Celebrate the 250th with a ride on these All-American Roads

One way is to start with the list of All-American Roads. These are the "best of the best" National Scenic Byways, routes designated by the Federal Highway Administration for their one-of-a-kind features and historical significance that makes them appropriate for a time when we're considering the country's long sweep of history. These routes offer more than just a ride. They are bucket-list destinations.

Of course some All-American Roads are more suited to a motorcycle trip than others (Woodward Avenue in Detroit has lots of Motor City heritage, but it's not necessarily a great ride). So we've narrowed the list and built a community in REVER with 27 All-American Roads that do make for memorable travel on two wheels. To give you a taste, we asked a few REVER and Common Tread regulars to tell us about one of the All-American Roads they've personally traveled. So here we go.

Kyle Nagel: Go back in time on the Northwest Passage

I first rode this route 10 years ago with my high school sweetheart as a shakedown ride for a bigger Alaska trip we would complete later that year. The Northwest Passage Scenic Byway takes you on Highway 12 from the Idaho-Montana border to Lewiston, Idaho, through the Lolo and Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forests. The pavement is very well maintained and the twists in the road follow the Lochsa and Clearwater rivers, providing a very engaging ride through a remote and scenic part of Idaho. In fact, most Idahoans never even experience Highway 12 because it traverses a rather unpopulated region of the state.

One thing that makes the ride unique are the many hot springs located along the route, from the more formal Lolo Hot Springs Lodge to the natural Jerry Johnson pools; both right off the highway. As if this ride needed anything more to make it special, it traces the historic journey of the Lewis and Clark expedition. If you really want to immerse yourself in nature, or get a glimpse of what the West was like for that intrepid expedition, the hiking and camping options abound. However, If you prefer some nicer amenities and you plan far enough in advance, you can book a cabin at the Lochsa Lodge.

Looking back on this trip a decade later, having completed the Alaska trip and ridden all over the country for fun and for work, the Northwest Passage Scenic Byway stands the test of time as one of the greatest places I've ridden. That's why we're going back this year.

Spurgeon Dunbar: Acadia All-American Road is the Maine attraction

Acadia National Park was the destination of my first road trip. Well, if I'm being specific, the destination was Bar Harbor, Maine, to visit a high school friend and her boyfriend at the time who had rented a house for the summer and invited me up for a long weekend. But Bar Harbor is just one stop along this short but scenic All-American Road.

The route officially starts on Maine Route 3, which is the road from the mainland to Mount Desert Island, where the park is located, and from there takes the Park Loop Road around Acadia's dramatic scenery of craggy shoreline, forests, lakes, and towering Cadillac Mountain. Off the bike, there are hiking trails to explore and views to savor. Thunder Hole is a must visit (you want to try to time it to just about an hour or two before high tide) and the truly daring can take a dip in the frigid salty sea at Little Hunter's Beach. I've also tent camped at Mt. Desert Narrows campground and can definitely say there is something special about sleeping under the stars in Maine. That being said, I learned the hard way to pack a warm sleeping bag and appropriate riding gear, because even in the summer temperatures can drop into the low 40s at night.

In the middle of the ride is Bar Harbor, a great jumping-off point for rides around the park. It was here I had my first blueberry beer from a small café in town. You can buy lobster straight off the boat and take whale-watching trips around the island. And there are no shortage of funky bars and historic restaurants on Main Street to serve you once your riding is done.

Bjorn Bredeson: San Juan Skyway offers million-dollar views

The southwest region of Colorado is abundant with incredible riding for on- and off-road motorcycles alike. Showcasing the majestic San Juan mountain range, the San Juan Skyway features the absolute best roads in this vicinity. This journey through the San Juans includes the world-famous Million Dollar Highway, a dream ride for motorcyclists who come from around the globe. Beyond the Million Dollar Highway, you can check off five paved mountain passes, soak in the local hot springs in Ouray or Durango, and enjoy small towns steeped in history from the 1800s silver mining boom that established the region. Personally, the journey from Ridgway to Durango by way of Telluride was completely new to me. The view of Priest Lake along the route was absolutely breathtaking, especially with the snow that lingered from the previous winter.

Even as a Colorado native, I find this route consistently blows my mind. The epic views of the jagged San Juan Mountains paired with smooth, curvaceous roads are a true recipe for a motorcyclist's dream ride. Every time I explore this route, I encounter moose grazing in the fields beside the road; a special treat that elevates an already spectacular journey. Overall, if you get the chance to ride this classic American route, you absolutely must take the opportunity and experience the great San Juan Mountains of Colorado.

Lance Oliver: The Blue Ridge Parkway is just the beginning of great riding

The Blue Ridge Parkway runs the ridges for 469 miles through Virginia and North Carolina, bisecting the southeastern United States and dividing opinions, as well. Two lanes all the way, the federal Parkway bypasses small-town stop lights and you won't find any of the typical suburban sprawl of fast-food chain restaurants that's a fixture of every highway exit across the country. What you'll find instead is a seemingly endless series of curves through mountain forests and enough scenic overlooks that if you stop at just one out of every five, you'll take a very long time to get from end to end of the Parkway. Of course those with a different frame of mind will say that the 45 mph speed limit only makes it seem like the hills go on forever and once you've seen two million trees, you've seen them all.

That's why I see the Blue Ridge Parkway as like the spine of a book. It gets the title, but there's so much more to be found in the pages branching off from it. On a recent trip to Atlanta, I treated the BRP exactly that way: as a starting point. I rode sections of the Parkway and then veered off to sample the web of roads criss-crossing the ancient mountains. Because as we noted in our article on how to find great motorcycle roads, the same topography that creates the famous riding roads creates great riding on anonymous roads nearby, and you might have them all to yourself.

Plus, you'll have to get off the Parkway anyway, any time you or your motorcycle need fuel. So think of the BRP not as the end-all destination, but the beginning of a broader exploration.

Patrick Garvin: Beartooth Highway should definitely be on your bucket list

Throughout my years spent on motorbikes, I've been fortunate enough to ride some of the best roads in America and I also live in the Black Hills of South Dakota, also home to some pretty great roads. But a mere 350 miles away lies not only one of my personal top-three all-time roads, but also a federally designated All-American Road known as Beartooth Highway (U.S. Route 212). The riding season on this stretch of road is short because of the massive amount of snowfall it receives. The opening and closing of the road varies from year to year, but generally speaking it should be open June through September. The weather at the top of the mountain can be a bit surly, so I recommend bringing rain gear and a warm coat, even if the weather is mild at your starting point.

The 68-mile section of two-lane kicks off for me in Red Lodge, Montana, which has some great food spots (shoutout Red Lodge Pizza Co.) and a nice KOA to camp at the night prior to your ride, along with plenty of hotel options. From there you head west into a gradual climb through Custer National Forest before ascending some steep switchbacks as you climb the mountain. The views are stunning, with sheer cliffs off the side of the road. At around 9,200 feet elevation, you'll reach a nice pull off called Rock Creek Vista Point with a parking area, bathrooms, and paths.

As you dip into Wyoming, you pass stunning, massive canyons and eventually reach the summit at just under 11,000 feet. The summit is a bit anticlimactic compared to the other scenery on the road, but as you descend the other side, things get more interesting as road twists and turns almost back onto itself. This side of the mountain is my favorite part of Beartooth Pass because you get top-tier scenery but the road mellows a bit into wider, more sweeping corners that let you loosen up a bit and take in your surroundings.

You will eventually arrive in Cooke City, Montana, where you can continue west into Yellowstone National Park or hang a left a few miles before Cooke City on Chief Joseph Highway, which will send you down to Cody, Wyoming. There's no wrong answer here. The park is obviously awesome but Chief Joseph is a sleeper of a fantastic ride that lands you in one of the best cowboy towns in the country. Put this ride on your bucket list. It definitely deserves to be on the All-American Roads list, if not an All-World Roads list.

Ari Henning: Drama beneath the surface on the Volcanic Legacy Scenic Byway

California has no shortage of bucket-list roads and destinations. Think the Big Sur coast, the Golden Gate Bridge, and any number of Sierra passes. North of all that is a road through a natural wonder that's on my California top-10 list, and should be on yours, too: It's Lassen Volcanic National Park and the Volcanic Scenic Byway takes you there.

This 341-mile All-American Road starts in the very far north of the state at the Lava Beds National Monument, which features both indigenous rock art and natural lava formations, then winds past majestic Mount Shasta on its way south. The dramatic end point, at the southern end of the Cascade Range, Lassen National Park is like a miniature Yellowstone, without the bison or crowds.

Since the park sits above 8,000 feet and is inundated with snow for much of the year, it's best to visit in late summer. There’s a 30-mile route that meanders through the landscape surrounding Lassen Peak, which last popped in 1915. As you wind and flow along the curves of the two-lane road, you can gaze out over a craggy Martian landscape of reds, oranges, yellows, greens, and grays, all created by the area's volcanic chemistry. Numerous pull-offs provide easy access to epic vistas, glacial lakes, steaming vents, and bubbling mud pits. There's a lot going on beneath the earth's crust, and at Lassen it's at the surface and on display.