Finding My Own Adventure in Miami County, Ohio

A particular kind of freedom comes with traveling alone. You can stop where you want, when you want, and change your plans simply because you want to. No one asks, “What do you want to do next?” That was exactly the kind of trip I had in Miami County, Ohio.

I spent several days exploring Tipp City, Troy, and Piqua. While there was plenty to see and do, the trip never felt like a race from one attraction to the next. Instead, it unfolded slowly, with a little coffee here, some shopping there, historic buildings that sparked my curiosity, a new experience I had never tried before, and plenty of time to simply enjoy being somewhere new.

Disclaimer: A special thanks to Miami County Visitors & Convention Bureau for partnering with me. All opinions in this article are my own.

Wandering through historic Tipp City

My Miami County adventure began in Tipp City, a charming community with historic downtown streets, storefronts, and buildings. The downtown is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and wandering Main Street felt like stepping into a place that preserves its history while still making room for modern businesses.

I started exploring the way I explore most places: with coffee. At Chaffee’s Brewhouse, I ordered a caramel apple latte after the barista suggested it. I love when someone at a local business offers a recommendation instead of simply pointing to a menu. Chaffee’s has that cozy neighborhood-hangout feel, and the building dates back to the 1800s. It has lived several lives, including a general store, an opera house, a basketball arena, and now a craft beer and coffee destination. The historic bones are still visible, which makes sitting down for a drink feel like part of the experience rather than simply a coffee shop.

A little retail therapy in Tipp City

Afterward, I wandered into local shops, including Browse Awhile Books, 7 Sisters Apothecary, Hotel Gallery, Fox and Feather, and Living Simply Soap. I have a weakness for independent bookstores and locally owned shops when I travel because you never quite know what you’ll find.

That is especially true at Browse Awhile Books, a used bookstore that specializes in clean used books, rare out-of-print titles, and vintage editions. Even the building has a story. Before becoming a bookstore in 1990, it housed a bakery, grocery store, and hardware store. It also has a reputation for being haunted, with local lore and paranormal researchers claiming that at least 15 ghosts have been associated with the building.

7 Sisters Apothecary & Art is a woman-owned shop filled with handcrafted body care, herbal products, wellness items, and local art. The name is inspired by the Seven Sutherland Sisters, a famous group of sisters from the late 1800s known for their incredibly long hair and their own line of botanical hair products.

The Hotel Gallery offered another glimpse into Tipp City’s history. The three-level retail and artisan collective occupies a building that dates back to the early 1850s, when it opened as the City Hotel. Its location near the former Miami and Erie Canal made it a natural stopping point for travelers, merchants, and canal workers, and the owners have maintained these themes throughout the Gallery. It’s like walking through a museum!

Then there was Fox and Feather, with its mix of women’s fashion, home décor, custom apparel, and kitchenware, and Living Simply Soap, which grew from a local farmers market booth into a permanent Main Street shop creating its own skincare products.

One of Tipp City’s oldest landmarks

One building that caught my attention while exploring Tipp City was the Tipp Roller Mill. Built in 1839, the red-stained wooden structure is among the city’s oldest surviving buildings. It was built near Lock Number 15 on the Miami and Erie Canal to harness the canal’s traffic and water power. The mill operated as a flour mill until 1942, and today the building has been restored as the Tipp Roller Mill Theater, a live entertainment venue for country music, big band performances, and bluegrass.

Dining inside a historic bank

One of my favorite stops in Tipp City was Coldwater Cafe. The restaurant is housed in an old bank building, and I ate inside the original seven-ton vault. My lunch special was quiche and fruit, served with homemade bread and butter. The restaurant has retained much of the building’s original character. Betty Peachy established Coldwater Cafe in 1994 – the name honors her late father, “Coldwater Joe.”

After lunch, I wandered back outside and discovered a large, colorful Tipp City mural adjacent to the cafe.

An 1818 mill and six generations of stories

My trip also took me outside Tipp City to Indian Creek Distillery in New Carlisle, a six-generation artisan farm distillery on a 160-acre rural farmstead along Indian Creek. The property is home to Ohio’s oldest working 1818 gristmill, and owners Joe and Missy Duer have collected historic artifacts found throughout the farmstead.

Indian Creek produces small-batch, frontier-style whiskey and bourbon, handling mashing, fermentation, distilling, and bottling in-house. The property also hosts live music and events year-round. A new tasting room was under construction when I visited, so I got to see the property during another chapter in its evolution.

An afternoon pick-me-up

Before leaving Tipp City, I indulged in another coffee drink to fuel my afternoon. I stopped at Sip Coffee Co., which began in 2020 as a mobile coffee trailer operating out of a transformed vintage camper in nearby West Milton before eventually moving into its permanent Tipp City storefront. The café occupies a classic late-1800s brick commercial building with high ceilings, large multi-pane windows, and exposed brick.

I ordered “That’s My Jam,” one of the seasonal drinks, an espresso-and-milk drink flavored with fresh strawberry and sweetened condensed milk.

Testing my golf skills, virtually

I had never used a golf simulator before, so I got my first experience at The Links Golf Social. I started with putting, then switched to the driving range. With helpful tips from the staff, I wasn’t terrible. Another unexpected benefit of traveling alone was that if I looked ridiculous, there was no travel companion to witness it.

The Links is family-friendly and uses high-tech golf simulators featuring more than 275 iconic courses. You don’t need a membership, and the facility also has a full bar (with coffee and soda, too!).

A firehouse turned pizza destination

For dinner in Troy, I headed to Old Scratch for wood-fired pizza. The restaurant occupies a repurposed mid-century fire station that served Troy’s Fire Department for more than 50 years. Many of the original elements remain, including the garage doors and interior features that connect the restaurant to its firehouse past.

Old Scratch is known for its “Midwesternly Neapolitan” wood-fired pizzas. I ordered the BBQ chicken pizza special. After a full day of walking, shopping, golfing, and exploring, pizza in an old fire station felt uniquely perfect.

An Alice in Wonderland adventure

But the evening wasn’t over! I headed to Cherry Street Bottle Shop and Cocktail Kitchen for one of its special events, Wonderland on Cherry Street, an Alice in Wonderland-themed pop-up in the underground cocktail lounge. The lounge sits in the historic basement of a former 1908 Masonic Temple.

The shop transforms its underground space for seasonal installations, and during my visit, the entire area had been turned into Wonderland. The menu, décor, atmosphere, and cocktails all played into the theme; it was completely immersive, fun, and unexpected. I ordered a drink flight featuring Squimberry Tarte, Merry Unbirthday, and I’m Late, I’m Late, I’m Late, along with White Rabbit’s Raincoat Bites, made with brie and raspberry.

A day that began with historic storefronts and coffee somehow ended in an underground Alice in Wonderland lounge. That’s one of my favorite things about traveling – you never know what the next experience will look like.

A comfortable stay between adventures

For any trip, a comfortable home base makes a big difference. During my stay, the Fairfield by Marriott Inn & Suites Troy was a great home base. The 80-room hotel offers a complimentary breakfast, an indoor heated pool, a fitness center, free high-speed Wi-Fi, in-room workspaces, and a 24-hour business center.

Meeting Ohio’s wildlife ambassadors

The next day brought a completely different kind of experience at Brukner Nature Center. The 165-acre preserve combines wildlife rehabilitation, environmental education, 6 miles of hiking, an indoor interpretive building, and 50 live animal ambassadors.

The wildlife ambassadors include native Ohio species that were rescued but cannot survive on their own in the wild. Visitors can see owls, foxes, bobcats, birds of prey, and other animals in specialized habitats. The red fox was one of my favorites. The bald eagles, blue jay, vulture, and flying squirrel were also hard to beat.

The property also includes the historic 1804 Iddings Log House, one of the oldest structures on the property and a glimpse into Ohio’s early frontier history. Brukner Nature Center itself traces back to aviation pioneer and philanthropist Clayton J. Brukner. In 1923, Brukner co-founded the Weaver Aircraft Company, or WACO, and later dedicated his wealth and property to environmental preservation. The center officially opened in 1974 and has grown into a place that serves tens of thousands of visitors and students each year.

A sweet stop in Piqua

Eventually, I made my way to Piqua. My first stop: Winans Coffee & Chocolate, where the company operates its regional headquarters, chocolate factory, and retail locations.

The company’s Piqua roots date to 1961, when brothers Max and Dick Winans opened Winans Carriage House Candies, specializing in handmade chocolates and traditional hard candies. The family business eventually expanded into specialty coffee. I ordered a seasonal S’mores Latte and sat where I could look through the windows and watch the chocolate production floor as they dipped chocolates.

Exploring Piqua’s local shops

From Winans, I explored downtown Piqua, including Indigo & Co Books and Apple Tree Gallery.

Indigo & Co. Books is a female-owned independent bookstore designed as a community gathering place, or “third space,” outside of home and work. The store includes a small boutique filled with locally thrifted clothing, purses, and vintage finds. I purchased books from the $1 sale shelves and a few boutique items.

Then I headed to Apple Tree Gallery, a historic antique and holiday specialty shop filled with vintage collectibles, antiques, and European glass-blown Christmas ornaments. As someone who loves Christmas travel, this was exactly the kind of place that could have gotten me into trouble – there was a German Christmas Smoker I was eyeing.

The building itself dates to 1907 and spent most of its life as a JCPenney before closing in 1988. After years of vacancy, Apple Tree Gallery purchased and renovated it, focusing on preserving its historic character.

Lunch along the Great Miami River

Lunch at Crooked Handle Brewing Co. gave me another chance to experience Miami County’s history in a modern setting. The 10,000-square-foot brewery and restaurant sits along the Great Miami River Recreation Trail and overlooks Lock 9 Park. The building itself has an industrial past, having once housed an automobile and motorcycle dealership and the Piqua Granite and Marble Company.

Today, it is home to a brewery, restaurant, and outdoor Biergarten. I ordered the Crooked Mac Wrap with fries, featuring Big Mac-inspired flavors.

A stylish stroll through downtown Troy

From Piqua, I made my way back to Troy. Its historic downtown is filled with preserved buildings, local shops, restaurants, coffee shops, and bookstores. I spent time browsing places such as 3 Weird Sisters, Echo Boutique, and Poppy Lane.

At The 3 Weird Sisters Studio, the name alone was enough to pique my curiosity. The women-owned creative space is filled with an eclectic collection of oddities, art, and historical treasures. The multi-story storefront sits in one of Troy’s historic downtown buildings, and wandering through it felt like stepping into a stylish treasure hunt.

Nearby, Echo Boutique offers women’s fashion and accessories and also includes a children’s clothing boutique, September Sky. Attached is Poppy Lane, opened by sisters Amy and Mindy, which focuses on trendy clothing for plus-size and curvy women.

Browsing books with a side of spooky

I visited several bookstores during my Miami County trip, but Around About Books left a particularly memorable impression. The independent used bookstore occupies more than 4,800 square feet across multiple levels, with shelves packed with books throughout the historic building. I wandered upstairs to browse the travel section, found a few titles, and headed back downstairs, only to discover information about the building’s haunted history and the locations tied to the stories.

Apparently, guests and staff have reported seeing a well-dressed couple wandering the upper level before disappearing. I didn’t encounter anything, but suddenly every creaking floorboard felt much eerier.

I still bought the books, because apparently my love of used bookstores outweighs my concern about potentially running into a ghost.

A bookstore with a bigger purpose

Another bookstore I visited in Troy was Jay & Mary’s Book Center, a locally owned independent bookstore with a strong community connection. The store carries new books, educational materials, and specialty gifts. It operates on a philanthropic model in which a portion of its retail profits goes directly back into local schools and youth sports programs.

A delicious ending in a historic landmark

Before leaving Miami County, I made one more stop in Troy at Crafted & Cured. The restaurant occupies the historic Troy National Bank and Trust Building, an Art Deco landmark built in 1929. The building served as a bank for nearly nine decades, and the renovation preserved many original details, including marble counters, safety deposit boxes, and the massive vault.

The restaurant now spans multiple levels of the building, with distinct spaces for beer and charcuterie, cocktails and bourbon, and the basement vault. I was especially intrigued by this. I also discovered something important for fellow non-drinkers: you don’t need to drink alcohol to enjoy the place. They have Frostop Root Beer on tap.

I ordered a pimento cheese board and a root beer, which made for the perfect little ending to my trip. It felt appropriate that after spending several days surrounded by historic buildings, I ended the trip sitting inside a former bank with a root beer in my hand.

One last coffee for the road

By this point, I had accepted that coffee would be one of the unofficial themes of my Miami County trip. So naturally, I also made my way to Purebred Coffee Co. in Troy before I left town (hello… caffeine for the road!).

Purebred opened in 2017 and later expanded into small-batch coffee roasting and an in-house bakery. The café uses house-made syrups and serves scratch-baked pastries, including gluten-free and vegan options.

The Heart of Miami County

The three communities I explored each had their own personality, but they shared something I appreciated throughout the trip: history, coffee, quirky finds, and locally owned establishments. I kept finding this throughout Miami County, and when you are traveling solo, those places can make a destination feel much more welcoming.

Check out my Miami County video

@fieldsandheels I spent a few days exploring Miami County, Ohio, and it was exactly the kind of getaway I love: small-town charm, great food, coffee stops, shopping, unexpected adventures, and plenty of time to wander. I explored Troy, Piqua, and Tipp City, and the trip was packed with local favorites. ☕ Coffee at Chaffee’s Brewhouse, Sip Coffee Co., Winans, and Purebred Coffee Co. 🍴 Meals at Coldwater Cafe, Old Scratch, Crooked Handle, and Crafted & Cured 🥃 Tour of Indian Creek Distillery 🛍️ Shopping in Tipp City, Troy, and Piqua ⛳ My first time at Links Golf Social 🐇 An Alice in Wonderland Pop-Up Bar at Cherry Street Bottle Shop 🌿 Wildlife and nature at Brukner Nature Center And yes, I really did all of that on a solo trip! One of my favorite things about Miami County is how easy it is to mix a fun downtown day with a little nature and relaxation. 📍 Just 2 hours from Indianapolis (and Fort Wayne)! Follow @visitmiamico ♬ original sound – fieldsandheels Travel 🧳🚘✈️