Snake Alley - A Very Crooked Street

Burlington, Iowa

Snake Alley battles San Francisco's Lombard Street for the title of "World's Crookedest Street." Snake Alley's block-long serpentine switchback -- seven curves over 275 feet -- was built by the town's German founders in 1894 as an experimental street design (and as a shortcut downhill to Burlington's business district).

Snake Alley is still paved with cobblestones, with an old timey entrance sign and replica Victorian lampposts.

Scientifically calibrated testing by our team reveals less switchbacks, a more gradual incline, and a much shorter time in queue than Lombard Street. And because of occasional ice, Snake Alley is closed to car traffic during the winter months. There's a chain across the entrance. Just try doing that on Lombard Street...