4 Midwest Country Inn Escapes

Circle S Ranch and Country Inn is anything but rustic. Built in 1998, the ranch house resembles a plank-sided barn but has a dozen beautifully appointed rooms on three floors. You'll find a hot tub in the "silo" and a towering fireplace and leather couches in the glass-walled great room. Guests settle into rockers on the long porch and hike trails that lead to pastures where cattle and buffalo graze. Relax in the country for an evening, or head to Lawrence (12 miles away) for restaurants and shopping. (785) 843-4124Circle S Ranch and Country Inn

You'll be serenaded by the whippoorwills in the oaks around this full-service inn (40 miles north of La Crosse). Styled after English country manors, Brambleberry hides amid bluffs in idyllic road-biking country. Foodies love the farm-fresh fruits and veggies, eggs, bacon and ham. In addition to breakfast, the inn offers four- and five-course harvest dinners July-October. (In early spring, dinners are simpler affairs, as the owners are busy tapping maples and birthing lambs!) (608) 525-8001; brambleberrybandb.com

Goats, sheep, pigs and ducks-not to mention überfriendly owners-make Rainbow Ridge (10 miles north of La Crosse) a great fit for families or couples who would like to help feed and milk goats or even give spring lambs their first bottle. (But no one will mind if you prefer to just sit back with a book and enjoy the vista of sheep dotting the green hills.) Rooms and breakfast are simple but wholesome. (888) 347-2594; rainbowridgefarms.com

The numbers say it all at this quiet B&B across the Ohio River from Cincinnati: 21 acres, 9 horses, a 140-year-old house and barn, and a 3-course breakfast. Many guests take a two-hour riding lesson. Though not luxurious, the B&B has nice touches: oak furniture from the owner's great-grandparents, ample information about nearby attractions, and made-to-order breakfasts with dishes such as fried apples and seven-grain pancakes. (859) 586-0199; firstfarminn.com