Post Your Favorite 'Off The Beaten Path' Routes

[Dmitry at Pelican Parts]

We all have our favorite drives that we do once a week, month, or any chance we get to - but what about those hidden gems that we really love!


Share some of your favorite 'off the beaten path' routes to help everyone explore various areas around them.


If you want to get a head start on some of the best drives, check out Butler Maps - they're already well known within the motorcycle crowd and offer some of the best routes all over the US.

[Tobra]

pashnit.com was always my go to

Cliff notes, nice pavement between Auburn and Placerville in Northern California on 49, Route from Yosemite to Lake Tahoe, or visa versa, pretty drive either way.

The repaved a lot of Route 49 between Placerville and Auburn, so parts of that are nice.

There are a lot of groovy roads in California. They redid a lot of roads around Yosemite not too very long ago. Whenever Tioga Pass 9941' is open, that is a nice drive, bordering on spectacular. Where 120 comes out of the park to Lee Vining is nice, especially after huffing and puffing over the pass, a lot of downhill, you want brakes. Mono Lake is nice to look at, you can grab a pic with your phone and make it look like Ansel Adams took it.

Take 395 N, through Bridgeport to the tiny town of Topaz. Hang a left on 89 to Monitor Pass 8314' go through Markleeville then take 88 when you come to the fork in the road. 88 goes into Nevada, left on 206 then left on 207, 207 AKA Kingsbury Grade over Daggett Pass 7344' This takes you to South Lake Tahoe.

If you do make this drive, think about the road between Topaz and Markleeville. Now think about doing it on a bicycle, no seriously, they do that.

This is up and down steep ass roads at high altitude, you want solid brakes and a good cooling system.

[fastfaM3]

Are you serious? If I chime in they won't be secret anymore!!

[Razor KQ]

My wife and I leave the Thursday before Labor Day and spend until the Sunday after Labor Day driving around. We leave having no plans on where to go. Do we want to turn right or left? Last year we ending up in Banff Canada, headed west to the coast and south into Oregon before we headed back home to Utah. We have done this type of trip many times and have a great time. The past few years we have taken our 911 and this year we might take the Cayenne (lots of range).

[David McLaughlin]

New England:
1. For longer day drives, I like Route 119 from Westford MA until it ends in Brattleboro VT

2. Longer still (and backed my Road &Track most beautiful drives) is VT Route 100 from just outside MA until almost the Canadian border.

3. Off season, I also like Route 1 from MA well into Maine. I've yet to drive it into Canada but it's a goal.

[cabmando]

Dont know if you can call rte 50 "off the beaten path" but its a nice spring and fall drive when i go visit my brother in NOVA

[Skip Newsom]

Highway 530 North to Suiattle river road. Several spots to test suspension travel, cornering and braking abilities.

Then there's the Mt. Baker Hiway... not a beaten path on weekdays!



Also north on hiway 9 up near the Canadian border

[nummer52]

NBR Experience

[nummer52]

This is now much more off the beaten path

Ride between Switzerland, Italy, Austria in June 2019.

[R K T]

Lost Man Trail.....inland from Orick CA. Tallest Redwoods on earth.
Makes "Avenue of the Giants" look like saplings!

[flatbutt]

IDK how to embed a google map route

https://www.google.com/maps/dir/Buckhannon,+WV+26201/Webster+Springs,+WV/Edray,+WV/Dunmore,+WV/Durbin,+WV/Mill+Creek,+WV/Rock+Cave,+WV/@38.5954191,-80.4011477,10z/data=!3m1!4b1!4m44!4m43!1m5!1m1!1s0x884a53c736332b 9f:0x2b9779840db44282!2m2!1d-80.2320276!2d38.9939872!1m5!1m1!1s0x884b93a85f794a d3:0xd01ae2b5d6c82dd!2m2!1d-80.4134157!2d38.4792749!1m5!1m1!1s0x884b7f82139583 4f:0xc5f968fc39d6984c!2m2!1d-80.0914547!2d38.2745635!1m5!1m1!1s0x884b650c8f121e 83:0x31ae06a618f4c4f5!2m2!1d-79.8808917!2d38.359564!1m5!1m1!1s0x884b14aa9953b7f 5:0x6a2c7468d81ed0ec!2m2!1d-79.8250591!2d38.5456711!1m5!1m1!1s0x884b0584ead417 4f:0xa7e95acc467e655b!2m2!1d-79.9700699!2d38.7314978!1m5!1m1!1s0x884bb16010b7bc db:0xed438673f73662eb!2m2!1d-80.3425838!2d38.8367674!3e0

I did ths route on the Monster in June. YUGE fun!

[Dmitry at Pelican Parts]

Keep em coming...we're taking notes

[Zeke]

I was going up out of Azusa up the 39 to East Fork Rd., to Glendora Mt. Rd, to Glendora Ridge Rd, to Mt. Baldy Rd back down to Claremont where there are some nice places to stop for refreshments (all kinds) before I took the Pelican group (gruppe?) up there one day. You can stop in Mt. Baldy Village but if you're early (as in before 10am) you won't find much open to the public. At least we didn't. That was in 2004.

https://www.google.com/maps/dir/34.1481789,-117.9089762/34.1212912,-117.7071362/@34.1901778,-117.8185728,11.55z/data=!4m14!4m13!1m10!3m4!1m2!1d-117.8513617!2d34.2369749!3s0x80c3216bc13c942b:0x5d e82e4165f347f9!3m4!1m2!1d-117.7937402!2d34.20959!3s0x80c3246f79ac86b3:0xc000 9f9b72585ce1!1m0!3e0?hl=en

[SoCal911T]

Pines to Palms Highway (Hwy 74) into Palm Desert. This is where the opening scene from It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World was filmed.

[tcar]

Needle-nose Pete....

[on2wheels52]

The world's best roads have grass growing in the middle

[Seahawk]

^^^Concur.

However, here is a route I have used a bunch. It is a good combination of getting off the interstate and some really beautiful country, with cool small towns.



The drive from Socorro to Show Low is one of my favorites...lots to see and nearly zero traffic. After Show Low depends on where you are headed

[Seahawk]

One more.

This one is a little more interesting route. The route is dirt roads from, flat and through a really neat pass, I40 to Wikieup, AZ. Check the AZ road conditions website to make sure the road is open. I recommend 4WD just in case.

The good news is that there is cell coverage the whole way and Waze works. I have done this drive multiple times both ways. I love it. It is 30 minutes longer than the interstate way and a hundred times more interesting.



The drive to Prescott is paved and a real pleasure.

Then drive from Prescott to Jerome: Spectacular!

[tcar]

Originally Posted by Seahawk

^^^Concur.

However, here is a route I have used a bunch. It is a good combination of getting off the interstate and some really beautiful country, with cool small towns.



The drive from Socorro to Show Low is one of my favorites...lots to see and nearly zero traffic. After Show Low depends on where you are headed

One of my favorites, PLUS!

You drive right by the Very Large Array... west of Socorro.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Very_Large_Array

You MUST stop and check it out.

[Seahawk]

Originally Posted by tcar

One of my favorites, PLUS!

You drive right by the Very Large Array... west of Socorro.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Very_Large_Array

You MUST stop and check it out.

My wife's Uncles Son runs the VLA - let me know if you go by again. They really enjoy showing off their stuff!