The Best Motorcycle Roads in the Country

Every motorcyclist has their own list of the best roads they've ever ridden, as well as some ideas of some great roads they hope to ride some day. I mean, you didn't buy that Suzuki Boulevard C50T to let it sit in the garage, did you? That bike wants to go places! Wouldn't it be nice to have a definitive list of the best roads in the country so you might even make some plans to hit them?

Well, thanks to the folks at the American Motorcyclist Association, that list has been compiled. They asked their members to vote on which roads they consider the best and a list of the top 15 motorcycle roads in the U.S. is what resulted.

Many of the roads on the list are what you would expect. The Tail of the Dragon in North Carolina is on there, in the No. 3 spot, and the Pacific Coast Highway is there as No. 5. Voted the best road of them all is the Beartooth Highway up in Wyoming and Montana. I've been on the PCH and the Beartooth and I can confirm they belong there. But there are some roads you've probably never heard of, and that's one of the beauties of this list. It gives you new destinations to dream about.

Here's the complete list, with my comments.

15. Washington Route 129 and Oregon Route 3, between Clarkston, WA, and Enterprise, OR -- What? Where? This is one of those "thanks for the tip" routes. It's in the very eastern part of those states and I know that area is mountainous. I'll have to check it out sometime.

14. Ohio Route 170, Calcutta to Poland -- OK, Poland is a little south of Youngstown and 170 arcs south down toward the West Virginia state line. I guess being that close to West Virginia ensures some hills as well.

13. California Route 58, McKittrick to Santa Margarita -- Hmm. Interesting. 58 runs west out of Bakerfield and comes to McKittrick. They say this is hilly so it must be going across the coastal range.

12. U.S. Route 33, Harrisonburg, VA, to Seneca Rocks, WV -- Yes! Looking at the map I can see this one is a good one. Crossing through the Appalachians.

11. Natchez Trace, from Natchez, MS, to Nashville, TN -- OK, here's one I've been on and I guess I need to go again. I've heard a lot about the Natchez Trace but I found it boring. It seemed to wind endlessly through the trees with little of interest to see. I found it more interesting getting off and visiting the town is bypasses.

10. Angeles Crest Highway, California Route 2 -- Coming up out of Los Angeles, this one is well-known, and very twisty.

9. U.S. Route 12, Lolo Pass, Idaho and Montana -- A good one for sure. Coming southwest out of Missoula, this one is sweet.

8. Route 36, California -- A heavily wooded, mountainous area in northern California. Again, thanks for the tip.

7. Cherohala Skyway, North Carolina and Tennessee -- Right through the Smoky Mountains. A natural.

6. Going to the Sun Road, Glacier National Park, Montana -- Now we're getting to the very best, and also the better known. This is definitely one of them. Ride it one way and then turn around and ride it the other way. It's fabulous.

5. California Highway 1, Pacific Coast Highway -- Oh yeah, and Big Sur is the best of the best.

4. Highway 550, from Ouray to Durango, Colorado -- Going up over Red Mountain Pass, this is absolutely one of the very best roads in Colorado. It deserves this high ranking.

3. U.S. 129, The Tail of the Dragon, on the North Carolina-Tennessee Border -- The fabled road featuring 318 curves in 11 miles. Take it slow.

2. Blue Ridge Parkway, North Carolina -- A very famous, well-known road. Try to do it when you can avoid the worst of the tourist season.

1. Beartooth Highway, Montana and Wyoming -- Miles and miles cruising along above timberline, mountains all around you, gorgeous views. If you've never been there, put this at the top of your list.

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