Mayank's Favorite Bay Area Scenic and Technical Drives

Bay Area Scenic and Technical Drives

This is my personal ode to the beauty of the San Francisco Bay Area: an ever-increasing collection of back roads that are scenic, not too heavily used, and above all, interesting to drive on. If you find this list useful, or have your own back road that you'd like to suggest, please drop me a line at drl@facebook.com. -Mayank

23.9

53m

Cupertino, CA
Stevens Canyon Rd
Mt Eden Rd
Pierce Rd
Hwy 9
Skyline Blvd

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Stevens Canyon Rd

This route has four distinct segments. It starts off fairly easy on Stevens Canyon Road, with varying scenery and a little traffic. There are some sharp blind hairpins and you generally can't see too much ahead. The second segment is a bit on Highway 9 that connects to Skyline Blvd. This is much more open road, and has excellent banking. In particular, there's a segment somewhere near the Skyline junction where the road gently zigzags and you can see almost a mile ahead. I call it the "joy" segment. Then we connect up to Skyline, which is quite empty and pastoral at this end. Finally, Page Mill leads back to the highway and is actually extremely tricky. This was my first run with the Audi TT-RS, and I was grateful for the all-wheel drive.

62.1

97m

Livermore, CA
Mines Road
Del Puerto Canyon Road
I-5

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Mines Road

This is the Nurburgring of the Bay Area: a public road that is extremely challenging, snaking through uninhabited areas (as you can see from the big empty white spaces on the map). It is a 60+ mile road with no real exits, and scenery that is quite different from the other roads on this page. If you change your mind about doing the entire stretch, you can only really turn back. However, if you stay with it, you'll find mile after mile of glorious curves and no traffic. This is mainly a mountain road, so there are some mild elevation changes and stunning views. There aren't too many places where you can physically pull over, so if you want to take a picture, you'll have to find the rare open straight and park yourself right in the middle. This is a rare road that is both a driver-friendly road as well as a passenger-friendly road, due to the stunning scenery. The final run on Del Puerto Canyon Road appears, at first, to be a little less interesting than Mines Road, but there are some surreal moments where you burst into a valley and the road is smooth and wide, you can see empty roads for miles ahead, and for some reason you're hedged into the road by fencing on both sides. It could be a scene out of the Swiss Alps.

28.8

62m

Golden Gate Bridge
Mt. Tamalpais
Rt. 1
Stinson Beach

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Mt. Tamalpais

An amazing closed loop drive that starts of a little dull as you cross the Golden Gate from San Francisco and deal with Rt. 101 traffic. Turn off towards the Muir Woods monument and then carefully follow the waypoints as you climb Mt. Tamalpais, watching for bikers along the way. You'll see lush green meadows and largely empty, twisty roads with a stunning view of the Pacific. When you get to the junction of Ridgecrest Blvd., consider making a detour by turning right instead of left. It'll lead to a dead-end, but you will see one of the most stunning views of San Francisco I have ever seen. Come back to the intersection and follow the marked route that takes you along the top of the range (beautiful views of the Pacific, but watch for bikers). The road quality deteriorates at the tricky technical bit at the end of the route, and it's a bit of an anticlimax as you descend back to hit slow traffic on Route 1.

9.4

23m

Skyline Blvd.
Tunitas Creek Road
Rt. 1

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Tunitas Creek

One of the most amazing south bay drives, in my opinion. You can combine this route with the King's Mountain route for a longer drive. It starts off as a hidden trail right at the intersection of King's Mountain road and Skyline Blvd. Since it bends around a hill immediately, it doesn't really look like a driving road. But once you turn onto it, you're treated to a surreal experience, especially if it's a little foggy. Amazing twists in the road are sheltered under giant redwoods. The road is very narrow, but you can generally see several curves ahead, so you can use the entire road for large sections. I've almost never seen any traffic on the entire stretch. After lots of winding uphill and then downhill, you burst into flat country roads and finally connect to Route 1. Do this drive in the evening, headed westbound, and you finish with a beautiful sunset over the Pacific.

18.2

37m

I-280 at Woodside
Kings Mtn. Rd
Skyline Blvd.
I-280

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King's Mountain

Right off I-280 at Woodside, lots of curves and Redwood trees on King's Mountain Road (quite a few sports cars here in the evenings). Decent elevation changes and lots of hairpin turns. Continue heading north on Skyline Blvd, which can have a bit of traffic but has amazing views. Finish off crossing Crystal Springs Reservoir and re-connecting to 280. A nice scenic route to take back to or from the city, while avoiding boring traffic on 280.

28.5

53m

Rt. 1 at Pescadero
Pescadero Highway
La Honda
Alice's Restaurant
Skyline Blvd.
I-280

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Pescadero Highway

Start off on Rt. 1, the Pacific Highway, at Pescadero. This is a beautiful drive down from San Francisco, especially at night when there is almost no traffic. The Pescadero highway, on the other hand, is beautiful with plenty of daylight. Lots of twists as you climb uphill towards La Honda on Rt. 84 towards the junction at Alice's Restaurant, from where you get on Skyline Blvd. and eventually connect back to I-280 to points north and south.

10.1

18m

Rt. 130 from San Jose
Lick Observatory

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Lick Observatory

From a colleague at Facebook, review coming when I've driven it. Can be full of dust and gravel by some accounts.

Please drive safely. Email your drives to me.

Miles	Time	Waypoints	Map and link, with best part shown	Notes
23.9	53m	Cupertino, CA Stevens Canyon Rd Mt Eden Rd Pierce Rd Hwy 9 Skyline Blvd	View Larger Map	Stevens Canyon Rd This route has four distinct segments. It starts off fairly easy on Stevens Canyon Road, with varying scenery and a little traffic. There are some sharp blind hairpins and you generally can't see too much ahead. The second segment is a bit on Highway 9 that connects to Skyline Blvd. This is much more open road, and has excellent banking. In particular, there's a segment somewhere near the Skyline junction where the road gently zigzags and you can see almost a mile ahead. I call it the "joy" segment. Then we connect up to Skyline, which is quite empty and pastoral at this end. Finally, Page Mill leads back to the highway and is actually extremely tricky. This was my first run with the Audi TT-RS, and I was grateful for the all-wheel drive.
62.1	97m	Livermore, CA Mines Road Del Puerto Canyon Road I-5	View Larger Map	Mines Road This is the Nurburgring of the Bay Area: a public road that is extremely challenging, snaking through uninhabited areas (as you can see from the big empty white spaces on the map). It is a 60+ mile road with no real exits, and scenery that is quite different from the other roads on this page. If you change your mind about doing the entire stretch, you can only really turn back. However, if you stay with it, you'll find mile after mile of glorious curves and no traffic. This is mainly a mountain road, so there are some mild elevation changes and stunning views. There aren't too many places where you can physically pull over, so if you want to take a picture, you'll have to find the rare open straight and park yourself right in the middle. This is a rare road that is both a driver-friendly road as well as a passenger-friendly road, due to the stunning scenery. The final run on Del Puerto Canyon Road appears, at first, to be a little less interesting than Mines Road, but there are some surreal moments where you burst into a valley and the road is smooth and wide, you can see empty roads for miles ahead, and for some reason you're hedged into the road by fencing on both sides. It could be a scene out of the Swiss Alps.
28.8	62m	Golden Gate Bridge Mt. Tamalpais Rt. 1 Stinson Beach	View Larger Map	Mt. Tamalpais An amazing closed loop drive that starts of a little dull as you cross the Golden Gate from San Francisco and deal with Rt. 101 traffic. Turn off towards the Muir Woods monument and then carefully follow the waypoints as you climb Mt. Tamalpais, watching for bikers along the way. You'll see lush green meadows and largely empty, twisty roads with a stunning view of the Pacific. When you get to the junction of Ridgecrest Blvd., consider making a detour by turning right instead of left. It'll lead to a dead-end, but you will see one of the most stunning views of San Francisco I have ever seen. Come back to the intersection and follow the marked route that takes you along the top of the range (beautiful views of the Pacific, but watch for bikers). The road quality deteriorates at the tricky technical bit at the end of the route, and it's a bit of an anticlimax as you descend back to hit slow traffic on Route 1.
9.4	23m	Skyline Blvd. Tunitas Creek Road Rt. 1	View Larger Map	Tunitas Creek One of the most amazing south bay drives, in my opinion. You can combine this route with the King's Mountain route for a longer drive. It starts off as a hidden trail right at the intersection of King's Mountain road and Skyline Blvd. Since it bends around a hill immediately, it doesn't really look like a driving road. But once you turn onto it, you're treated to a surreal experience, especially if it's a little foggy. Amazing twists in the road are sheltered under giant redwoods. The road is very narrow, but you can generally see several curves ahead, so you can use the entire road for large sections. I've almost never seen any traffic on the entire stretch. After lots of winding uphill and then downhill, you burst into flat country roads and finally connect to Route 1. Do this drive in the evening, headed westbound, and you finish with a beautiful sunset over the Pacific.
18.2	37m	I-280 at Woodside Kings Mtn. Rd Skyline Blvd. I-280	View Larger Map	King's Mountain Right off I-280 at Woodside, lots of curves and Redwood trees on King's Mountain Road (quite a few sports cars here in the evenings). Decent elevation changes and lots of hairpin turns. Continue heading north on Skyline Blvd, which can have a bit of traffic but has amazing views. Finish off crossing Crystal Springs Reservoir and re-connecting to 280. A nice scenic route to take back to or from the city, while avoiding boring traffic on 280.
28.5	53m	Rt. 1 at Pescadero Pescadero Highway La Honda Alice's Restaurant Skyline Blvd. I-280	View Larger Map	Pescadero Highway Start off on Rt. 1, the Pacific Highway, at Pescadero. This is a beautiful drive down from San Francisco, especially at night when there is almost no traffic. The Pescadero highway, on the other hand, is beautiful with plenty of daylight. Lots of twists as you climb uphill towards La Honda on Rt. 84 towards the junction at Alice's Restaurant, from where you get on Skyline Blvd. and eventually connect back to I-280 to points north and south.
10.1	18m	Rt. 130 from San Jose Lick Observatory	View Larger Map	Lick Observatory From a colleague at Facebook, review coming when I've driven it. Can be full of dust and gravel by some accounts.