US 52 begins in Iowa with
Iowa 64 on the
Dale Gardner Veterans Memorial Bridge over the
Mississippi River north of
Sabula. After descending the bridge, the two routes turn to the south and travel along a narrow,
causeway through the Mississippi
backwaters. The two routes pass through Sabula, a city known as Iowa's island city, and turn west crossing another causeway to the mainland. Upon rising from the river valley, US 52/Iowa 64 meets the northern end of
US 67. Iowa 64 continues west with US 67, while US 52 turns north to follow the river. Between Sabula and
Bellevue, US 52 follows the course of the Mississippi River. The roadway gradually enters the
Driftless Area, a region of the midwestern
United States which escaped glaciation during the
last glacial period. Near the unincorporated community of
Green Island, the highway passes through terrain where the elevation ranges from above
sea level. North of Green Island, where it crosses the
Maquoketa River, US 52 follows the bluffs along the Mississippi River valley. The
Canadian Pacific Railway, which runs parallel to US 52 between Green Island and Bellevue, in locations, lies below the road as the roadway follows the bluffs while the railroad tracks stay in the flat valley. At
Bellevue, US 52 runs along the city's riverfront and passes
Lock and Dam No. 12, intersecting with the eastern terminus of
Iowa 62. North of Bellevue, it turns to the northwest and rises in elevation and then descends at
St. Donatus. North of St. Donatus, the highway travels and enters the
Dubuque area. At the unincorporated community of
Key West near Dubuque, US 52 north turns south in a
wrong-way concurrency onto the expressway carrying
US 61 south and
US 151 south. After traveling with the other two routes for , US 52 exits at a
folded diamond interchange onto the Southwest Arterial, a , four-lane expressway. There is an overpass carrying Military Road, then a
dogbone interchange with North English Road. After passing through the roundabout of a half-dogbone/half-
diamond interchange from the
US 20 expressway at the end of the arterial, US 52 passes over the US 20 expressway and merges onto its westbound lanes. The Southwest Arterial is largely
freeway in character, however neither of its termini are
free-flow interchanges. US 52 north is co-signed with US 20 west for , passing through the Dubuque County
exurbs of
Peosta,
Epworth, and
Farley before exiting north onto
Iowa 136 in
Dyersville. It follows this north-south route through
New Vienna, passing near the
Field of Dreams filming site, until the northern terminus of Iowa 136 in Luxemberg. From Luxemburg, US 52 heads north towards
Guttenberg. As it approaches the Mississippi River, the road reenters the Driftless Area. After crossing the
Turkey River, the highway rises nearly in elevation before descending again at Guttenberg. North of Guttenberg, US 52 rises out of the Mississippi valley and travels west and then northwest away from the river. North of
Garnavillo, it intersects
Iowa 128, which serves as a cutoff to
Iowa 13 near
Elkader. later, it intersects Iowa 13 at its northern end. north of the Iowa 13 intersection, US 52 intersects
US 18. Between this location and Calmar, US 52 runs parallel to the DME Railroad. The two highways travel together to the northwest for through
Monona and
Postville. At Postville, US 18/US 52 intersect
Iowa 51. On the west side of Postville, US 52 splits away from US 18 and heads to the northwest towards
Calmar. At Calmar, US 52 turns to the north at an intersection which is also the eastern end of
Iowa 24 and the northern end of
Iowa 150. It heads to the north-northeast for to an intersection with
Iowa 9 on the southwest side of
Decorah. From Iowa 9, the route crosses the
Upper Iowa River near the
Luther College campus. It heads north past the unincorporated community of
Burr Oak. north of Burr Oak, US 52 crosses the state line into
Minnesota. ==History==