Your favourite road
Discussion
What's your single favourite road? The rules are this: It must basically be a 'driving road', but nostalgia, scenery etc. are acceptable factors in the decision too (it doesn't have to be the whitest knuckles!) and you can only pick one.
Having said the above, I'm having a real issue narrowing it down to just one. The A356 from Crewkerne to the A303, the B1004 from Much Hadham to Bishops Stortford, and the Black Mountain Road have all produced some epic drives. I think for its proximity to civilisation, its impressive range of corners and its local hero status I'm going for this one, however...
The A507 from Baldock to Buntingford
Having said the above, I'm having a real issue narrowing it down to just one. The A356 from Crewkerne to the A303, the B1004 from Much Hadham to Bishops Stortford, and the Black Mountain Road have all produced some epic drives. I think for its proximity to civilisation, its impressive range of corners and its local hero status I'm going for this one, however...
The A507 from Baldock to Buntingford
Not sure if it has a classification or not, but probably over Blakey Ridge in North Yorkshire.
And yes. there are 'technically' better and also more exciting roads about (lots of them! but this one I just love, climbing the big hill, the great Vista over the Moors, and in nice, small car its a real challenge maintaining a good flow along the bumpy, yumpy, broken tarmac.
Through the Village, up the Hill and onto the moors, turn right after the Lion Inn and back down into Rosedale Abbey. Perfect.
And yes. there are 'technically' better and also more exciting roads about (lots of them! but this one I just love, climbing the big hill, the great Vista over the Moors, and in nice, small car its a real challenge maintaining a good flow along the bumpy, yumpy, broken tarmac.
Through the Village, up the Hill and onto the moors, turn right after the Lion Inn and back down into Rosedale Abbey. Perfect.
The A82 between Tyndrum and Fort William, through Glencoe. Quite simply the most breathtaking scenery, amazing straights and challenging bends.
Highly recommended. 46 miles of perfection. Click the link and zoom into street view for a preview if you are not familiar.
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=d&source=s_d&a...
Highly recommended. 46 miles of perfection. Click the link and zoom into street view for a preview if you are not familiar.
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=d&source=s_d&a...
This
Also, the D767 from Guingamp to Corlay in Brittany. Twisty blacktop alongside a picturesque river to the South of Guingamp followed by a climb to a 300m summit and a decent down long straights into Corlay. Stop for a strong coffee and a cigarette and then back again. 20 odd miles of smiles each way
Chris71 said:
The A507 from Baldock to Buntingford
First proper road I took the TVR down after about 3 months of ownership, one Sunday evening in September and gave it a good thrashing.Also, the D767 from Guingamp to Corlay in Brittany. Twisty blacktop alongside a picturesque river to the South of Guingamp followed by a climb to a 300m summit and a decent down long straights into Corlay. Stop for a strong coffee and a cigarette and then back again. 20 odd miles of smiles each way
dougc said:
This
It's a bit changed from when I used to thrash up and down it in the 80s, but still a good road. Current favourite is the B6047 between Market Harborough and Melton Mowbray. It would be perfect if they flattened all the villages and took away the corresponding 30 limitsChris71 said:
The A507 from Baldock to Buntingford
First proper road I took the TVR down after about 3 months of ownership, one Sunday evening in September and gave it a good thrashing.Mike_CTR said:
B6049 at the moment, Bradwell to the A623.
Almost any of the B60xx roads in North Derbyshire are fantastic - when I was living down that way one of my favourites was the B6050 from the A621 down to Chesterfield, never had as much fun on a road where you couldn't actually do more than about 55mph on a few stretches. The A621 itself is also a great road but like all of Derbyshire's A-roads it has been completely ruined by a ridiculous 50mph limit that is frequently enforced (on straight streches only, of course) by unmarked camera vans. The B5056 from just after Rowsley down to Fenny Bentley was another gem I found taking a scenic route down to Alton Towers.
My fave road up here would probably be the A591 down from Bothel to Keswick (and onwards to Ambleside provided you can get a clear run) for the combination of scenery, tricky crests and decent stretches for passing slower traffic.
Baldock to Buntingford is a good road, but right now my favourite is the road from Hutton-le-hole to Rosedale Abbey, up over the moors, nice scenery, a few dips and crests to catch you out(witness the gouges in the road from countless sumps) and at the end, chimney bank, which, IIRC is the steepest road in england
Seems we're mentioning multiple roads, I'll add the two main roads across Dartmoor (out of season obviously) and one very, very bizarre one. The A303 is known to most for hellish gridlock and most of the time for most of the route I'd concur, but the very last section before it turns into the A30, sufficiently late at night, can actually be good fun. There's about half a mile where it clings to the side of the hill like an alpine road, leading to a tight left hand hairpin. It's usually the best part of midnight by the time I reach it if I'm heading home for a weekend and it serves as a tiny bit of reward for the preceeding three hours of tedium. Also in the Westcountry, the B3167 between the A358 and the A30, the B3165 from Hunters Lodge to Crewkerne and the B3162 from Broadwindsor to West Bay.
Chris71 said:
Seems we're mentioning multiple roads, I'll add the two main roads across Dartmoor (out of season obviously) and one very, very bizarre one. The A303 is known to most for hellish gridlock and most of the time for most of the route I'd concur, but the very last section before it turns into the A30, sufficiently late at night, can actually be good fun. There's about half a mile where it clings to the side of the hill like an alpine road, leading to a tight left hand hairpin. It's usually the best part of midnight by the time I reach it if I'm heading home for a weekend and it serves as a tiny bit of reward for the preceeding three hours of tedium. Also in the Westcountry, the B3167 between the A358 and the A30, the B3165 from Hunters Lodge to Crewkerne and the B3162 from Broadwindsor to West Bay.
Agreed with all of those, infact i may head up Crewkerne way later 
My fav road has to be the A396 from Tiverton to Minehead. Early morning or late at night this is a brilliant twisty road with some sweeping bends and some that just tighten a bit more than you might expect! Eeven though ive driven the Alps and Route Napolion etc one of my best ever drives ive had is up this road to the Somerset Stages rally last year. Only saw one van and he waved me past straight away and I was off again.
Just a shame that after about 9am its full of muppets doing 40mph at very most
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?hl=en&tab=wl
It's in France.
From the town of Blois head for R. Lanthanay [D765], skirt the town on the west side, heading for [locally] St. Marc, look for the signs for St. Outrille/Gracay [D922], get out of there on the D83, then onto the D16 for Issoudun, take ring road and then join the D918 [not the D19, it's awful] and get to La Chatre, after that just any road to Mont Lucon is brilliant, have not found a bad one yet!
From there you have the wonderful problem of even better roads and too much choice, I think the best way is to just set a compass for 'south' and take any road you like to Chateau-sur-cher then south-east to Les Ancizes-Comp and then any minor route to Clermont-Ferrand.
It has the lot, long sighted roads, sweepers, tight off-cambers, scenery to distract you alarmingly, the highlight of any drive south through France, there is a baker in Ancizes [first one, on the right on high street] stop and buy their bread/cakes, you'll go back for more, the dough is made from yeast that dates back over a century of continual daily baking and preserving of a little of the original, brick ovens the lot.
Found this 20+ years ago and it still is amazing and the roads are in fabulous condition.
From the town of Blois head for R. Lanthanay [D765], skirt the town on the west side, heading for [locally] St. Marc, look for the signs for St. Outrille/Gracay [D922], get out of there on the D83, then onto the D16 for Issoudun, take ring road and then join the D918 [not the D19, it's awful] and get to La Chatre, after that just any road to Mont Lucon is brilliant, have not found a bad one yet!
From there you have the wonderful problem of even better roads and too much choice, I think the best way is to just set a compass for 'south' and take any road you like to Chateau-sur-cher then south-east to Les Ancizes-Comp and then any minor route to Clermont-Ferrand.
It has the lot, long sighted roads, sweepers, tight off-cambers, scenery to distract you alarmingly, the highlight of any drive south through France, there is a baker in Ancizes [first one, on the right on high street] stop and buy their bread/cakes, you'll go back for more, the dough is made from yeast that dates back over a century of continual daily baking and preserving of a little of the original, brick ovens the lot.
Found this 20+ years ago and it still is amazing and the roads are in fabulous condition.
A4059 Penderyn - Storey Arms
Hardly anybody uses it, as you drop down at the end towards the Brecon Beacons reseviors at the North end (and drive along the top of one) it's just stunning on a nice day.
Hardly anybody uses it, as you drop down at the end towards the Brecon Beacons reseviors at the North end (and drive along the top of one) it's just stunning on a nice day.
A short distance (only about 6 miles) but the A6003 between Rockingham Castle and Uppingham is absolutely fantastic, with a large straight and some great hilly corners and views over Eyebrook Resevoir, unfortunately it is often busy.
Around that area though there are many great roads i.e. then from Uppingham to Market Harborough via the B664.
Around that area though there are many great roads i.e. then from Uppingham to Market Harborough via the B664.
Shay HTFC said:
The ride between Holme and Glossop is top quality.
That looks a bit like the Buttertubs (which coincidentally I thought was a slightly overrated road - the first bit is quite open so you'd have to be going very quickly to have fun and the second bit has a lot of blind crests, quite steep and rather narrow in places...)Gassing Station | Roads | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff