Eastern USA route?
- Thread starter Chaos
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I did a route though Adirondacks to Maine and then south down Deals Gap and back home via Kentucky and Ohio if you are interested. As many twisty roads as I could fit in. Let me know if that is kinda what you are looking for and I'll get you the routes.
Morrissey
Well-known member
When we planned our trip through NY, VT, NH, MN and then up to Cape Breton we pretty much used http://www.motorcycleroads.com/ and plotted our course along the squiggliest lines we could find! The only destination we had that was a must was Mt. Washington in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. I was definitely worth seeing and riding up! We were pretty old school about our planning. We ordered state maps for each state from CAA, plotted our course and highlighted the roads on our maps. Did our best not to deviate and when we did, got back on course as soon as we could/construction allowed. Worked well for us. The only down side to using the paper maps was having to look down at the tank while riding or pulling over to check the next bit. A GPS would have been nice but was not in the budget.
You don't own a phone??
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Yeah Mount Washington is a very cool ride but stay away from the weekend ...there are some very timid cage drivers on a very narrow road.
first and second gear all the way up and very iffy to pass...mind the weather tho they will not let bikes up in bad weather
The other nice one to catch is Whiteface near Lake Placid ( good riding area )
I understand the road is fixed up ...
Reminded me of my sailplane days - .got pretty chilly at cloud base near the top.
First time I've been on whoops on pavement.
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Morrissey
Well-known member
Back in 2011 when we did this ride I had just gotten my first cellphone specifically for this trip. Aside from calling our folks every other day, the phone stayed in my topbox powered off, much like my current phone does. I still have very little use for the phone, I might get one or two texts a month. It's mostly a safety thing. A standalone GPS would be nice someday.
Hey, I haven't forgotten about this. Reality has set in and it's been quite hectic for me. The general answer to this is yes.
I am curious though if you found any good stuff in Ohio or was it just a means to an end?
There are some terrific rides in Ohio starting with the Triple Nickel which I can attest to ...careful though ..some nasty blind corners with elevation changes
http://www.motorcycleroads.com/best/?c=111
I liked Ohio and thought it was totally worth riding. It didn't have the big scenery of the Adirondacks, or the higher elevations of the Smoky's, but the rolling hills there that meander through farm country are really interesting and provide a lot of cool photo stops of the old barns and wide open scenery. The roads are generally in amazing shape and are on the narrow side. Because the landscape is quite hilly there, there are so many twisty roads worth exploring, especially to the northeast and northwest of Marietta. I know a few people who have zigged when they should have zagged out in Ohio, mostly because of the tight corners that can sneak up on if you aren't paying attention. I would recommend you check it out on your way home instead of just bombing along the interstate or some other faster moving road that offers no thrills.
Here's a route for you to get to Maine, then head southwest Nashville over a few days and then north to Buffalo, not knowing how long you ride in a day or what kind of stuff you are interested in. It's low in the time spent riding the interstate and higher on the twisty, scenic or interesting roads, with some good places to stop and go for a hike or whatever along the way.
Toronto to Portland, Maine: https://goo.gl/maps/Pvs6Rn1rpWv - 1100km/15hrs
(passing by Tracy road, Whiteface Mtn/Lake Placid, Mount Washington Auto Road, Evans Notch, Hurricane Mtn Road, Whitehorse Gear)
Portland, Maine to Front Royal Virginia: https://goo.gl/maps/oR13mz1BFG92 - 1250km/15hrs
(passing by the NY97 'Hawks Nest', PA125/Goldmine Rd, and plenty of nice backroads for most of this entire stretch)
Front Royal, Virginia to Boone, North Carolina: https://goo.gl/maps/bm87mzk7aJP2 - 900km/13hrs
(passing by Skyline Drive, BRP, VA311, VA16, US421, US58 - a nice and twisty route overall)
Boone, North Carolina to Iron Horse Moto Lodge: https://goo.gl/maps/QnGBEznSz9M2 - 500km/8.5hrs
(passing by US221 'Linville Falls Hwy', BRP, NC226a 'The Diamondback', NC80 'The Devil's Whip', NC276, NC215, NC281, Elijay Rd, NC28.)
Treat this as a 10-12 hour route, because it's super twisty and there are tons of spots for amazing photos. This is a challenging route and incredibly beautiful with the end point at Iron Horse Lodge which has cabins to stay in - there are lots of places to stay in the area.
Iron Horse Lodge to Nashville, Tennessee: https://goo.gl/maps/3nyj4SXgorB2 - 650km/9.5hrs
(passing by US441, Little River Road, Foothills Pkwy, Tail of the Dragon, NC28 'Fontana Rd', Cherohala Skyway)
Treat this as another 10-12 hour route, because the 1st half is very twisty and there are tons of spots for amazing photos. The 1st half is a challenging route and incredibly beautiful.
Nashville, Tennessee to Marietta, Ohio: https://goo.gl/maps/VPDbiR7eSJ92 - 900km/12.5 hrs
(passing through Daniel Boone National Forest and tons of secondary twisty roads in Kentucky & Ohio)
Marietta, Ohio to Barfalo, New York: https://goo.gl/maps/W8n2tprbhg52 - 1100km/15hrs
(passing by Triple Nickel and some other awesome roads in Ohio, West Virginia and Pennsylvania)
Safe trip!
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statsman
Well-known member
Beware of I-75. It is also known as I-construction as there are parts of it always being repaired widened etc.
The odd thing is, although lanes are closed and diverted, I have never seen anyone actually working on it.
I prefer to cross at Buffalo and to take US 219 south. Nice winding road as you approach the NY/PA border and all the way down to West Virginia.
As you are going to be in the area anyway do the Skyway, Blue Ridge and Dragon by all means.
The odd thing is, although lanes are closed and diverted, I have never seen anyone actually working on it.
I prefer to cross at Buffalo and to take US 219 south. Nice winding road as you approach the NY/PA border and all the way down to West Virginia.
As you are going to be in the area anyway do the Skyway, Blue Ridge and Dragon by all means.
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This is exactly the sort of thing I am looking for. Much obliged! Will study more closely. Things have been incredibly hectic on my end, and I have not set some time to look into this.
FWIW, I'm looking at 500 km days, so your route works in that rather nicely.
That is sensible for off slab. That's about what my kid and I averaged for a 3 week trip tho the last few days across the Great Plains was right quick... doing 140kph indicated and your gps says you're legal speed ......
Slab is good at times but give me rural roads anytime.
Slab is good at times but give me rural roads anytime.
Routes updated in post #11 above - safe trip!
I very much appreciate the effort you're putting in for me. I cannot thank you enough!
I had a closer look at the mileage per your route. Would you agree that 3 weeks is plenty? I typically average 400-500KMs per daym but with some of the twisty roads, that average is going to come down.
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Yeah 3 weeks is plenty. When I did the trip it was just over 6000km, so even at 400km/day you will only take 15 days to ride it. On the days that have more slab or less twisty roads, it will be easier to ride 500+km/day and on the days where they are really twisty, anywhere between 300-500km is a good day.
Personally I get more drained riding boring roads, so I can ride longer days of twisty roads with less mental effort - but I stop more to take pictures because the scenery is nicer.
Personally I get more drained riding boring roads, so I can ride longer days of twisty roads with less mental effort - but I stop more to take pictures because the scenery is nicer.
I am more or less the same.
I am more drained riding boring roads as I am riding them. I am more focused in the twisties, and don't necessarily feel fatigue in the moment.
Well have fun, because there's a lot of the best roads that the Eastern US has to offer. I did not give you too much in West Virginia and Ohio - those two states have a lot to offer if you want to spend an extra day or two riding around - especially West Virginia, because basically every single road in the state is nice. A way to add in some West Virginia would be after Ohio, head due east in West Virginia and ride around, before meandering your way up to PA on your home.
If you are thinking about planning out your overnight spots - one thing that has worked well for me (when I don't want a very rigid itinerary), is to use a website like www.hotelcoupons.com, which offers last-minute and online deals.
Some time around lunch or 2pm, I think ahead to what city I will want to sleep in and just type that name into the website and the local deals will come up. I usually only care about wifi and sometimes breakfast, so I've been able to find some pretty inexpensive and simple places with a clean room to shower and sleep.
If you are thinking about planning out your overnight spots - one thing that has worked well for me (when I don't want a very rigid itinerary), is to use a website like www.hotelcoupons.com, which offers last-minute and online deals.
Some time around lunch or 2pm, I think ahead to what city I will want to sleep in and just type that name into the website and the local deals will come up. I usually only care about wifi and sometimes breakfast, so I've been able to find some pretty inexpensive and simple places with a clean room to shower and sleep.
