The Best Road.........In The World ah I mean United States
 

So I got this idea when I was reading about the TOD and the roads around Eureka Springs and the one in NC I believe called the Twisted Pickle. Where really is the best road in the US for spirited driving. I think that there should be some things that need to be tied to it to make it rule supreme. Like...

1. It just has to be a really good road. As in new or pristine blacktop. No holes or dips (that will take out oilpans) or cracked sections that you feel in your teeth as you drive over at speed.
2. It has to be "Drop Dead Gorgeous" After all this is the best road in the US. So when you drive this road anytime you drive this road you can't help but say this is just so beautiful.
3. It has to have times when there is no traffic. It does not matter if it is early in the morning or late on a Sunday evening. It does not matter how heavy the traffic is when there is traffic. It just needs times when you can be left alone with it.
4. And it has to have a good turnaround or stopping point. Someplace where 5-10 cars can pull off get something cold to drink and sit around and talk about the drive and the fun of heading back.

Also please make it possible for fellow enthusiasts to find it.

What we are looking for is something like this..."The Pig Trail" highway 23 in AR south of Eureka Springs.

I would say the PCH and many of its tributaries and carmel valley road. both of which are in california much to every car enthusiasts chagrin. :cheers:

I have no suggestions because I live in Florida. :(

Upstate NY doesn't have a million pluses but one it does have is great country roads through wooded hilly sweepers only fifteen minutes away. The 73 or so days each year you get to enjoy them are great...

The finger Lake Are of Upstate NY didn't attract the road racers to Watkins Glen for no real reason.

Maui has some of the best roads I've driven on. Upcountry area going out to Ulupalakua and in particular Crater Road going to to volcano. Excellent twisty road and very steep at times. An aerial view shows a ribbon like road laid alng the mountain slope and rewarded with a breathtaking sight at the summit. Going around the West side is great too but the blacktop gets neglected years at a time.
It goes without saying that the views are fantastic wherever you are on the island.

There are so many great roads out here in Colorado. The roads into and through the mountains just west of the front range all have spectacular views and several are lightly traveled. I have a favorite but I'm not sharing it.

For sheer beauty and even sometimes almost alien landscapes, there isn't much I've seen that can compare to northern Italy and Swizerland in the summer. Alot of the travel is on top of the mountains as opposed to through the valleys that is common here and it makes the scenery quite stunning. Here are a couple of shots of the twisty roads. You don't want to be speeding here, there are unexpected turns, bikers, and police in different places, but honestly, you don't want to speed on these roads anyway.

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y37...t/P7290041.jpg

http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y37...t/DSCN0072.jpg

This made me laugh out loud. I'm sorry.

This isn't so much a specific road but an area. I was coming back from south Jersey a few weeks ago (leaves just starting to turn), heading towards NE Ohio. Sometimes I take I80, sometimes the Pennsy Turnpike (I76). This time I took the pike as far as Harrisburg, but then got off and took back roads.

Went through Wertzville, PA (Mapquest it), then headed west on 944, then went NW on 850. Eventually (at Alinda), got on 74, then 75, again (generally) heading north and west (but occasionally not). Somewhere along the way I got totally lost, consulting with the GPS and Pennsy map, eventually getting onto I80 to continue the trip home.

BEAUTIFUL, pastoral farmland mixed with gorgeous woodsy areas, nice curvy country roads that had, almost without exception, what looked like nearly new asphalt. If you're trying to get from the Harrisburg area up towards State College, there are some beautiful back roads. I don't even think you need to take the specific routes I mentioned...I'm betting it's pretty much all scenic. :)

HWY 1 where it turns inland and meets up with 101 at the redwood forest. I traversed that section at about 8:30 at night which was still light out in July. I tore it up and only passed 1 car in 30 miles. I was on the bike not the Boxster, but you just can't loose.

Deal's Gap - Tennessee

Coast Road to Hana - Maui, HI

Hwy 377 to Haleakala Crater - Maui, HI

Cheers!

Bolzano- San Pietro Italy
 

Awesome scenery in the Dolomites, alternating between long straights, minimal traffic and speed limits, to steep, curvy mountain roads over various ridgelines. Permagrin defined!

My favorite in the states ( a little more accessible to most) Hwy 79 from Temecula to Santa Ysabel, then HWY 78 through Julian (my hometown), down the abackside of the mountain into the desert toward Ocotillo.

So many plusses- Rolling hills, sweeping turns on the first and last legs, separated by great mountain driving in the middle. Lots of traffic on weekends, but midday on weekdays is pretty doable.

Say Hi to my dad at Miner's Diner in Julian!

I forgot about that road, it's great! Especially after passing Ramona. I lived there for a few months in the 80's and still visit some close friends there, on Pine Hills Road. I used to work at the Pine Hills Lodge, great place to relax after a nice drive.

That road is even better when you're on a dirt bike!

A friendly suggestion: How about including the STATE in the description. Not everyone is familiar with town names (or the route numbers) alone. :cheers:

Hwy 78, Santa Ysabel, Julian are in Southern California. In the hills East of San Diego.

Thanks. I figured they were...they just sound like southern California. :)

The hills of the Ozark/Ouachita Mountains here in Arkansas are indeed some of the best roads I have come into contact with. (I've been all over OK, MO, TX, and KS) This spring I am considering a drive down one called, "Pig Trail" just south of Fayetteville. There are many roads around Jasper, AR that take you high into the hills with absolutely spectacular views.
On weekdays the roads aren't congested, and driving is an absolute pleasure. On the weekend, I've had to deal folks that are used to driving in straight lines on more than one occaison. I love passing them with the ungodly-wonderous sound of my 2.7 @ 5500 RPM telling them just how hapy I am to be passing them.

Mmmm... So many roads, so little time. This is one of my favorites:

Calif. Hwy 88 from Jackson to Kit Carson Pass. This offers great Boxster curves, quaint little towns and breathtaking views of the Sierras. It is off the beaten path a bit so much less traffic than the more popular roads to Tahoe or Yosemite. I spent a lot of time there in my youth but haven't driven it in quite a while. Gotta get back up there.

the rattlesnake
 

Once seen, never forgotten, Rattlesnake Grade's narrow switchbacks, precipitous drop-offs and 6- to 9-percent pitches on hwy Oregon 3 and Washington 129 between Enterprise and Clarkston, Wash.

http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/a...ttlesnake2.jpg

http://i198.photobucket.com/albums/a...pg?t=128866248