A small portion of the highway near Turin is designated as part of the Loess Hills Scenic Byway.

The first one and a half miles (2.4 km) of the route are part of the Loess Hills Scenic Byway.

[2] The highway travels east and then southeast through the Loess Hills, a region of dunes east of the Missouri River created by wind-deposited silt from the Missouri River valley.

Between Dunlap and Earling, Iowa 37 travels in a stairstep path to the south and east for 13 miles (21 km).

In 1966, Iowa 37 was truncated to its current western end near the Maple River.