Woke up this morning, and decided it was time for my MINI to stretch her legs. We headed up into the mountains east of San Diego, and found a beautiful morning of empty roads!

First stop, Palomar Mountain: All the way up South Grade and down East Grade seeing only one car and one motorcycle along the way! They were both heading the opposite direction, so for the first time I can remember I had these glorious roads all to myself (look up Palomar Mountain on Google Maps to get a close-up look):


Next up, Mesa Grande: Tight twists at the beginning, then fast open sections the rest of way. I followed a pick-up for most of the fast part, but he was moving along quickly, too.


Then the back way into Julian, CA, via Wynola Road. No cars, but some cyclists were out for some sort of organized event:


From there it was back to I-8 via Hwy 79 with almost no impediments. It was a great morning! I know a lot of people like the club scene where they go on drives like this with fellow motorers, but to me it's great to be out there going my own pace and going wherever I want.

(But I did have to share the experience with you all now!)

 

I'm jealous.

We have very few nice twisty roads like that around here. The best I can usually hope for is a few nice on & off ramps...

 

i hate nebraska...

 

Envy at work here in Iowa, too: I drove 50 miles yesterday just getting to a twisty road, which is all of 10 miles long

Scotty, beam Molly and me to Palomar

 

Indiana sucks

I miss my twisty Tennessee roads

 

Even 10 miles of twists and turns is awesome as long as there isn't anyone in front of you! My total roundtrip yesterday was about 150 miles, so these roads aren't exactly right outside my front door.

By the way, here's a Youtube video of a MINI going up South Grade on Palomar (not sure how to embed the video in a post, maybe somebody else can set that up): http://youtube.com/watch?v=XEcCqEtnqxw

 

I drove 3+ hrs yesterday down the Mass Pike and 495. Nice foliage!

 

Nice route! Anyone have favorite roads around Houston? (I know, I know.)

 

Nice to see the maps. I love it when nobody is in the way (which is so rare anymore).

 

I drove like my car was stolen. Six times. I got quicker each time.

 

I've been to Tennessee once, best roads I have ever been on.

Who made this video? Very awesome, I know where I'm going next summer. Side note, that driver needs to learn to heel-toe, not trying to be mean, but it will help them get faster.

 

Somebody called "ther1kid." There are quite a few Palomar clips on Youtube, but I figured one from a MINI would be appropriate. There are lots of sport bikes, and I found one of a couple of fast Evos, too.

As for heel-toeing, I think anyone who posts a video like that is very brave. I wouldn't put my driving out there for people to critique! That particular road is stuck between 2nd and 3rd gears for me. It's either screaming along around 4K-5K RPM in 2nd, or you end up lugging out of some corners in 3rd at 2500. I'd have more fun if I were a good heel-toer, I'm sure.

 

Took our brand new 2008 MCSC for a scenic commute to work today to stretch its legs:



Particularly fun stretch on hwy 9:



This car is so much fun! First time I was eager to wake up 30 mins early to commute to work.

 

Ever try Arkansas? I want to move there so badly my teeth itch! Hubby retires in 2 years, and I'm working on him already.

Besides, I can grow daffodils there!

 

Looks like a nice drive, what with all the redwoods and all. I need to drive up to Northern California for a vacation next year, but my driver's seat just isn't comfortable enough for me to spend more than about 2 hours in it at a time.

Maybe I could solicit suggestions for great roads to hit every few hours as I work my way north from San Diego to Bodega Bay or something. That would break up the drive nicely. It would be like the California missions. They're all 21 miles apart because that's how far people used to be able to travel in a day. I need a great road every 2 hours or so (and a rest stop to stretch my legs).

Let's see: 15 North to Ortega Highway, over to 5 North to something in the Malibu Canyons, then...