Pizza King (it’s not an Indiana small town without a Pizza King) and headed over to the winery.
After heading up the steps, we entered the small winery and stepped up to the counter. Oak Hill has been in business for 17 years making its own delicious wines. I tried 5 different dry white and fruit wines before settling on a glass of their Wildcat Creek White.
I took my glass of wine (and my daughter’s water) to the porch where we enjoyed our breadsticks and chatted about our adventures in Miami County. We’ve already decided that the next time we have a free Saturday afternoon we’ll head back to Converse to check out the shopping and that we’ll also have to plan a family day to the Grissom Air Museum so the boys can enjoy the planes too!
It’s always fun to take off in the car and just see what you can discover! Especially when you have good company to explore with!
Do you love fun day trips like this one? Check out a few other recent favorites: A Perfect Day in Spencer and Batesville Fun
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What a fun area to explore! There is a place near Kansas City that makes apple cider donuts, and they are so good! Your picture made me want one. I’d also be all about staying in the Cole Porter Inn. I love places like that. I need to get that direction!
I LOVE apple cider donuts – I look forward to them every fall.
My little boy would love the military planes!
I’m going to have to take my son back – he’ll like them too.
Looks like a fun time. My son would love the military planes.
They were really cool – and there were so many!
That sounds like a lovely way to spend a fall day. Love that window display…unfortunate it wasn’t open so would love to learn more about it when you do get a chance to visit. And so cool you can stay in Cole Porter’s birthplace.
Yes, we were bummed – but I guess that’s what happens when Sunday is your free day!
Yes, I want to go exploring. I like all the different colored pumpkins.
I thought they were really cute too!
I love this! You had me at donuts and wine! Looks like a great place to enjoy the fall 🙂
Pretty good combination, right?
That apple cider donut from the Aroma Coffee Shop looks delicious. I have to admit, stopping for a good coffee before heading out to explore is always top of my list.
Us too! Perfect way to start the day!
That apple cider donut looks so yummy! What a fun area to visit and enjoy the small town feel in Fall!
It was a great small town, fall day.
I love a good donut at a coffee shop. When I saw Miami, I thought Florida – lol. Haven’t been to Indiana yet, but I’m liking the Fall feels going on there
I know, right? We actually also drove through “Mexico” and “Peru” – all in Indiana!
Great list of fall things to do. We visited our first pumpkin patch of the year last weekend!
That’s always a fun day!
What a pretty area to explore!
Thanks – it definitely was pretty!
Looks like a great day! You had me at donut though…LOL
It was a yummy one!
I would like to visit the circus museum. Too bad it was closed when you went.
I agree – we both want to go back, so I see that happening later this year!
What a fun day with your daughter!
It was fun – she is rarely free, so I enjoyed having her with me for a change!