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The Atlas/Missouri/Missouri 72 — Arcadia Valley Dragon

Missouri 72 — Arcadia Valley Dragon

123 mi
Length
5
Verified stops
1,460 ft
High point
Scenic
Road type

Missouri Route 72 runs 165 miles from Rolla east to Jackson, with its most celebrated motorcycle segment threading the Arcadia Valley between Ironton and Fredericktown in the St. Francois Mountains. OzarkRides.com describes the canopied two-lane as 'Dragon-like' — tight curves under a tree canopy similar in character to the Tail of the Dragon in Tennessee. The road crosses back and forth between Iron and Madison counties repeatedly, passes through Arcadia and Pilot Knob (site of a significant Civil War engagement), and intersects MO-21 at multiple points, enabling easy loop combinations. The original 1922 highway routing through this valley is little-changed.

// Mile by mile

What you'll hit along the way.

Rider-verified stops, overlooks, fuel, and the corners worth knowing about — in the order you'll meet them.

Mile 5.0

Oak Grove

A quiet small town that marks the beginning of the Arcadia Valley Dragon run through the Missouri Ozarks.

Mile 35.0

Lake Springs

A scenic midpoint community tucked into the rolling Ozark hills, good for a short stretch break.

Mile 70.0

Red Hill

A notable peak along the route offering a sense of the Ozark ridgeline terrain surrounding the road.

Mile 95.0

Sonic

A reliable fuel-and-food stop in Salem before the final stretch toward Lake Spring.

Mile 110.0

Lake Spring

The quiet town at the route's end, rounding out a full run through the Arcadia Valley region.

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// Nearby & related
StopMissouri
Big Spring
Missouri
One of the largest springs in the United States, Big Spring discharges an average of 286 million gallons of water per day from the base of a 140-foot dolomite bluff on the Current River, 4 miles south of Van Buren off MO-103. Managed by the National Park Service as part of the Ozark National Scenic Riverways, the site has a paved parking area, a short trail to the spring pool, and a historic CCC-era picnic shelter. Riders on MO-103 or the Ozark Hellbender route (MO-19 corridor) routinely detour here; the blue-green water emerging from solid rock is a striking visual reward.
StopMissouri
Carl's Drive-In
Missouri
Carl's Drive-In at 9033 Manchester Road in Brentwood sits on the historic Route 66 alignment west of St. Louis. The small carhop-style stand dates to a 1918 service station footprint and has operated as a restaurant since the 1940s; Carl Meyer bought and renamed it in 1959. The menu centers on burgers, hot dogs, onion rings, and root beer floats from a hand-dipped soft-serve machine. The retro stand is routinely featured in Route 66 guides as one of the few genuinely intact mid-century carhop experiences still operating in Missouri.
StopMissouri
Eminence — Ozark Hellbender Hub
Missouri
Eminence (pop. ~515) is the county seat of Shannon County and the geographic heart of Missouri's Ozark National Scenic Riverways. Sitting at the intersection of MO-19 and MO-106, it is the named starting/turnaround point of the 122-mile Ozark Hellbender motorcycle route — a loop through nearly 300 curves in the Mark Twain National Forest. The small downtown has basic services: fuel, a couple of cafes, canoe and kayak outfitters, and campgrounds along the Jacks Fork River. The town is consistently cited by motorcycle route guides as the anchor stop of the southeastern Missouri Ozarks.