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poltr1In my last post, I talked about my least favorite highways. In this one, I'll take the flip side of that and discuss my favorite roads to travel on, and my favorite driving conditions.
Weather: Any type except rainy or snowy. Icy roads are the worst! I'll take all the lake-effect snow in Buffalo over a quarter inch of ice on the roads any day!
Traffic load: I like to drive on roads where this is little or no traffic. Many interstates are too crowded with cars, trucks, and the occasional red car trying to do 80. If there's no one within a 5-second interval ahead of me or behind me, that's comfortable.
Road types: My favorite type of road to drive on is a divided 4-lane limited-access highway. There may be a few stop lights, and an ocasional road, but that's OK.
Music: I like to listen to the music of Pat Metheny when I drive.
If it's true that "the more you drive, the less intelligent you are", then I'd certainly qualify for Densa. :-) (Pop quiz: What movie is that quote from?)
Anyway, here are my favorite roads to drive on. State/Provincial routes are identified by the two-digit state/provincial code.
NY 18 and the Lake Ontario State Parkway, between Youngstown NY and Rochester NY. (I think the Lake Ontario State Parkway starts near Barker or Olcott.)
US 219, between Orchard Park NY and Bradford, PA. 4-lane to Springville NY; 2-lane the rest of the way. It's even nicer in the fall! I once had an interview with Zippo Manufacturing in Bradford, and that's the road I went home on.
NY 5, from Hamburg NY to the NY/PA state line, where it becomes PA 5 and continues into Erie PA. (Avoid the Skyway from Buffalo to Lackawanna if it's windy or wintry out. 'Nuff said!)
The Niagara Parkway, from Fort Erie ON to Niagara-On-The-Lake ON. A beautiful drive along the Niagara River.
The Blue Ridge Parkway, which runs from Shenandoah National Park (VA) to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park (TN). Speed limit 50, two-lane, no trucks, no gas/food/lodging unless you're willing to travel several miles away from the parkway.
US 42, from Xenia OH to Lebanon OH. An official "Ohio Byway". Most of it is 4-lane, except a two-mile section around Spring Valley.
US 35, from Dayton OH to Chillicothe OH. While the original two-lane route was nice (but not for truckers), it's now divided 4-lane all the way! Woo-hoo!
US 33, from Wapakoneta OH to Dublin OH, and from Obetz OH to Lancaster OH. But not through downtown Columbus.
I-71 from Cleveland OH to Columbus OH. I first rode on it 28 years ago on a family trip to Florida, and I thought it was a wonderful road to be on. (I didn't care for the primitive rest area facilities at the time, though. I should say that they have since been upgraded and modernized.) Right now, they're widening it from 2 lanes in each direction to 3 lanes, so there are several construction spots.
I-86 from Erie PA to Binghamton NY (and beyond). The former NY 17, aka the Southern Tier Expressway, was recently re-commissinoed as an interstate highway. Most of the road west of the intersection with I-390 in Avoca was already interstate-quality. There is some construction that needs to be done in Elmira to make it a bona fide interstate.
IN 37, from Indianapolis IN to Bloomington IN. This could easily become an extension of I-69, which currently ends in Indy, and is planned to go southwest to Evansville IN and beyond.
What are yours?
Weather: Any type except rainy or snowy. Icy roads are the worst! I'll take all the lake-effect snow in Buffalo over a quarter inch of ice on the roads any day!
Traffic load: I like to drive on roads where this is little or no traffic. Many interstates are too crowded with cars, trucks, and the occasional red car trying to do 80. If there's no one within a 5-second interval ahead of me or behind me, that's comfortable.
Road types: My favorite type of road to drive on is a divided 4-lane limited-access highway. There may be a few stop lights, and an ocasional road, but that's OK.
Music: I like to listen to the music of Pat Metheny when I drive.
If it's true that "the more you drive, the less intelligent you are", then I'd certainly qualify for Densa. :-) (Pop quiz: What movie is that quote from?)
Anyway, here are my favorite roads to drive on. State/Provincial routes are identified by the two-digit state/provincial code.
NY 18 and the Lake Ontario State Parkway, between Youngstown NY and Rochester NY. (I think the Lake Ontario State Parkway starts near Barker or Olcott.)
US 219, between Orchard Park NY and Bradford, PA. 4-lane to Springville NY; 2-lane the rest of the way. It's even nicer in the fall! I once had an interview with Zippo Manufacturing in Bradford, and that's the road I went home on.
NY 5, from Hamburg NY to the NY/PA state line, where it becomes PA 5 and continues into Erie PA. (Avoid the Skyway from Buffalo to Lackawanna if it's windy or wintry out. 'Nuff said!)
The Niagara Parkway, from Fort Erie ON to Niagara-On-The-Lake ON. A beautiful drive along the Niagara River.
The Blue Ridge Parkway, which runs from Shenandoah National Park (VA) to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park (TN). Speed limit 50, two-lane, no trucks, no gas/food/lodging unless you're willing to travel several miles away from the parkway.
US 42, from Xenia OH to Lebanon OH. An official "Ohio Byway". Most of it is 4-lane, except a two-mile section around Spring Valley.
US 35, from Dayton OH to Chillicothe OH. While the original two-lane route was nice (but not for truckers), it's now divided 4-lane all the way! Woo-hoo!
US 33, from Wapakoneta OH to Dublin OH, and from Obetz OH to Lancaster OH. But not through downtown Columbus.
I-71 from Cleveland OH to Columbus OH. I first rode on it 28 years ago on a family trip to Florida, and I thought it was a wonderful road to be on. (I didn't care for the primitive rest area facilities at the time, though. I should say that they have since been upgraded and modernized.) Right now, they're widening it from 2 lanes in each direction to 3 lanes, so there are several construction spots.
I-86 from Erie PA to Binghamton NY (and beyond). The former NY 17, aka the Southern Tier Expressway, was recently re-commissinoed as an interstate highway. Most of the road west of the intersection with I-390 in Avoca was already interstate-quality. There is some construction that needs to be done in Elmira to make it a bona fide interstate.
IN 37, from Indianapolis IN to Bloomington IN. This could easily become an extension of I-69, which currently ends in Indy, and is planned to go southwest to Evansville IN and beyond.
What are yours?
