Going to Harpers Ferry the beginning of June, are there any must ride roads in the area? Intend to spend some time sightseeing but would really like to find a scenic route.

 

That whole area is great riding. Just stay on the back roads and you'll have a great time.

 

Where are you coming from and what are you looking for?

You can take rt. 9 over the mountain. That's a nice little ride. For a longer ride, hit 340 south to Front Royal, VA where you can hop on Skyline drive. If Skyline is too slow for you, just stick to 340 & 11S. There's some good riding that way. You can take rt.9 the other direction through Martinsburg into Berkeley Springs and then take 29 over the mountain into the good roads of WV. You can end up anywhere from Hancock or Cumberland, MD to Romney, WV. Basically pick a direction.

West - Mountains
East - Civilization and traffic
South - Rolling foothills
North - Flatlands and smaller cities of MD.

 

Thanks VI, we will be coming from DE., as I said will do a bit of sightseeing and then scenic ride. The rte 9 option sounds good. How far is Front Royal from Harpers Ferry?

Actually I think we will get a motel in Ransom/n.

 

We rode there about two weeks ago. The whole area is nice riding. A great destination. Plenty to see and fun places to eat. Try to take a tour of the ruins on Virginius Island which is right there. That is the original location of Harpers Ferry from the 1700s. It is down by the water. All the old ruins are there. It was an entire town with homes and stores and even factories. Problem was that it was right down off the banks of the Shennandoa river and it kept getting wiped out by floods so they moved the town up a few hundred feet to where it is today. It is all located right there together all in the park.

Front Royal is not that close and is a modern busy town with tons of traffic.

Have fun!

 

It's about 40 miles. Front Royal is where the Northern most point of Skyline Drive is, so you have to go south of there. Skyline may be busy though and the speed limit never gets above 35mph, IIRC. There's so many other roads down there though like 211 and 33.

My favorite route is out towards Romney, WV via. 9 to 29. The roads are nice, the mountains are nice, and as long as you don't get stuck behind someone poking along under the speed limit on a 2 lane road, then the ride is amazing. I guess it depends on your riding preference.

If you can't find a hotel there, keep Martinsburg in mind. It's a little farther away, but it's an option. HF, Ranson/Charles Town, and Martinsburg are all in this kind of triangle in the Eastern Panhandle of WV.

If you want to meet up and go for a ride during a weekend day, send me a PM and I'll ride with you or whatever if I'm not out of town that weekend.

Front Royal isn't busy and I'd like to see what your definition of a "tons of traffic" is. It's a dinky little town in Virginia.

 

dinky but loaded with cars on the weekend.


.

 

Really? Coming from NoVa, I'm surprised you even realized there was any traffic up there!

 

Front Royal isn't too bad. I wouldn't make a destination out of cruising the town, but it's an OK place to gas up and get a bite before hitting Skyline.

 

If you are comming in on RT340, just before you go over the Potomac river bridge hang a left onto Sandy Hook. It runs you over to Sandy Hook and Harpers Ferry roads that runs along the north side of the river. Nice park ride for about 20 miles, take all the lefts on side roads you can along that way and you will be thrilled by the scenery and curvy road ahead. Aim for Canal road ends at RT34 and you turn left into Shepardstown, WV, nice shops, and eateries. Make a great day ride from anywhere. PM me when you head out that way, maybe we can hook up. I'm in N maryland and love to ride that whole area. Good luck and have a ball. Also on the way out there get off of 340 and there is alittle side road that runs parallel, great for ups and downs.