From
submitter: "I discovered this route while trying to
find a “river run” similar to the famous Federal Highway Administration’s
“Meeting of The Great Rivers” scenic byway in Illinois across
from St. Louis. That route runs north along the Mississippi
from Alton Illinois up to Kampsville. I thought there
might be something similar running the opposite direction,
south, from the town of Columbia Illinois. Instead I
found a series of raised levee roads that although they don’t
parallel the river, they do offer a unique route across some
beautiful Mississippi flood plane areas. Once you get
to know this route, you’ll want to venture off and find your
own routes.There are a lot of nice roads out here, and the
scenery is among the best in the St. Louis area."
Motorcycle
Road Scenery:
On
this route you’ll start out by cruising high above the surrounding
areas as you drive a series of Army Corps of Engineers flood
levees. Along the route are quaint little farms and patches
of woods. Later the route takes you into and up on some
huge cliffs that parallel the flood plane. These cliffs
are actually limestone bluffs that rise a couple hundred
feet above the flood plain and parallel the river for much
of its path through Illinois. This part of the route is
extremely beautiful in the fall due to the colors displayed
by the surrounding woods. The route then descends and leaves
the bluffs and takes you northward where the road rides
next to base of the huge bluffs for the remainder of the
route.
Motorcycle
Road Quality:
The
roads found on this route are very unique because of the
levees they are built on. These levees rise approximately
30 feet above the surrounding land and offer a nice view
on either side of the road. However, BE CAREFUL of loose
gravel that collects at the intersection of various roads
along the route. Also, when you check out the map for this
route, keep in mind that some roads aren’t marked very well
… if you miss a turn don’t worry because plenty of this
area is worth exploring that isn’t on the specific route
I’ve submitted.
Motorcycle
Roadside Amenities:
You
won't take this route for the "Roadside Amenities" ... its
more for the scenery and unique roads. There are a few
places to pull over along this route yet no government run
parks. There is a small tavern along the way that pops
up out of nowhere, other than that you will have to drive
into the town of Columbia after driving the route to find
any gas or food.
Directions:
Get
yourself to Columbia,
IL and find route 3. About 1/2 mile south of where route
3 meets I-255 is an exit for county road 6 (AKA Bluff
road). Start the route by going west on CR 6/Bluff road
off of route 3. Quickly you'll come upon the intersection
of county road DD ... take a right on to DD and follow
that for about 2 miles and take the first possible right
(name?). Quickly you'll come to a T intersection with
Levee road and want to take a right there and follow that
all the way around, past the golf course and it will T
into county road DD where you started (you just did the
first loop!). Now take a left on DD and soon you'll want
to take a right on Bluff road. Now stay on Bluff road
heading south for 7 miles and then take a left on to HH
road (now you're starting your second loop). Drive up
the hill (THIS SECTION IS BEAUTIFUL IN THE FALL!!!) and
take your first right on to D road. About three miles
up the road you want to take a right on to Trout road
and it will T back into Bluff road where you now want
to take a right. Follow Bluff road back past HH (you just
completed the second loop!) and then take a left on to
B road. Stay on B road as it heads west, then south and
then T's into Merrimac road where you want to take a left
and stay on this till it T's with Levee road where you
want to take a right and then a left on to Fountain road
which will quickly merge into Bluff road heading north
again. You've completed your third and final loop!!!
Sound confusing? Well
it's really not that bad and but like I said before, just
get down to this area of the Mississippi River valley
and check out the levee roads and head up into and out
of the bluffs and you'll have a ball. Happy driving!!!
Additional
Information:
-
View the weather forecast for this area from Yahoo
weather.
I took a few minutes to drag out a google map. It was a bear to get the URL to fit in under 500 chars. Might want to think about increasing the limit for useful URLs like maps.google.com.
I just took Bluff Rd. for the first time today. I would certainly classify it as a must see for any motorcyclist in the area. To me the scenery is better than that along the Great River Road. Really just a beautiful ride.
