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Absolute positively the worst road ever

pigfarmer
Explorer
Explorer
What is the worst road you've ever traveled and why?

A couple of years ago we were leaving Las Vegas, NEW MEXICO trying to get south to I-40. Our GPS put us on Hwy 104. Trusting our GPS (never again) we didn't question 'Her". Figured it was one of her short cuts. Well let me tell you, Hwy 104 is one hundred and four miles of pure hell. Two lane, no where to turn around, mountain road with switchbacks (fun in a 40 footer towing) no guard rail, 8,9, and 10% grades. WHITE KNUCKLE all the way and all day with 10 and 15 mph curves. Unless you are a gutsy dare devil avoid Hwy 104 at all costs. It was a shear nightmare. What is your worst highway ever? Maybe you can serve as a warning as I hope I did.
55 REPLIES 55

campigloo
Explorer
Explorer
Second Chance wrote:
104 isn't the "real" mountains in NM. Try US-64 from Taos through Angle Fire and Eagle Nest heading to Raton towing. These roads are a challenge, but I'll take them any day over the interstates in Louisiana.

Rob


Venture I70 through Indiana and Illinois and you’d beg for a Louisiana interstate.

BarabooBob
Explorer III
Explorer III
If I avoided scenic roads, I would have to stay home. My wife tells everyone that I look for the most difficult roads and then head down them without telling her about them. She has been upset a few times but she luckily gets over things eventually.
For me it was US 2 through North Dakota last summer. I swear that the entire thing was under construction. Nothing but mud and ruts.
Bob & Dawn Married 34 years
2017 Viking 17RD
2011 Ford F150 3.5L Ecoboost 420 lb/ft
Retired

brownie_bear
Explorer
Explorer
Old Days wrote:
The road in to Many Glaciers at Glacier National Park.


The Many Glacier road is being rebuilt over the next 2 years. There will be long delays while this is being done.
1994 Kit Companion 27 - Ford 2006 F150

mittshel
Explorer
Explorer
My best source for road info is this Forum. Someone always gives me good, accurate info.
Betsy

PawPaw_n_Gram
Explorer
Explorer
Take the bike to Green Springs Hwy / OR-66 in southern Oregon from Emmigrant Lake Rec Area near I-5 to Klamath Falls. After driving that in the truck, I maked it as a permanent exclusion from towing highway in my GPS and on my mapping software.
Full-Time 2014 - ????

“Not all who wander are lost.”
"You were supposed to turn back at the last street."

2012 Ram 2500 Mega Cab
2014 Flagstaff 832IKBS TT

Bipeflier
Explorer
Explorer
Keep them coming! I'm learning new places to ride my Goldwing!!!
2010 Cruiser CF30SK Patriot
2016 3500 Duramax
1950 Right Hand Seat GPS (she tells me where to go)

PawPaw_n_Gram
Explorer
Explorer
Worst Road, or Most Towing Unfriendly?

The absolute worst road I've ever seen was I-10 in Texas.

About 7 1/2 miles from Orange to the Louisiana state line. In April 2018. The cracks in the asphalt were so bad that a 5er got a wheel stuck. Took 3 1/2 hours with the interstate shutdown for a crane to come in and pick it up to put on a lowboy. Trying to pull the wheel out of the crack detached the axle from the frame mount.

But by Oct 2018, it was passable as the construction had moved to the other side of the freeway.

Permanently bad road - In northwest New Mexico, the entrance road to Chaco Culture National Historical Park from US Hwy 550 to the park entrance is 21 miles. About 1/2 of that is badly washboarded, barely maintained dirt roads across what is posted as BIA land. The remaining 10 or so miles is just a bit of the dirt scraped off the rock by a grader. At least an hour for that part of the trip. Down and through the dry wash is scary because you cannot see around the stuff pushed off the road by the grader after flash flooding. Of course absolutely no cell service is you have a flat or other problem.

I've driven Hwy 104 from Las Vegas, NM, but wasn't towing. Didn't seem especially bad to me. However a person's comfort level varies from person to person and road to road.

I was raised towing 25' ski boats frequently along the tightest, curviest stretches of Arkansas Highway 7 before I got my driver's license at age 16.

The most RV Unfriendly Road I've towed since going full-time in 2014 was CA-36 out of Red Bluff, CA west to US-101 in Fortuna (rock slides had blocked US-101 completely north of Garberville, five on 298 were making it a 9-10 hour one way trip). Much like you described NM-104. Many CA residents on this forum have told me that is impossible to tow my 62' total length truck and trailer across that road. I didn't find it exceptionally challenging. But it was the only place where I've had to stop twice for 30-45 minutes each time to let my brakes cool down.

But there was very little traffic. When someone came up behind me. I would stop on a fairly straight section and wave the past. Had to get out a couple times and tell the folks it was okay to go around me. No shoulders so no way to pull over.

I know my right is big and slow. Frustrating for anyone driving a living, or just wanting to get some place. I got much more time than money, and always do the best I can to let them pass me.

However, I NEVER, EVER, trust a GPS to plan a route for me. I tell the GPS the waypoints I want to use, the route I want to take. If I had planned the normal route out of Las Vegas, I would have taken US-84, unless I wanted to stop at Conchas Lake. Then I would have taken NM-104, expecting a long slow drive.
Full-Time 2014 - ????

“Not all who wander are lost.”
"You were supposed to turn back at the last street."

2012 Ram 2500 Mega Cab
2014 Flagstaff 832IKBS TT

Horsedoc
Explorer II
Explorer II
Black Rock Mountain Prkwy
Mountain City, Ga (US441 near Clayton, Ga)
terminates at Black Rock Mtn State Park

Not rough or pot holes. But, VERY steep with VERY narrow curves. Impossible in even a PU truck not to cross into the other lane headed up the mountain. road is restricted to small campers.
horsedoc
2008 Damon Essence
2013 Jeep Sahara Unlimited
Blue Ox tow

suprz
Explorer
Explorer
Worst one in the RV, Moki Dugway. On the motorcycle, the road to Chaco Canyon.
Proud father of a US Marine

time2roll
Explorer II
Explorer II

1320Fastback
Explorer
Explorer
The worst road I've ever driven on with the trailer was the 285 South out of Carlsbad, NM. Between the 50 miles of head on one lane, zero shoulder, constant construction and the 50,000 oil field workers fresh from a night of drinking and god knows what on the road I was ready for a break from driving, just after 50 miles!


2nd worst was the 90 south out of Lafayette, La.
1992 D250 Cummins 5psd
2005 Forest River T26 Toy Hauler

paulj
Explorer II
Explorer II
jamesu wrote:
OR-31 between Valley Falls and La Pine, OR. 120 miles. An absolute Washboard for a good 80-90 miles of that route.....


I've driven that about a dozen years ago and don't recall it being bad. OK,it was in cute-ute not a RV. And come to think of it, I didn't drive the whole way.

We spent the night at Summer Lake Hot Springs - nice rustic camping and soaking. And then back tracked to Paisley for breakfast, and then drove up into the mountains to the east. And didn't get back to 31 until Silver Lake. The forest service roads in the area were normal gravel. Even drove most of the way up to Hagar Mtn Lookout.

After Silver Lake I detoured to Fort Rock. On a gravel road near Hole in the Ground I got a flat from a broken piece of chain saw file (talk about a bumpy ride!). I was able to plug it, and drove on to La Pine.

One of the worse pieces of washboard that I recall was the Sun Pass road (623) between OR62 and US97, just east of Crater Lake. On the paper map it looked like a nice straight shortcut. It was a wide and straight, without much of a grade, but gravel that hadn't seen a grader in a long while. It was the kind of washboard that you either go slow, or fast, skimming the bumps, while still trying to maintain control. That too was in a cute-ute, a first gen RAV4.

Gravel with varying degrees of washboard is the norm in eastern Oregon - both in the mountains and the high desert.

On the subject of the Oregon outback, just last summer a back country bikepacker came upon a severely dehydrated man on a dirt track between OR140 and Hart Mtn Refuge. He had a Spot emergency beacon, and was able to signal for help. And in the mean time he provided a bit of water and shelter. Turns out the man had gotten his pickup stuck in one of the ruts/gullies near there, and tried to walk out. He had two small dogs as well. All three survived, largely thanks to the fortuitous encounter with a long distance bike rider.

enblethen
Nomad
Nomad
Yes, I have been to Whidbey many years ago. The main campground (Cliffside) on base was always full. We stayed at the "overflow" campground just south of base. No hook ups. I was told that they are now following regulations for length of stay.
Might give them a call!
Whidbey Cliffside

Bud
USAF Retired
Pace Arrow


2003 Chev Ice Road Tracker

pigfarmer
Explorer
Explorer
enblethen - that road would have made Highway 104 like a straight flat interstate. I asked about the Fam Camp wondering if you've been to Widbey. Other than the sounds of freedom, we love that FamCamp/campground.