Nobody agrees on the best motorcycle road in America, which is half the fun of arguing about it. The country has 3.9 million miles of pavement and the overwhelming majority of it exists to move grain trucks and commuters. What’s left over, the roads that feel like they were built for riders even though none of them were, is what this list is about. Twelve routes, grouped by region. Some you already know. A couple you probably don’t, and those might be the ones worth planning a trip around.
The West Coast and Pacific Northwest
Pacific Coast Highway, California
Credit: RoadtrippersEveryone starts here, so let’s get it out of the way. Route 1 is 656 miles long and much of it is ordinary coastal highway. The 90 or so miles through Big Sur are not. Between Carmel and San Simeon the road hangs off cliffs above the Pacific, crosses Bixby Bridge and drops in and out of redwood canyons, and on a clear weekday morning there is nothing else like it in this country. The problem is everything around it: summer fog, slide closures that can drag on for months and weekend traffic heavy enough to turn the ride into a scenic idle. Check Caltrans before you commit. Go on a Tuesday.
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