Re: [ST] PA & WV Roads

["Garry Simmons" <garrysimmons@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

>I live in Ontario, Canada and am planning on doing a 5 day tour south 
>through western Pennsylvania and probably into West Virginia then back 
>north again through the Finger Lakes region of New York.  Any suggestions 
>for fun roads or stops along the way?

I'm sure I can help :-) Here are some favorites north of I-80:

PA 144 - starts in Galeton (jct 6) and runs south for about 75 twisty miles 
in the middle of nowhere. Pavement is quality generally good, but expect 
some dirty or bumpy spots. I usually run it south to Milesburg (jct Alt220) 
then head over to 504 for more fun.

PA 287 - a bit east of 144, but nice sweepers in the country. Runs south to 
Lock Haven.

PA 120 - a nice east/west route that connects 287, 144 and continues to 219 
near St Marys, PA. Scenic sweepers along a river

PA 555 - cuts south frm 120 in Driftwood and runs about 25 miles to jct 255, 
south of St Marys. Nice sweepers in elk country.

PA 219 runs north/south the length of the state. Some sections are nice, 
some are four-lane, some have lots of traffic and towns. It's a mixed bag 
really. It's nice south of I-80 for a bit and it's nice south of Johnstown 
to the PA/MD border.

PA 381 is in the southwest more. It runs from jct 30 at Ligonier all the way 
into WV. Very nice from Ligonier to jct 40. That section takes you past 
Frank Lloyd Wrights house "Fallingwater" and past Ohiopyle state park, a 
popular white water rafting area. 381 is a bumpy country road south of 40. 
But you can take 40 east a few miles to 281 south to continue into WV.

PA 653 - runs from Normalville (jct 381, north of Ohiopyle/Fallingwater) and 
runs east to jct 281 in New Lexington. Nice section of road. We usually take 
281 south into WV from New Lex. 281 becomes 26 in WV.

WV 26 - very good from Bruceton Mills (jct I-68) thru Kingwood to jct 50.

WV 72 - runs from Kingwood south to Parsons, then on to jct 32 near Canaan 
Valley state park. More scenic sweepers along the Cheat River to jct 50, 
then scenic sweepers in the mountains to Parsons. Then a twisty, gnarly, 
beat up rotten road south to jct 32. Most people just jump on 219 in 
Parsons.

WV 219 - excellent from jct 50 south to Elkins.

WV 33 - excellent from Elkins east to VA border. Be sure to into VA a little 
and enjoy miles of switchbacks on the way to Harrisonburg. Then turn around 
and run them back into WV for more fun. Be sure to stop at Seneca Rocks and 
enjoy the view. You can hike to the top of the north peak (the one on the 
left) via a forest service trail.

WV 50  - excellent east of I-79 (Clarksburg) all the way to VA. There's a 
funky general store/Exxon just west of jct 72 that worth stopping at. It's 
called "Cool Springs Park". Lots of old train and farm machinery on display 
with a few burros wandering around. Popular spot for a break.

WV 42 - excellent twisties just south of Mt Storm (jct 50), then nice 
sweepers to Petersburg.

WV 250 - excellent twisties from Ohio River (western end) to Fairmont. 
Probably farther west than you want to go though.

WV 7 - has some very nice sections east of Morgantown, but is excellent from 
Morgantown west to New Martinsville. This and 250 are worth going out of 
your way for.

WV 20 - generally nice sweepers, but the section south of Buckhannon (jct 
33, near I-79) south to Webster Springs is excellent.

I could on and on, but I'm leading a RAT Pack ride today and need to get 
showered, fed, etc.. Great stuff in WV. If you need more info or advice on a 
given section of road, shoot me an email or continue this thread online. 
Gotta run!

Garry 

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