One approaches the town of Devil's Elbow in Missouri via Highway Z, on the cracked but still solid concrete remains of what once was old Route 66 (top). (Note from this photo that there is not much traffic in this part of Missouri, allowing a foolish photographer to set up his equipment right in the middle of the road.) Don't be fooled by the highway's rough condition, though, as this was actually a later (1940's) alignment of 66. For the original route from the 1920's, make a left on Teardrop Road, and travel just far enough to park near the Elbow Inn Bar. (It may help here to have arrived by motorcycle.) Before heading inside for some elbow bending of your own, take a walk over the nearby Big Piney River on a steel truss bridge, which features its own crumbling concrete road bed from the 20's. You'll need to time your crossing over this narrow bridge to avoid oncoming traffic and a plunge into the river, but again, that's not difficult here. The heart of town, such as it is, is located on the other side of the river.
The town of Devils's Elbow was named for a dangerous bend in the Big Piney River, and not for any local demons that may be lurking in the shadows along the highway. But the menacing name only adds to the old road's mystique in the area. Log Book: 433 miles motored on old 66.
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