US 250

Motorcycle Roads & Rides > Routes > United States > Virginia
Motorcycle Roads & Rides > Routes > United States > West Virginia

Average Rating - This road has been rated by 11 visitors

State: West Virginia
Date Submitted: May 1, 2008
Submitted by: State: West Virginia (1/2 of this route is in Virginia too) Brad Morgan
Motorcycle Road Length: 172231 Miles

Written Directions

This one is easy - Just take US 250 between Staunton, VA and Elkins, WV - easy to find on any map!

Scenery

On this road, you will ride up and over two large mountains and on both sides you will be treated to some panoramic vista views of the valley below. As you ride in the valleys you will see (at various times) some beautiful farm land as well as miles of thick forest as you hug the banks of various wide & rocky creek beds in certain sections. I understand that these large creeks serve as the headwaters for the Potomac and the James rivers.When I ran this section - I did it on a Saturday morning. I left Staunton at 6:45am and I had this road all to myself with literally NO traffic to get in my way - I highly recommend this approach to get the most out of this great road.. Road Quality: 3US 250 provides some very technically challenging switchbacks, tight corners, elevation changes etc. There are a few breaks in between the mountain ascents and decents - the valleys are a nice break. If you enjoy taking-on challenging roads - you will really love this one. The road quality varies from good to fair. Some sections are a bit rough, with heavy and uneven patchwork. There are no sections of this particular stretch of road that I would label as "poor". Roadside Amenities:: 4There are plenty of places to eat and things to do in Staunton and Elkins. In the middle of the route you will travel through the George Washington National Park and the Monongahela National Park. Both are spectacular forests with lots of picnic areas, hiking, scenic overlooks etc. Staunton is a much bigger town and has more to offer. Both are college towns.* Monterey,VA - near the middle of this route (at the intersection of US 250 and US 220) was labeled by Dale Coyner in his book Motorcycle Journeys Through the Appalachians as "the most rider friendly town" due to the number of local riding enthusiasts and their hospitality towards others with the same passion.

Road Quality

US 250 provides some very technically challenging switchbacks, tight corners, elevation changes etc. There are a few breaks in between the mountain ascents and decents - the valleys are a nice break. If you enjoy taking-on challenging roads - you will really love this one. The road quality varies from good to fair. Some sections are a bit rough, with heavy and uneven patchwork. There are no sections of this particular stretch of road that I would label as "poor".

Roadside Amenities

There are plenty of places to eat and things to do in Staunton and Elkins. In the middle of the route you will travel through the George Washington National Park and the Monongahela National Park. Both are spectacular forests with lots of picnic areas, hiking, scenic overlooks etc. Staunton is a much bigger town and has more to offer. Both are college towns.

* Monterey,VA - near the middle of this route (at the intersection of US 250 and US 220) was labeled by Dale Coyner in his book Motorcycle Journeys Through the Appalachians as "the most rider friendly town" due to the number of local riding enthusiasts and their hospitality towards others with the same passion.

Additional Info

- View the weather forecast for this area from Yahoo weather .

Nickname (optional) State: West Virginia (1/2 of this route is in Virginia too) Brad Morgan

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Reviewed by Guest on September 11, 2008 (1 out of 1 members found this review useful.)
Creator: Larry
motorcycle_year: 2005
motorcycle_make: OTHER
motorcycle_type: Other
Comment: I drove this road in a Dodge minivan in the rain. You people with motorcycles can have it. Its more like an amusment park ride with the high banked turns and thrills a minute than a US highway.
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Reviewed by Guest on April 24, 2011 (0 out of 0 members found this review useful.)
Creator: J. Nixon
motorcycle_year: 2008
motorcycle_make: Harley-Davidson
motorcycle_type: Touring
Comment: Taken this route to the Blue Ridge Parkway and more a couple of dozen times. Never grow tired of it. Almost no traffic in rural areas, and very little in towns.Most of it smooth surface.
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Reviewed by Guest on December 26, 2010 (0 out of 0 members found this review useful.)
Creator: Ken
motorcycle_year: 2000
motorcycle_make: Harley-Davidson
motorcycle_type: Touring
Comment: 26 Dec 2010, and snowing. Rt 250 in W.V. is an awesome ride and part of the Staunton-Parkersburg Turnpike which is a National Scenic Byway. I'm planning to do this ride when it warms up a bit. The byway follows 250 west from Va/WV state line to Rt 219 N to the Town of Beverly, then 33 through Elkins, Buckhannon, and Weston. Near Troy then Rt 47 to Parkersburg. I'll take three days to do this and check out the Little Kanawha Parkway on my way home. Go to http://byways.org/ to see other byways, it's a great resource for bikes and cages. Lets see is it still snowing?
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Reviewed by Guest on November 16, 2010 (0 out of 0 members found this review useful.)
Creator: ward
Comment: I have actually been on this stretch of road in a tanker tractor-trailer. I was going to Buchanan Wv. It didn't take me many miles to realize i had screwed up by going that way, luckily my tanker was empty, never again in a semi..
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Reviewed by Guest on October 16, 2010 (0 out of 0 members found this review useful.)
Creator: steve hogsed
motorcycle_year: 1999
motorcycle_make: Harley-Davidson
motorcycle_type: Cruiser
Comment: Rt. 250 has got to be one of the best motorcycle rides in the eastern U.S. Love taking friends one this route for their first time. They all love it as much as I do. Everything is there, from long sweepers to some really tight turns, scenery and elevation. One of my favorites.
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Reviewed by Guest on July 28, 2010 (0 out of 0 members found this review useful.)
Creator: Dan Steinman
motorcycle_year: 2009
motorcycle_make: Kawasaki
motorcycle_type: Cruiser
Comment: Great road, Highland County is absolutely beautiful. If you head out this way, here is an interesting stop just south of 250 on 92 : http://www.gb.nrao.edu/
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Reviewed by Guest on February 15, 2010 (0 out of 0 members found this review useful.)
Creator: Ward
motorcycle_year: 1996
motorcycle_make: Suzuki
motorcycle_type: Sport-Touring
Comment: Rode this in Sept 2009. Bought a bike on ebay, drove out with a friend, rode the bike back. Rained on the way back, and there was plenty of loose gravel that had washed onto the road in a few switchbacks. Made for a scary ride since it was getting dark. Going to do it again on a nicer day though, as it was still an adventure.
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Reviewed by Guest on July 13, 2009 (0 out of 0 members found this review useful.)
Creator: Ione
motorcycle_year: 1999
motorcycle_make: Honda
motorcycle_type: Cruiser
Comment: A few friends and I did this ride last weekend (early July 09). Unfortunately, 5 minutes after we started into the highly anticipated mountain-road rollercaster, the sky opened up and dumped on us - a torential down pour! This put a serious damper (excuse the pun) on things as we had to slow it way down and missed that exhilarating adrenaline rush of the ride. It didn't help that we had a rider along that lacked confidenence in cornering. But once the rain stopped, it was still a remarkable ride through the mountains and valleys and small, historic towns. Note to other riders: motels are far and few between along this route. There's 1 in Monterey that is reasonably priced for what it is. And onother in the next town (toward Elkins) that's about the same. If you can do the ride in a day, I suggest you hold out for Elkins, WV to get a motel room as there are more to choose from and extremely inexpensive. Plus if you still have energy left, there are a few places where you can go to socialize with the locals and have a celebration drink. So, for this rider, Rte. 250 is an enthusiastic 2 thumbs up - rain, rookie rider and all!! Be safe!
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Reviewed by Guest on June 27, 2009 (0 out of 0 members found this review useful.)
Creator: Dick & Janet Pratt
motorcycle_year: 2007
motorcycle_make: Kawasaki
motorcycle_type: Cruiser
Comment: We took this road from Snowshoe Mtn. Resort in Pocohantas County, WV through to Staunton, VA on our way to the Skyline Drive. It is totally awesome. The curves and switchbacks are exhiliarting. Have you heard the experession the curves were so tight you could see your rear tailights in your side mirrors? Well, this was it! Very challenging, but plenty of places to pull over and rest up for the next section. Great ride for historical buffs as this was part of the War of the Northern Aggression (for Northerns that the Civil War) and you can stop and see actually trenches dug into the hills. A definite must ride!
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Reviewed by Guest on April 9, 2009 (0 out of 0 members found this review useful.)
Creator: Ken Ewing
motorcycle_year: 1998
motorcycle_make: Honda
motorcycle_type: Touring
Comment: I have been riding this road for the past few years and it is a GREAT road. Like you said, it has some very challanging switchbacks but thats the fun of the road. I generally like stopping at the Confederate breastworks on the top of the mountain and enjoy the view with a nice cigar. Ride on brother, this is some of the best riding in the east in my opionion!
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Reviewed by Guest on May 16, 2008 (0 out of 0 members found this review useful.)
Creator: Rocketman
motorcycle_year: 2007
motorcycle_make: Triumph
motorcycle_type: Touring
Comment: 250 is a great road, especially between Huttonville, WV and Monterey, VA. Get gas in Huttonville because you'll have to wait til Monterey for your next chance. We had 4 turkeys that flew right over our head when going up the mountain. Once in Monterey, hit 220 north, another great road.
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