The Western Skies Scenic Byway, dedicated in 1998, was among the first state designated scenic byways in Iowa. It stretches 142 miles through Harrison, Shelby, Audubon, and Guthrie Counties and 14 rural towns, and is accessible from both Interstate 80 and Interstate 29. The route passes through Iowa's rolling hills and working farms, offering a chance to experience life in rural communities. Along its ridge tops and valleys are opportunities for travel by water on the Middle Raccoon Water Trail and by foot in state parks and preserves. In Guthrie County, two landform regions shape the landscape: the Des Moines Lobe, created when the last glacier advanced into Iowa 15,000 years ago and left a large flat, poorly drained landscape, and the Southern Iowa Drift Plain just south of it, where glacial deposits were carved by deep stream erosion into steeply rolling hills and valleys with numerous creeks and rivers, while a mantle of loess drapes the upper hill slopes and the valleys create a sense of enclosure.