Sections: MF Feature Feb 17th, 2006 
Okay MotoringFile readers, you’ve asked for it and now you’ve got it. Let’s hear all about that sacred strip of pavement that you call your favorite. Where they are, when to drive ‘em, what to bring, and why they’re the best.
Photo: Jerry Bradbury
US 129, need I say more…
And, GA 60 from Dahlonega to GA 180 to GA 348. All three great roads, just a curvy as the dragon with a lot less traffic. They also make for a nice loop from Atlanta. I can drive up from my house and get a few good runs in and be back home in 4 hours, a great way to spend a saturday morning.
Lucas Valley Road in San Rafeal,CA, between Nicasio Valley Rd.and Skywalker Ranch. You just have to watch out for wild turkeys.
Many folks like US129 (aka The Dragon), but I actually enjoy uS28 from Fontana Dam to the intersection with US129 better. The johnny-come-latelys at Fontana have decided to name it “The Hellbender” because they decided they had to have something to connect to their resort and draw people. I find it a faster and more enjoyable drive than The Dragon.
The Eisenhower (I-290) to Lower Wacker to Lake Shore Drive North to Evanston. Quick blind corners on lower Wacker the Esses on LSD are the best. Just watch out for the COP near the cemetery as you cross into Evanston.
Oh, the view of Lake Michigan is a bonus too.
Stumping for the biggest, longest-running comment thread eva, Gabe? :-)
US129’s cool, but I frankly think the Dragon itself is overrated. I find the less-acute corners on either side of the Dragon proper to be much more enjoyable (read: faster).
Swartwood Hill (aka 223) in Van Etten, NY is a fun ~2 mile stretch of often-deserted road.
IN-45 near Bloomington, IN is quite nice, as are routes 135 and 46 in that area.
The road up to Tortilla Flat, AZ is quite Dragon-esque, but very busy, depending on the time of day.
89 from Congress to Prescott, AZ is also lots of fun (and heavily patrolled).
The Beeline Highway from Phoenix to Payson is a great winding bit of 4-lane highway with some fun fast sweepers.
The Cherohala Skyway is another really nice road around the Dragon. There’s tons of great roads out there. Gonna have to be sure not too sample too much beer, so I don’t miss any good driving! :-)
ROAD AMERICA at Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin. A nice four mile stretch of asphalt in the scenic Kettle Moraine. ;-)
Go to Scotland and you will have your pick of quiet and twisty roads to play with - just make sure you do not get causght like the pop star JK! If you are looking for down and out straights visit the Dolphinton straights 5 miles outside Edinburgh - amazing!!!!!!!
The Pacific Coast Highway - all of it. I drove it from Bellingham, Washington on a vacation down to L.A. in my del Sol (before the MINI). If a road ends up in more car commercials than you have fingers to count them, its got to be a good road. ;)
i second Sheridan Rd. in Illinois and suggest parts north of Evantson up through Lake Bluff.
also, PCH is outstanding. i drove San Francisco to Portland in a day and that drive will live with me forever.
Highway 36 in Northern California between Fortuna and Red Bluff. A 132 mile twisty paradise. And beautiful scenery too. Best in the summer IMHO.
Palomar Mountain Road in San Diego County is my local fave. Avenue of the Giants is a nice drive, albeit a scenic rather than technical one. Rockport to Leggett on HWY1 in CA, or the reverse. http://www.pashnit.com is the West Coast repository of twisties.
BCNU,
Rob in Dago
The Icefields Parkway in Alberta, Canada. This road is about 220 miles long (And also the highest in the world) and takes you through some very breathtaking scenery in the Canadian Rockies. The twists, turns and solitude are second to none. The road connects Jasper in the north with the town of Banff in the south. Well worth it!
Cerro Noroeste Road from Potrero Highway up the mountain (8,500 ft.) here in SoCal.
Watch out for deer, rather than smokies.
I’ll third LSD and Sheridan Rd. through Evanston, Wilmette, Ravinia, and beyond - beautiful scenery. My problem though is that you can’t drive fast at all, as there are way too many cops. I’m a native northsider and have driven those roads many times.
Any of the roads in SE Ohio around Athens are amazing - Car & Driver regularly brings cars down there to do testing. Amazing twists, turns, and pretty good pavement quality without all that much law enforcement. 550 from Athens to Marietta is amazing - many hills, turns and switchbacks. I miss those roads as I’m now in FL, where every turn is a 90 degree intersection.
Any of the roads between 280 and 1 (PCH) in Northern California. Pescadaro Creek Rd., Tunitas Creek Rd., La Honda Rd., Kings Mountain Rd. and Skyline Blvd.
Beautiful….just watch for the bikers please!
The photo is of the June Lake Loop, CA 158, but my fave is still CA 120 from Mono Lake to Benton (closed for the winter right now). I was on CA 1 from Point Reyes Station to Bodega Bay last week and it is still challenging, fast and sparsly trafficed. But for those who enjoy high speed motoring, I cannot recommend too highly that you treat yourself to a track day soon. They are becoming more and more popular as driving clubs all over the country hire racetracks for the day, allowing their members up to 2 hours of safe, fast and exciting driving with the addition of instruction for novices and anyone else who wants it. For around $200, you’ll usually get six 20 minute sessions, a nice lunch, instruction from guys who have been tracking for many years, the comaraderie of the paddock, and the full safety features of a racetrack: corner workers, tow truck and emergency equipment, nice to have if something does go wrong, but not readily avaialble if you have a shunt out on the back roads. So come to the track: Be safe, drive fast, wear a big smile!
Okay since I live on Sheridan Rd. north of Chicago I suppose I’ll have to forth-it. That said it is too cop and public infested these days. It’s more of a great road to cruise.
Maui, 10 years ago, we went to the Ulupalakua’s Tedeschi Winery. An old employee suggested, after hearing we were going to Hana, that we take the “Back Road†which was just down the street. We did and enjoyed ourselves immensely. At the time is was all dirt. Great views, old churches, flower leis for sale along the way. Did the Hana road, after a nite at Ed’s Place in Hana, next morning and didn’t enjoy it at all.
Last year heading north from Silverton Colorado on the Million Dollar HiWay to Ouray. We did it in her ‘05 A4 Quattro, would have been better in the MCS and without the wife.
The drive from Colorado Springs south, just past PIR, to Santa Fe NM on the 25 has some real pucker parts and some top end straights with some amazing altitude climbs and drops as you come into New Mexico going to Santa Fe. Best slow down for those little Barney Fife towns or you will be ticketed.
CA1 North from San Francisco to Gualala and beyond….A spectacular drive!!! Stay at the Breakers. Lotsa Bears/traffic. Escort it or use detector of choice, even then it’s a crap shoot.
Short California ride…Angeles Crest Hiway from La Canada to the Pear Blossom Hiway…some real pucker parts and lots of great switch backs. Lotsa CHP, especially on weekends.
The road to San Felipe Baja California. Don’t speed until way south of of Mexicali, Mexican Hiway Patrons, also in Mexico accidents are always your fault, always. Rough, big potholes, crazy drivers but one hell of a drive. You can get air in the Zona De Vados area. Go straight into San Felipe and get a taco Camarones and a Corona down by the water then go to The Bar Marimar for a Margarita. I did once in my 4Runner in around 2 hours. Haven’t tried it yet in the MCS, some potholes are as big, but I feel a camping trip to Pete’s is imminent.
ALSO, NITE driving is not suggested in Baja, have done it in racing days but many, many near misses.
Very little representation in here for the Pacific Northwest, except for those of you who listed Pacific Coast Highway as a favorite (and rightfully so).
If there’s any place more beautiful than the Olympic Penninsula in Western Washington, I’ve yet to see it. There are dozens of fantastic two-lanes winding through the mountains and through dense forestland, but the cream of the crop is the 9-mile-long section of US-101 that snakes around the perimeter of Lake Crescent. One one side of you you’ll see nothing but forest and streams, and on the other side is a gorgeous mountain lake, which you’ll become very intimate with should you accidentally leave the road.
Smooth road surface, lots of tight curves, and fantastic scenery make this my favorite Motoring road. Just watch out for RVs heading to the coast. :)
The Mt. Washington Auto Road.
Route 100 through Vermont on a sunny summer day
Riverside Dr. in Richmond, VA. It’s only a couple of miles long, but very very challenging, no stops, and rarely any LEO’s.
Rte 250 from Roanoke, VA to the WV border: 2 mountains to cross, lots of switch-backs, and again, few LEO’s.
Rte 56 from Vesuvius to Tyro, VA. Just off I-81, this 10 mile stretch has switch-backs, quick elevation changes, blind turns, a few good straight-aways, and not much traffic. Of course, the little traffic that does use that road comprises RV’s, which invariably sway into your lane on a switch-back. Eek.
SkyLine Drive / Blue Ridge Parkway.
There are some great roads in VA.
Rt. 88 near Wheeling, WV. I grew up driving on this and other country routes in WV, PA, and OH (which seem to follow deer paths at times, and are often narrow and potholed), and still think they are some of the most challenging and fun I have ever experienced.
I miss ‘em to this day — the roads in Colorado are usually chock full of huge SUVs and trucks, and distracted dumba%%es who have no idea how to drive their vehicles.
Vermont also has some great backroads…
Oregon: The Eugene-Florence Hwy (126) is great from Eugene to Florence. Beautiful all year. Summer would be great!
Central California: Santa Rosa Creek RD. Start in Cambria 1 Bus. to Santa Rosa Creek RD. Once you get to HWY 46, you can take 46 to Paso Robles (101) or keep going south on Old Creek Rd. to Morro Strand State Beach.
Colorado: Boulder Canyon Dr. (119) from Boulder to Nederland in the summer. Any more Colorado drives?
US-259 in eastern OK is a pretty fun piece of twisty goodness. A virtually deserted two-lane with nice smooth blacktop and a pair of banked hairpins that overlook that little corner of the Ozarks. It’s remote enough that I’ve never seen a cop anywhere on that piece of road and other cars are very few and far between. It reminds me of a mild Colorado windy hill climb but without the altitude.
INSIDE LINE Web site took a MINI Cooper S Convertible for a awesome ride on Jebel Hafeet Mountain Road. They call that is the world’s greatest driving road.
YO Henry……………it was already posted here on MF.
Some favorite road’s names should never be broadcast on the internet.
That being said.
Some of my favorite roads are
.
The Columbia River Gorge Highway is always a joy to motor, but avoid weekends when the traffic can slow you down to a crawl.
I would have to agree with Highway 101/CA-1 from Washington to California.
The the Sea-to-Sky highway from Vancouver to Whistler is probably my favorite.
Has anyone driven the road from Victoria B.C. to Sooke?
Giacomo, sorry I didn’t pay attention… =P
Hiway 23 from Malibu to Thousand Oaks in California is awesome. Plenty of curves, plus rollercoaster hills and valleys to keep you alert. Watch out, there are a couple of hair pins. The added bonus is that is is a seldom traveled road, so not many slow-pokes to get in your way.
Minnesota Hwy 1 between Elgin City and Ely can be a blast, as long as there isn’t too much traffic. I had the pleasure of negotiating this twisty romp through the forest last summer in my Porsche Boxster. It was during the early afternoon on a Friday, so there was almost no traffic. You have to pay attention, however, as it’s easy to sneak up on a slow-moving camper or RV (lot’s of tight corners through tall trees, so you can’t see very well). There are very few cross roads and I didn’t see any cops (it was a 70 or 90 mile stretch). It’s very difficult to get up to 55 mph anyway, with all of the curves (lots of yellow signs recommending max of 25-35 mph), even in a Porsche. Not that I’m claiming to be an expert driver or anything (never been on a track). I did try to sneak out on the same road the next Sunday for some more fun, but there was too much traffic (it’s too hard to pass anyone).
I should add the 18, the 26, or 99 W from Hwy 101 to Interstate 5 up in Oregon - the roads were generally free of any traffic, and the turns were constant-radius and smoooooth. A lot of Oregon roads are like that. Way fun!
BCNU,
Rob in Dago
California:
Higway 299 from Redding and Weaverville to Willow Creek, just south of the Trinity Alps. From Willow Creek, either continue on 299 to the coast near Eureka, or go N/NE on 96 following the Klamath River. Loop back on I5.
Utah:
Highway 12 east from US 89 to Torrey on Highway 24, side trips to Bryce Canyon, the Escalante country, and Capital Reef. Best in fall with the aspens changing on the Aquarius Plateau - unbeatable views of the Waterpocket Fold. The stretch down to the Escalante River bridge from the west is amazing.
I was just in San Jose this week and it brought back memories of taking Rte. 17 over the mountains to Santa Cruz. A great ride that I would love to do in a MINI (an Olds Cutlass Supreme isn’t quite the same LOL).
Close by someone mentioned Vermont, the VT100 is a great ride up by Sugarbush, etc.
My kids gave me a Frommer’s Best New England Drives book for Xmas and they have a nice route mapped out. Granted they’re not all “driving” routes, but very scenic nonetheless.
I’ll be the corny one to say it — is there really such as thing as a bad road when you have a MINI? Heck, since January 2004. I even handle gridlock with a smile on my face!
But, I love all these ideas. Someone should do a coffee table book or an on line guidebook for MINI owners with photos, links to the places in the area to eat/drink etc.
Sugerbush is perhaps the best name for anything I’ve ever heard. I have no idea what it is but I think I want to go there.
Australian, Victoria, The Great Ocean Road. Look it up. One of the best driving experiences you can have in Vic and very picturesque.
Yes indeed the 17 from San Jose to Santa cruz area was sweet but traffic is usually bad and CHP presence has doubled in last few years. My sis lives at the top of 17 at Summit Rd in Los Gatos/Redwood estates area.
A little Sugerbush is always nice.
I also second the Olympic Peninsula in Washington state. I ‘ve been there and it is also an awesome drive. Olympic National Park is a must see!
there should be like a frappr database or something of all the graet roads in the US/Ca … hmmmmmmmm…
For you SW Virginia folks also…
I would always take the Ironto exit on my way to Virginia Tech. Exit 128. Way too much fun. Just drive around and get lost. You are right in the middle of the mountains and it is addicting… And when you are all done you can end up at VT ready to watch the Hokies play!
;)
ah, Sugarbush is near Warren, VT, a nice resort.
I third the Olympic Peninsula, I drove that in a Ford Windstar minivan w/ the family a few years ago, made it out to Cape Flattery, that’s a great ride, there’s a long stretch right along the water, narrow 2-lane road, very windy and hilly. And, while not tortuous, there’s a fun rid up to the Hoh Rain Forest, the only Rain Forest in the northern hemisphere. Definately worth checking out.
I’ll second Vanwall’s Palomar Mountain (San Diego County). I like driving up the steeper South Grade Road where the series of 2nd gear switchbacks has such a great rythym. Banner Grade is another favorite with a similar, but less steep, rythym not far away.
Sugerbush is perhaps the best name for anything I’ve ever heard.
There’s a kickin’ soaring club there, too!
there should be like a frappr database or something of all the graet roads in the US/Ca … hmmmmmmmm…
I’ve given it some thought. Frappr would be a poor fit, but I think the Google Maps API would be excellent for highlighting road segments. Several people have kicked around the idea. I haven’t had time to implement it yet.
Route 100 in Vermont is pretty good, but too much slow traffic and not enough safe passing opportunities.
The paved Vermont gaps are all good: App Gap on route 17, Smuggler’s Notch on route 108, Rochester Gap on Camp Brook Road between routes 12 and 100, Middlebury Gap on route 125… the unpaved gaps are scary.
The winner, though, is route 232 through Groton State Forest.
Maui - the early sunrise run to “The House of the Rising Sun” Haleakala Crater sea level to ten thousand feet in 60 miles, then descend and take the road to Hana…617 curves..56 bridges with waterfalls at every turn..52 miles like no other. i had the pleasure of driving this last year without a MINI and can only dream what it would be like in my MINI a.k.a. “ANNI”. by the way i live 30 miles from the dragon & cherhola and there are some exhilarating roads in this area…..the MOTD 2006 will be well worth the trip!
While I would do nearly anything for another Mini owner, sharing the locations of my favorite roads is where I draw the line…in NJ they are just too few and far between (and dying every day as we hire more and more mobile tax collectors and fail to repair tarmac-divots caused by poor maintenance and bad plow technique). There used to be a LOT of great roads in Jersey (people think of the Turnpike when they think of NJ, but we have every type of landscape you can imagine and lots of hilly sections), but with the overpopulation of many areas has eradicated most of them.
Then again, if there are other Minis traversing them, I’d be able to claim it wasn’t me that they saw fly by…
Basically, the best curvy roads are found up in Sussex county…least amount of traffic, too. Just take Rt 23 up toward Highpoint and take almost any side road…if you have Nav, put it in Map mode and set the scale to 1/4 mile and all the small roads will show up.
Over the Delaware in PA there is a great road along the river that goes from Easton down to New Hope…most of the way it is Rt 611, then it turns into 32 (I think). Unfortunately, there can be a lot of traffic on it, but if you take any roads inland from it, there are some gems all through Bucks County.
Hunterdon County, NJ (where I grew up) has some great roads, but there are SO many cops that it is not worth doing any banzai runs on them.
With all the morons driving diaper tanks (my pal’s nickname for SUV’s)while talking on the cell phone and drinking their grande lattes, it is just tough to have fun any more…
CD
US1 from Key Largo to Key West and back. Sweet to have ocean for miles at either side of the road. Plus Sloppy Joes has one awesome burger.
South Africa - Chapman’s Peak Drive
This has to be one of the most scenic and mind boggling engineering feats. Great coastal drive.
For everyone that knows about Weird New Jersey.com. there is a place called Blairsden. Peapack, Morristown, and Bernardsville are apart of the all of these twisting and winding roads. There is this one road called Lake Rd. Right off of route 202. The road swings around and dipps up and down along the river. Only 2 MINI’s can fit side-by-side on the road. The only thing I can tell you is don’t park on the side of the road and walk up to the Blairsden House. Alot of people get caught doing so.
These are my favourites.
In Switzerland:
1) the Gotthard Pass
there’s a tunnel that leads through the mountain, so normally there won’t be much traffic. The road has a nice inclination, you’re allowed to go 100 km/h but they rarely check. you have plenty of room, the bends are wide enough. You beat any motor cyclist :)
2) the FlÒ¼ela Pass
My “home pass”. Narrow roads, but cool. Difficult to drive if you want to go fast.
In Italy:
from Como to Bellagio. Very narrow road, nice view. And finally, Bellagio, awesome place. You can take the ferry from there to go back and will find another nice road.
Here in the Portland OR/SW Washington area there are a lot of great very fun to drive back roads. One of my favorite routes is a half day tour on paved two lane roads ( WA503, WA Forest Roads 90, 51, 30 and WA14) through the beautiful forested Lewis and Wind River valleys with many fine views of Mt. Saint Helens, Yale Lake, Swift Reservoir, and the Columbia Gorge. This route is documented at this http://www.vonsalza.com/lm/mshlwcv.html web page, which has a map, detailed route description, lot’s of photos, and more.
Yep, I have done the St.Gotthard pass tunel in Switzerland as well. That is one amazing engineering feat and incredible drive!
It’s short, but one of my favorites had got to be US-211 westbound making the climb up to Skyline Drive. Two lanes up, switchbacks and almost no potholes.
Then there’s Atoka Road (inside DCMM joke)
I second the comment on roads around Athens, OH. Any of the roads through Wayne National Forest in SE Ohio are AWESOME too! Routes 664 and 374 are great but do them on weekdays since on weekends there is some traffic with campers, hikers, etc. using the park. That is God’s Country, IMO.
One of my other favorites is in SE PA. Get off of I-70E at exit 161 in PA and take US 30E into Chambersburg, PA. There are about 30 miles of curvy elevation changes that are very fun. That is a very beautiful area of the country and very historically significant with all of the Civil War battlefields.
US 550 “Million Dollar Highway” - Ouray to Durango Colorado.
Long Island Expressway (HOV lane)
ROFL…joking of course ;)
Unfortunately not many terrific roads here on Long Island, NY
Peace,
D
Coronado Trail in AZ.
“Dedicated in 1926, the roadway provides a route for tourists seeking the beauty of the forests and its wildlife, but few people either then or now have taken advantage of it. Often fewer than 100 cars a day use the highway. The reason partly lies in its remote location near the New Mexican border and partly because the drive is very slow going. It takes 4 hours or more to traverse its 123 miles of switchback after switchback, but the adventure is clearly worth the effort. The Coronado Trail Scenic Road climbs 4,300 feet in elevation through a wilderness region that is home to three endangered mammals, three endangered birds and two endangered fish.”
I have to second Rob’s vote for Mt Palomar.
One of my favorite Nor Cal routes is 92 to 35 to 84. Weeeha!
Watch out for bikes & motorcycles & cops on all of the above
For folks stuck in the “flatlands” in the Midwest…
“Scenic Drive” (old County H) near Lake Delta (Delta, Wisconsin)
Blackjack Road between Galena and Hanover in Illinois
Where are the Canadians? Sea To Sky Highway from Vancouver to Whistler B.C. Ocean on one side, mountain on the other, winding roads in between. Sweeeeeet!
A vote for CA 120 from Mono Lake to Benton, which is especially nice on motorcycle.
Also a vote for CA 9 from Saratoga to Boulder Creek, also a popular motorcycle route. Its a beautiful, windy mountain road with great views and ever-vhanging curves and grades. Just watch out for the bicyclists, motorcyclists, and (slow!) tourists on the weekends, the latter heading to Big Basin State Park.
I am lucky, I get to drive my MINI on CA 9 every day since I live near the middle of this route, on 9 near its intersection with CA 35.
Mulholland Drive was very exciting the last time I drove in L.A. lots of twisties
The road over the Cap De Formentor at Majorca. You drive some of the most exciting but dangerous roads, up a mountain, through tunnels in the rock and then a decent to a white sand beach with one of the most impressive hotels on the planet. Awesome. Oh, bring a Mini but if you can afford one a Fezza would be nice.
The NÒ¼rburgring Nordschleife in Germany
I have been planning a great “run” for PDXmini. Route is 125 miles (one way)starting at Sherwood, thru Gaston, Gales Creek, Timber, Vernonia, Jewel, ending in Astoria at the Astoria Column. Twists and turns throughout, with great scenery. Some section are very fast. A very exciting route, with almost no traffic on Sunday mornings.
“Chapmans Peak” in Cape Town South Africa. Got to be the ultimate in bends and scenery.The best strech of tar for cornering and really putting your MINI to test.Cannot believe there is another ideal test route.Chicks love it to for the scenery and theres some great picnic spots along the way.Avoid Sunday Afternoons as there are a few Tourist buses that tend to slow things down. Can’t wait to try my new MINI JCW GP along this stretch.
My favorite is lower wacker drive when it’s late. For those of you not from Chicago, lower wacker is an entirely underground street running through the heart of downtown Chicago. It curves since it follows the path of the Chicago river. There really aren’t any places for cops to hide at the most entertaining points since it is essentially a tunnel. Like an earlier poster mentioned, lots of fast blind corners, but watch out for bumpy road surfaces. It also feeds into a long straightaway on the 290 and some fun S curves (at any speed) on north Lake Shore Drive.
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