Scenic routes

The great American drives.

The legendary corridors — and the stops worth pulling over for on each. Pick a route, see the states it crosses, and plan the scenic line with Roamward.

Route 66The Mother Road, Chicago to the PacificChicago, IL → Santa Monica, CA · ~2,448 milesIllinoisMissouriKansasOklahomaTexas+3The National Parks Highway (US 89)America’s parks, strung on one road from Arizona to MontanaFlagstaff, AZ → Glacier, MT · ~1,500 miles (with park detours)ArizonaUtahWyomingMontanaPacific Coast HighwayCalifornia’s cliff-hugging coast driveDana Point → Leggett, CA · ~650 milesCaliforniaBlue Ridge ParkwayAmerica’s favorite drive, ridge to ridgeShenandoah, VA → Great Smoky Mountains, NC · 469 milesVirginiaNorth CarolinaGreat River RoadFollow the Mississippi, source to seaLake Itasca, MN → New Orleans, LA · ~3,000 milesMinnesotaWisconsinIowaIllinoisMissouri+5Overseas HighwayIsland-hopping to the end of the roadMiami → Key West, FL · ~113 milesFloridaOregon Coast HighwaySea stacks, lighthouses, and old-growth coastAstoria → Brookings, OR · ~363 milesOregonNatchez Trace ParkwayAn ancient path turned quiet parkwayNashville, TN → Natchez, MS · 444 milesTennesseeAlabamaMississippiThe Loneliest Road (US-50)Big-empty Nevada, basin and rangeCarson City → Baker, NV · ~410 miles (NV)NevadaGoing-to-the-Sun RoadGlacier National Park, summit to summitWest Glacier → St. Mary, MT · ~50 milesMontanaMillion Dollar HighwaySan Juan Mountains, no guardrailsDurango → Ouray, CO · ~70 milesColoradoSkyline DriveThe whole length of ShenandoahFront Royal → Rockfish Gap, VA · 105 milesVirginiaBeartooth Highway“The most beautiful drive in America”Red Lodge, MT → Cooke City, MT · ~68 milesMontanaWyomingUtah Scenic Byway 12Red rock between two national parksBryce Canyon → Torrey, UT · ~124 milesUtahHana HighwayMaui’s rainforest coast, curve by curveKahului → Hana, HI · ~64 milesHawaiiHaleakalā HighwaySea level to 10,000 feet, above the cloudsKahului → Haleakalā summit, HI · ~37 milesHawaiiNewfound Gap RoadAcross the Great Smoky MountainsGatlinburg, TN → Cherokee, NC · ~31 milesTennesseeNorth CarolinaKancamagus HighwayWhite Mountains, peak fall colorLincoln → Conway, NH · ~34 milesNew HampshireTrail Ridge RoadThe highest continuous paved road in the U.S.Estes Park → Grand Lake, CO · ~48 milesColoradoHistoric Columbia River HighwayA corridor of waterfallsTroutdale → The Dalles, OR · ~75 milesOregonOuter Banks Scenic BywayBarrier islands, lighthouses, and ferriesNags Head → Ocracoke, NC · ~140 milesNorth CarolinaAvenue of the GiantsOld-growth redwoods, up closePhillipsville → Pepperwood, CA · ~31 milesCaliforniaTail of the Dragon318 curves in 11 milesDeals Gap, NC → Tabcat, TN · ~11 milesNorth CarolinaTennesseeOak Creek CanyonFlagstaff to Sedona’s red rocksFlagstaff → Sedona, AZ · ~28 milesArizonaSeward HighwayAnchorage to the sea, past glaciers and beluga waterAnchorage → Seward, AK · ~125 milesAlaskaSan Juan SkywayA high-country loop through Colorado’s wildest mountainsDurango → Silverton → Ouray → Telluride loop, CO · ~233-mile loopColoradoNeedles HighwayGranite spires and one-lane tunnels in the Black HillsCuster State Park, SD (SD-87) · ~14 milesSouth DakotaTioga RoadYosemite’s high country, dome to meadowCrane Flat → Tioga Pass, CA (CA-120) · ~46 milesCaliforniaNorth Cascades HighwayThe “American Alps” by carMarblemount → Winthrop, WA (WA-20) · ~75 milesWashingtonCascade Lakes HighwayA string of volcanic lakes under the Three SistersBend → Crane Prairie, OR · ~66 milesOregonCrater Lake Rim DriveThe deepest, bluest lake in America, all the way aroundRim Village loop, OR · ~33-mile loopOregonEnchanted CircleA high-desert loop around New Mexico’s tallest peakTaos loop, NM · ~84-mile loopNew MexicoZion–Mount Carmel HighwaySwitchbacks and a mile-long tunnel out of Zion CanyonZion Canyon → east entrance, UT (UT-9) · ~12 milesUtahMonument Valley (US-163)The most iconic straightaway in the WestMexican Hat, UT → Kayenta, AZ · ~45 milesUtahArizonaCherohala SkywayA mile-high ridge run with no crowdsTellico Plains, TN → Robbinsville, NC · ~43 milesTennesseeNorth CarolinaTalimena National Scenic BywayA ridgetop run across the OuachitasTalihina, OK → Mena, AR · ~54 milesOklahomaArkansasNorth Shore Scenic DriveLake Superior’s wild Minnesota coastDuluth → Grand Portage, MN (Highway 61) · ~145 milesMinnesotaAcadia Park Loop RoadWhere the mountains meet the sea in MaineMount Desert Island loop, ME · ~27-mile loopMaineVermont Route 100The spine of the Green MountainsStamford → Newport, VT · ~200 milesVermontRiver Road (El Camino del Rio)The Rio Grande’s wildest driveLajitas → Presidio, TX (FM-170) · ~50 milesTexasThe Lincoln Highway (US 30)America’s first coast-to-coast roadTimes Square, NY → Lincoln Park, San Francisco, CA · ~3,400 milesNew YorkNew JerseyPennsylvaniaOhioIndiana+7Olympic Peninsula Loop (US 101)Rainforest, peaks, and wild coast in one circlePort Angeles loop, WA · ~330-mile loopWashingtonPikes Peak HighwayDrive to the top of a 14,000-foot summitCascade, CO → Pikes Peak summit · ~19 miles to the summitColoradoTamiami Trail (US 41 Everglades)Straight through the River of GrassNaples → Miami, FL · ~80 miles (Everglades crossing)FloridaMount Washington Auto RoadDrive to the roof of the NortheastPinkham Notch → Mount Washington summit, NH · 7.6 miles to the summitNew HampshireDenali HighwayA wild gravel byway under the Alaska RangePaxson → Cantwell, AK · 135 milesAlaskaChain of Craters RoadFrom a volcano summit to the seaKīlauea summit → Hōlei Sea Arch, HI · ~19 miles one-wayHawaiiLake Tahoe LoopAll the way around the bluest alpine lakeLake Tahoe loop, CA/NV · ~72-mile loopCaliforniaNevadaMount Blue Sky Scenic Byway (formerly Mount Evans)The highest paved road in North AmericaIdaho Springs → Mount Blue Sky summit, CO · ~28 miles to the summitColoradoThe High Road to TaosMountain villages, adobe churches, and aspen goldSanta Fe → Taos, NM · ~56 milesNew MexicoCades Cove LoopBears, meadows, and pioneer cabins in the SmokiesCades Cove loop, Great Smoky Mountains NP, TN · 11-mile one-way loopTennesseeCreole Nature TrailLouisiana’s Outback — gators, birds, and Gulf beachesLake Charles / Sulphur loop, LA · ~180-mile networkLouisianaThe Cascade LoopWashington’s mountain-to-sound circleEverett loop, WA · ~440-mile loopWashingtonHells Canyon Scenic BywayThe rim of North America’s deepest gorgeBaker City loop, OR · ~210-mile loopOregonVolcanic Legacy Scenic BywayTwo volcano parks and Mount Shasta on one roadLassen Volcanic NP → Crater Lake NP · ~500 milesCaliforniaOregonThe Dalton HighwayThe gravel haul road to the Arctic Oceannear Fairbanks → Deadhorse, AK · 414 milesAlaskaSawtooth Scenic BywayTo the foot of Idaho’s jagged SawtoothsShoshone → Stanley, ID · ~116 milesIdahoA1A Scenic & Historic Coastal BywayFlorida’s Atlantic coast past the oldest U.S. cityPonte Vedra Beach → Flagler Beach, FL · ~72 milesFloridaThe Mohawk TrailNew England’s oldest scenic auto roadWilliamstown → Greenfield, MA · ~63 milesMassachusettsThe Extraterrestrial Highway (NV-375)The lonely desert road past Area 51Crystal Springs → Warm Springs, NV · ~98 milesNevada

Or explore state by state.

All 50 states plus Washington, D.C. have their own atlas of community nominees, events, golf, and stops worth the detour.