Overall Route Rating
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3.2 out of 5 Rider Rating 3.2
5 Reviews

Motorcycle Route Author

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By muskrat (5 McR Points) on Apr 07, 2012

Rider Reviews

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Rambo
2 McR Points
July 8, 2014
We ride these roads often. It is a great…
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razzlemacher
2 McR Points
December 23, 2016
This route goes through a lot of curves and farm…
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Written Directions

The route can start in Pilot Point - off hwy 377 or Celina - off hwy 289 (both north of DFW). Head East on 455 until you reach HWY 75. Turn southbound on the service road and follow it until you come to the end. This road will be County Road 275. Cross over the bridge and you will land onto hwy 5 which turns in McDonald street. Turn South and follow the road through the East side of McKinney, TX. Make a left on Industrial Blvd. Follow until you reach South airport drive which turns into hwy 546. It will run into a stop sign and keep left on hwy 546. Turn onto FM 982. You will run into hwy 380. Make a right on hwy 380 and then an immediate left onto North 4th street. At stop sign make a right onto North 6th street which will dead end onto FM 1377, go right. Follow the road until you reach FM 545. Go left on FM 545 until you reach HWY 121. At the intersection of HWY 121 you can go straight to HWY 5 and then North or take HWY 121 to reach Tom Beam (preferred is hwy 5 route so I'll post it). North on HWY 5 until you reach FM 121 in Van Alstyne. Stay on FM 121 until you see FM 729 and turn left straight into Tom Beam. From Tom Beam take HWY 11 East to Whitewright. At Whitewright go left onto HWY 69 North. A few miles and left onto FM 697. Here's the route starting in McKinney. I suggest you start in Celina and DO NOT miss 455 East bound. https://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=250 W Eldorado Pkwy, McKinney, TX 75069&daddr=Co Rd 546/Farm to Market Rd 546 to:N 6th St/Farm to Market Rd 1377 to:Farm to Market Rd 1377 to:Farm to Market Rd 545/E Melissa Rd to:Farm to Market Rd 2862/E Houston St to:33.4044916,-96.4598388 to:Farm to Market Rd 2729 S to:TX-11 E to:US-69 N to:Farm to Market Rd 697 to:33.5896221,-96.5096699 to:S Dewey Ave&hl=en&geocode=FTdM-gEdvq09-im9Sccs0xNMhjHVUXt-1ooWow;Fa4a-QEdAYE_-g;FVpy-gEdJJ0_-g;FR4b_AEdbrZA-g;FbDZ-wEdnJQ--g;FWgW_QEdZh5A-g;FUu2_QEdwiNA-illfTjCAndMhjFlQjntV532Gg;Fdx3_wEdQrs_-g;FZ49_wEdJghB-g;Fbx-_wEdaAJB-g;FVxqAAIdl3A_-g;FXaJAAIdG2E_-il3C3Qrz31MhjH76oaub0puiQ;FfL1AAIdKkY--g&gl=us&mra=dpe&mrcr=5&mrsp=6&sz=12&via=6,11&sll=33.404504,-96.436958&sspn=0.168525,0.256119&ie=UTF8&ll=33.366091,-96.461678&spn=0.1686,0.256119&z=12

Scenery

lots of fun turns and many decreasing in the middle of them, primarily on 697 BUT 455 should be respected. On FM 545, HWY 121 and HWY 69 beware of police.You will love this ride!

Drive Enjoyment

Last summer took a toll on 455 and 697 so watch your entry into the corners because there is some fall off from separating asphalt.

Tourism Opportunities

plenty of gas stops along with way with mom and pop restaurants. Try Lucy's in downtown Celina on the square, great food. There is also a barbeque place off hwy 69 just before you turn on 697 that is fantastic as well.
 

Share Your Comments ( 5 )
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Rambo
July 8, 2014
2 McR Points
Motorcycle Type : Cruiser
We ride these roads often. It is a great combination of roads...especially 697. If you live in North Texas you should try these roads.
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2 riders found this road review useful
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razzlemacher
December 23, 2016
2 McR Points
Motorcycle Type : Standard
This route goes through a lot of curves and farm roads. You'll see bales of hay, farm houses, open lands, horses, cows, pet dogs (none tried to chase my bike) running in yards, small towns, etc. It's a wonderful ride to just enjoy the texas back country and relax. There are plenty of gas stations you'll encounter as you use the bigger roads to jump across farm roads.

The roads are all in good shape as of now (Dec 2016). There is a smaller patch (perhaps 5 miles) which is paved but has pot holes and gravel. If you go slow you will be fine. All kinds of bikes can do this route.

Since this is all farm roads, I did see gravel on some curves (all paved) and was careful to pick the right line or just went slow. Just be careful as always not to enter the curves too hot (i.e. fast) as always.

A couple of additional notes:
I rode this today (23rd Dec 2016). The important thing is to make sure you take 455 E from Preston Road even though its not included in the GPX route above. The author of this route mentions this in the text description so it's helpful to read that. The ride on 455 E to US-75 is great. It has a lot of curves and paved road. I loaded the GPX file into my OSMApp for maps on my Android phone and was good to go.
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blakeHD
April 9, 2017
0 McR Points
Motorcycle Type : Cruiser
697 is my favorite road that I've come across so far, but the stretch from 380-highway 121 was sketchy at best. New font road is miserable to ride on, with potholes and gravel everywhere. I enjoyed the different views, from lakes to farms and residential areas. Would ride again, just bypassing New Font Road.
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