Interesting interstate drives

[Grzrd]

I-20 at Six Flags Hill west of Atlanta (especially traveling east towards the city--you can see the downtown skyline when it's not cloudy or foggy)

Tonight, while driving home from a high school football game in Gwinnett County, I thought of this thread.  One of my favorite night-time views of Atlanta skyline is, while driving south on I-85, take Exit 86/ GA 13; you drive upwards on a single lane bridge, curve to your left and BOOM, you have a great elevated view of Midtown/ Downtown skyline.  Then, you have the added roadgeek treat of driving on the original I-85 alignment (today's GA 13 in that short stretch) before you have the opportunity to merge back onto I-85. If you ultimately want to go to I-75N, this is a great way to avoid the problematic I-85/ GA 400 merge; the merge-back to I-85S puts you directly into "exit only" lane for I-75N.  As I often do, I took this route tonight.

[TheStranger]

Just thought of a couple skyline-from-Interstate views I captured today:

- Interstate 5 entering downtown Sacramento from the north
- Interstate 80 entering San Francisco's South of Market neighborhood going west

For that matter, Interstate 110's northernmost segment (between US 101 and the Santa Monica Freeway) in downtown Los Angeles works for this as well...

[CL]

One good perspective of Salt Lake City's skyline is entering the city from the north on I-15 between 2300 North and 600 North. The mountains in the background and the good angle of the view make for a great sight.

[AZDude]

I-680 through Omaha.
I-80 through Nebraska and Iowa. 
I-380 in Iowa
I-35 in Iowa between US 20 and the Missouri state line. (only part I've been through)

[njroadhorse]

In terms of going into a city interesting, I personally like:

- I-84 East into Waterbury
- I-84 through Hartford
- I-376 into Pittsburgh
- I-279 into Pittsburgh

[Sykotyk]

I-80 WB into Salt Lake City at night on a clear night. Great view as the lights just come up at you. Same with I-15 SB into Las Vegas.

I-376 EB through the Fort Pitt Tunnel. I-90 EB through Cleveland (always love deadman's curve).

Sykotyk

[corco]

I-80 through Nebraska and Iowa. 

Always an under-appreciated choice- nice!

[Ian]

One other that I enjoy is I-495 in Delaware, especially where it parallels the Delaware River.

[hbelkins]

In terms of city entrances, I love I-75 northbound heading down "Death Hill" in Kentucky and seeing the Cincinnati skyline.

[achilles765]

Interstate 45 here in Houston is a pretty interesting and fun drive from the North Loop to the South Loop.  Both are old style freeway to freeway interchanges.. the north loop features flyunders while the interchange at the South Loop is not even a full connection, with several directions requiring you to exit onto the frontage road and make turns to get back onto the other freeway.  The drive through downtown is pretty fun too.. IH 45 curves around the west side of downtown between US 59/State Highway 288 and IH 10 on an elevated stretch that provides great views of the city skyline and feels like a roller coaster to drive through.  Add to that the fact that the flow of traffic (outside of rush hour) is usually about 80 and it's a fun little stretch.  The disgn is pretty unique too with left exits and a stretch where the mainlines are in a trench but the ramps are elevated. 
This stretch also features the double decked section near the University of Houston which will soon be the northern terminus of the State Highway 35 freeway.
Here's some shots from the aaroads focus page on Houston:
https://www.aaroads.com/texas/ih045/i-045_nb_exit_046a_01.jpg
that's the dual freeway heading north

https://www.aaroads.com/texas/ih045/i-045_nb_exit_046a_02.jpg  and another

https://www.aaroads.com/texas/ih045/i-045_nb_exit_047b_04.jpg
The elevated stretch through downtown, called the Pierce elevated

https://www.aaroads.com/texas/ih045/i-045_nb_exit_047b_12.jpg
This is the stretch where the mainlines are depressed below street level, and the ramps are elevated, making a three level design: mainlines, then street grid, then ramps.

https://www.aaroads.com/texas/ih045/i-045_nb_exit_047b_13.jpg
and finally: a left exit for Allen Parkway and a right exit for Memorial and Houston Avenue at the same location. 

[NE2]

The Beartooth Highway is an interesting interstate drive.

[bugo]

All interstates with speed limits of 75 or higher.  Driving at those speeds is interesting no matter what the scenery or road is like.

[NYhwyfan]

I-80 through Nebraska and Iowa. 

Always an under-appreciated choice- nice!

I agree, a very scenic drive

[1995hoo]

H-1 and H-3, especially H-3. Very scenic. H-1 makes my list as well simply because after a 10.5-hour nonstop flight from Newark to Honolulu to go out on the Interstate and see the mountains looming up so close like t hat is just rejuvenating. First time I visited Hawaii there also happened to be a double rainbow visible over the mountains right as we left the airport, which simply made it even more spectacular. While plenty of Interstates run through or near mountains, there's just something special about the type of mountains you see on a tropical island.

Closer to home, I-87 through the Adirondacks is at the top of my list, especially during the winter when the rock facings on the sides of the road are covered in all sorts of interesting ice formations due to melting and refreezing.

I recently drove future I-295 around the east side of Jacksonville (current FL-9A) for the first time and found it to be an interesting drive due to the Dames Point Bridge (very nice-looking bridge) and a power plant nearby that I thought was a nuclear reactor when I saw it but apparently is not.

I agree with the people who have mentioned that the entrances to Pittsburgh, especially via the Fort Pitt Tunnel, are very impressive. The inbound approach to the Fort Pitt Tunnel feels kind of isolated, but when you emerge from the tunnel downtown is right in front of you across the river. Pittsburgh is not my favorite city, but that approach is great if you're not stuck in traffic.

[bassoon1986]

For my home state i do love the I-10 from Baton Rouge to Lafayette
Also:
I-210 bridge and I-10 Crazy tall bridge in Lake Charles

US 90/Future I-49/mystery number  between Morgan City and Houma...it's a different kind of raised interstate thru the swamp than I-10

I also like the more mountainous parts of I-30 and I-40 in Arkansas and I-64 in eastern Kentucky

[Zmapper]

The rise above the Mississippi River on Westbound on I-90 right after La Crosse is one of my personal favorites.

[hobsini2]

The following are my choices:
I-57 south of Mt Vernon IL through the Shawnee Forest to Charleston MO - Rolling rock cut hills/valleys and then a cool crossing of the Mississippi River at Cairo.

I-355 in Chicagoland - Find it interesting how a suburban interstate can "change" scenery very quickly in 30+ miles. Also the Veterans Memorial Bridge over the Des Plaines River has cool views over the river.

I-90 around La Crosse / La Crescent MN - Cool Mississippi crossing.

I-90 WB on the Chicago Skyway - Great view of the skyline.

I-94 in the Twin Cities to Hudson WI - within the 494/694 loop is a tunnel (tunnels are always cool) and nice views of the Mississippi both in St Paul and in Minneapolis. Then you get a beautiful view of the St Croix Valley.

I-794 NWB only in Milwaukee - Neat view of the skyline.

I-93 Big Dig in Boston - Coolest tunnel with exits.

I-80 from Youngstown to east of Delaware Water Gap - Prettiest stretch of I-80 by far going thru the Apps Mtns and Susq Valley.

I-25 between Cheyenne and Denver - Great view of the mountains in Rocky Mtn NP but you never get any closer than 40 miles.

[nexus73]

Oregon: I-5 in Portland between the Terwilliger Curves and the Marquam Bridge has a section that lets one see the "sea of lights" effect of easterm Portland.  I-84 has huge natural vistas open up at various places.  One can see Mount Hood, the opening up of the Columbia Gorge and plenty of mountains on the way to the Snake River.

Utah: I-215 on the east side offers the "sea of lights" view for a longish stretch as it runs N/S from I-80 on it's way to I-15. 

Louisiana: I-310 in the New Orleans area has a magnificent bridge that is quite high.  Not many tall perspectives exist in south Louisiana and this one gives a good view of the Mississippi as well as an interchange at the south end of the bridge with a huge vertical difference between the start and end of the interchange that will challenge your vertigo...LOL!

Arizona: I-15 through the Virgin River area.  I-10 in the middle of Phoenix has lots of decoration in the concrete.

California: I 15 between Barstow and Vegas has huge visual perspectives letting one see around 10 miles of freeway heading through the deserts and mountains.  I call this the "land ocean effect".

Alabama: I-10 in Mobile at night with the USS Alabama all lit up will certainly get one's attention!

Washington: I-82 between Ellensburg and Yakima crosses a lot of interesting terrain with the highlight being a huge gap crossed by a two-span bridge as I recall. The land as it runs toward the river is rather high and then it does a 90 degree turn downward to create quite the canyon effect.

Texas: I-10 heading east of El Paso makes one think they're on Mars.  All rocky ground with mountains in the background and not a hint of vegetation.  The stark landscape is beautiful in it's own way.

Those are some of my favorite views from Interstate highways that I have enjoyed over the decades!

Rick

[InterstateNG]

The following are my choices:
I-57 south of Mt Vernon IL through the Shawnee Forest to Charleston MO - Rolling rock cut hills/valleys and then a cool crossing of the Mississippi River at Cairo

But getting there from the north has to be one of the worst drives in the system.  I went that way on my cross-country move because of the bridge in Louisville being out;  I wanted to bash my head on something.

[formulanone]

I-24 east in Tennessee, Georgia, and back to Tennessee is quite scenic.

[jwolfer]

I-280 west of Newark.  There is 6% grade going up the mountain/hill.  Good view of NYC going east.

I-95/NJTP near Newark Airport. 14 lanes the airport right next to the road. definite not scenic beauty but interesting none the less

[empirestate]

I-70, Glenwood Canyon - impressive geotechnical engineering
I-5 through Santa Ana/Anaheim - interesting elevated HOV lane and general rampiness
I-95 over G. W. Bridge and into the Trans-Manhattan "tunnel" and on to the Cross Bronx - Hudson River splendor and general urban craziness (and two ways to do it: upper or lower; it's cool how the lower deck pierces the Palisades on the west end of the bridge)
I-376 in Pittsburgh - the Fort Pitt experience, and mind-boggling multi-level crossword puzzle of a highway
I-77 in Virginia - beautiful, Copland-esque Appalachian scenery south of Wytheville, and the unparalleled views heading up to Fancy Gap
I-15 in Arizona - through the Virgin River narrows
I-H3 - you've never seen anything like it on the continent

[Sykotyk]

I-376 East through the Fort Pitt Tunnel
I-10 west of Baton Rouge (either direction)
I-70 over the San Rafael Swell
I-90 over Lookout Pass
I-15 California and the Utah line (you get Vegas and the Virgin River Gorge)
I-8 over the sand dunes
I-80 over the Great Salt Lake Desert
I-26 between Columbia SC and I-90 (just a nice drive)

[MrDisco99]

I-495 (LIE) westbound approaching the midtown tunnel. Manhattan looms ahead of you, you enter the tunnel, then you emerge in the midst of it. I can only imagine what this must be like for someone who's never been to New York before.

It's even better coming from the other side towards the Lincoln Tunnel in NJ where the road takes the helix downhill and you get that spectacular view of the west side.  But that's not an interstate (anymore).

I'm also a big fan of I-278 when it's the BQE under the promenade, especially at night.

Closer to home, I-85 through Atlanta is pretty awesome, too.

For natural beauty, I like I-75 around the KY/TN border.

[brownpelican]

I-55 between McComb and the Copiah-Hinds county line is mighty scenic, IMO.