Best Roads to Ride

[Chels]

What are the best roads to ride. Share the location and name or number of the road.

[poppygene]

OK, I'll start with what may be the most widely praised motorcycle road in the US. If we did a poll, the Blue Ridge Parkway in Virginia and North Carolina would have to be near the top of the list. It's 469 miles of smooth, curvy ribbon, coursing through what is arguably the most scenic, unspoiled, upland terrain anywhere east of the Rockies. You can look it up on the web for pics and lots of great info.
I've ridden it end-to-end many times and I think it just gets better all the time. I guess that's because I always get a different set of memorable experiences each time I go. If you ever get the chance, you gotta ride this one!

Oh, yeah... the North Carolina section is best! :D

[madmax]

Poppygene sure has it right about the Blue Ridge Parkway. It is one of the most unspoiled beautiful roads I've ever been on. Speed limit kinda low (35 I think) but that just makes for nice sight seeing. We also have some good roads here in the east central part of West Virginia. Poppygene also has some nice roads in North Carolina. Good riding all over, all you have to do is come to these eastern US mountains and look for it. If you like twisties this is the place :D

[totalmotorcycle]

Calgary to Drumheller - A nice 2 1/2 hour ride thought some of Alberta's farmlands and into the Badlands of Drumheller. :D

Route:

#1: Calgary to above Airdrie via Hwy 2 North to take Hwy 72 East to meet up with Hwy 9 to continue east to Drumheller.

Or, if you want another route:

#2: Calgary to 20 minutes past Strathmore via Hwy 1 East, continue east on Hwy 561 and turn North onto Hwy 840 to enter the badlands up to Standard, turn onto Hwy 9 just past Rosebud to go North East into Drumheller.

And for the adventurous:

#3: Same as above (#2) but keep on Hwy 561 till Hussar, then turn North onto Hwy 56, turn East onto Hwy 564, follow as it turns North then up to Hwy 848 to Hwy 570/Hwy 10 at East Coulee and take Hwy 10 into Drumheller....

I did #3 in March with 4-6 feel of snow on the side of the road on my 1982 Yamaha XJ650R Seca. It is a very interesting route and Hwy 564 and Hwy 848 I am referring to is badlands rock road. When you get off the highway expect 100 km's until the next place for gas. Unless you want UPA Agricultural gas in Dalum... Yes, it's colored but it runs fine in your bike until you get gas in Drumheller.

Mike.

[poppygene]

madmax wrote: We also have some good roads here in the east central part of West Virginia. Good riding all over, all you have to do is come to these eastern US mountains and look for it. If you like twisties this is the place :D

Right on, Max! WV is beautiful, too, with some great riding also.

The bulk of the BRP is posted at 45mph. However, there are some sections that become congested during peak times; in these areas the limit drops to 35 or even 25mph. I can think of a few off the top of my head: Mabry Mill, Mt. Pisgah, and Craggy Gardens for example. That's OK with me... this roadway really wasn't meant to be blown through, dragging pegs and throwing sparks. I know this will sound crazy and I almost can't believe I'm saying it, but the longer you take to run the BRP the better. Take it from someone who's done it both ways.
Another incentive to take it easy: you absolutely, positively do not want to get a speeding ticket from a Park Ranger (yes, they have radar). You may have to sell a kidney to pay the fine. There has been a marked rise in rider crashes during the last several years and a proportionate rise in fatalities, too. So, the Rangers ain't playin' anymore.
I witnessed a fatal crash in a curved tunnel near Craggy Gardens a couple years back. None of the tunnels are lit, BTW. The rider was cooking along and crowding the center line and the SUV driver, startled by the light transition, went into the oncoming lane. I'd like to forget what I saw, but that hasn't happened yet.
Please, ride safe everyone. I don't know anyone who rides the BRP more than I and I sure don't want to be the one who finds you.

[miggiddymatt]

I live about 5 minutes from the blue ridge parkway in Asheville, and I agree that it's a great road. I'm not sure where it officially goes below 45, but that is the highest speed you get on it. This summer I'm going to take it from Asheville up to virginia, and Skyline Drive, then on to visit family in DC. How different is Skyline drive from the BRP?

[mswarrior]

The more I think about it there is only one place that comes to mind. The interior of British Columbia, Canada. Every year I go and ride these roads. One area in particular is the Okanagan. There is scenery, traffic is moderate, many challenging corners to grind those pegs, and wonderful people. I've ridden the Okanagan with groups 2 to 15 with bikes ranging from Harley's to on/off road. there is something for everyone there. And the laid back feel you get is great. The Okanagan has it's own time zone.
I saw a clock there that was broken and under it was a sign that said "Your On Okanagan Time" which just like the clock, time seems to stand still there.

[3D02]

Way too many to say the best. Recent memory, state hwy 12 going up to Bryce Canyon, Utah.



Karl

[muz]

I'd agree with you about interior BC mswarrior - one of the nicest places to ride is the area around Nelson. The 3A up to Kaslo, then the 31A over to New Denver, and the #6 up and down the Slocan valley. Curvy scenic roads, lots of old mining & logging towns....and a lot less busy than the Okanagan valley.

[Tank Slapper]

In Northern Ireland there is one route that stand head and shoulders above the rest....

The A2 from Belfast through Larne, Ballycastle to Portrush. This can take up to 3-4 hours but sooo worth it. After Larne on the left hand side just feet away you can have countryside or a sheer cliff rising 60ft and on the immediate right you can have a sheer drop of 60ft, or a clear view of the Irish Sea which on a good day you might see Scotland.

The road surface may not be great in places but the endless twisties and the view more than make up for it. But the best thing is that in the middle of May when the best road race in the globe is on (Northwest 200) the only vehicles using the route are on two wheels and what a contrast from travelling on a country road then watching the pros race at up to 200mph.

Ps is there a section that I can post pics and a map as I intend to ride this in the next couple of weeks when then weather improves?

[poppygene]

miggiddymatt wrote: How different is Skyline drive from the BRP?

Matt, it looks pretty much the same as the Virginia portion of the BRP and carries you through the Shenandoah National Park. The big difference is the $5.00 fee you have to pay to enter the Skyline, but that gives you unlimited access to the Park for a week. Also, the speed limit is 35mph throughout the Park, except in campgrounds it's 10mph.

[poppygene]

Tank Slapper wrote: In Northern Ireland there is one route that stand head and shoulders above the rest....

The A2 from Belfast through Larne, Ballycastle to Portrush. This can take up to 3-4 hours but sooo worth it. After Larne on the left hand side just feet away you can have countryside or a sheer cliff rising 60ft and on the immediate right you can have a sheer drop of 60ft, or a clear view of the Irish Sea which on a good day you might see Scotland.


Ps is there a section that I can post pics and a map as I intend to ride this in the next couple of weeks when then weather improves?

Sounds dreamy, TS! Yes, post some pics in the gallery, please! Just click on the Motorcycle Photo Gallery button at the top of this page, then scroll down to the Travel Pics header.

[CentralOzzy]

A road in OZ which is a Huge Icon for M/C's is the Great Ocean Road in Victoria!

Went there not long ago on a Sunday of course....& it was bike business as usual!

[Chels]

After looking at OZ's pictures, I cant remember the question

[Toyuzu]

Just about every road around here (Cantral California mountains - near Yosemite National Park) is a perfect piece of motorcycle heaven.

Roads like this one are very common, and usually devoid of traffic:

Or this one:

[blues2cruise]

If you are in the south west corner of British Columbia, Hwy 99, otherwise known as the Squamish Highway or the more "tourist" name of the Sea to Sky Highway is an absolute must.
The highway is accessed by the Upper Levels Highway by Horseshoe Bay in West Vancouver and it goes through Squamish, Whislter and on to Pemberton.
Lots of ups and downs and twisty sections and the average speed is 80km (50mph) except when you go through a few of the small towns on the way.

If you follow the posted speeds, the highway is a great place to travel. It only becomes dangerous when people are travelling too fast for the conditions.

The road follows the Howe sound for a bit so you have ocean views soon to be replaced by mountain views. You can stop off for a break and a view of Shannon Falls before you carry on to Whistler. Easily done as a daytrip.

[CentralOzzy]

Hey BtoC, that road sounds Awesome! :D

It also kinda describes Victoria, Australia's Great Ocean Road. :wink:

[High_Side]

blues2cruise wrote: If you are in the south west corner of British Columbia, Hwy 99, otherwise known as the Squamish Highway or the more "tourist" name of the Sea to Sky Highway is an absolute must.

The traffic until you get to Whistler, has been terrible everytime that I've been through there. What is the best time to ride this road? It really gets good after Whistler though, and the whole thing has spectacular scenery like you said....

[blues2cruise]

High_Side wrote: blues2cruise wrote: If you are in the south west corner of British Columbia, Hwy 99, otherwise known as the Squamish Highway or the more "tourist" name of the Sea to Sky Highway is an absolute must.

The traffic until you get to Whistler, has been terrible everytime that I've been through there. What is the best time to ride this road? It really gets good after Whistler though, and the whole thing has spectacular scenery like you said....

High_Side, it depends on the time of year. In the summer there's lots of tourists. If you can go in the early Spring on a day when you know the roads are free from frost, you'd probably be ok. And the fall is good as well.
If you happen to go during ski season, you're better off leaving town after 8 or 9am and heading back down before 3pm.

If you do want to head up to Whistler in the summer you need to leave town really early to get ahead of the traffic.

It's much the same if I head east to the Okanagan. If I leave Vancouver at 7am on a Saturday morning, I'm out to Hope by the time most people are leaving town. :) Then I am in Penticton in time for lunch.

[blues2cruise]

The Hope-Princeton Highway (#3) is another great ride.....if you leave Vancouver early...ahead of traffic...otherwise it can be really busy. Some sections of that highway (for those that are inclined...no pun intended) can have you scraping your pegs.
For me that's too scary. I don't have enough experience nor the desire to go that fast around some of those curves.

The best time of year would be in Spring as soon as there is no danger of frost or ice or Fall just before the roads can get icy. Summertime can be like rush hour.