The Most Boring Stretches of Highway

[djsinco]

The most boring stretch I've ever been on was Interstate 15 between Barstow and Las Vegas.

you must have forgotten your two bags of grass, seventy-five pellets of mescaline, five sheets of high powered blotter acid, salt shaker half full of cocaine, whole galaxy of multi-colored uppers, downers, screamers, laughers, quart of tequila, quart of rum, case of Budweiser, pint of raw ether and two dozen amyls.

... you and i need to do a road trip

Hunter Thompson lives, indeed!

[Mr_Northside]

The most boring stretch I've ever been on was Interstate 15 between Barstow and Las Vegas.

you must have forgotten your two bags of grass, seventy-five pellets of mescaline, five sheets of high powered blotter acid, salt shaker half full of cocaine, whole galaxy of multi-colored uppers, downers, screamers, laughers, quart of tequila, quart of rum, case of Budweiser, pint of raw ether and two dozen amyls.

... you and i need to do a road trip

Hunter Thompson lives, indeed!

Buy the ticket.
Take the ride.

[The High Plains Traveler]

The most boring stretch I've ever been on was Interstate 15 between Barstow and Las Vegas.

you must have forgotten your two bags of grass, seventy-five pellets of mescaline, five sheets of high powered blotter acid, salt shaker half full of cocaine, whole galaxy of multi-colored uppers, downers, screamers, laughers, quart of tequila, quart of rum, case of Budweiser, pint of raw ether and two dozen amyls.

Can I see your hazardous materials shipping paper, please (or do you consider these materials of trade?).

[DBR96A]

US 1/ 23 from Folkston, GA to Waycross, GA.

That road is serene after midnight. From Folkston to Waycross, I could count the number of cars I saw heading in the opposite direction on one hand.

You could literally get to the I-5/US99 split for Bakersfield, set the cruise for 80-ish, lock the steering straight, and take a 4 hour nap.

Not true. There's too much traffic. You have all the 18-wheelers going 60 in the right lane, and a queue of cars going 61 in the left lane. The only way to get anywhere is pass part of the queue on the right in between the 18-wheelers and squeeze back into the left lane once you run out of room.

Somehow that part of I-5 is a state scenic route. I've never been on it, so I can't personally call bullshit.

Actually, chickenshit is more like it. You hit a terrible wall of stench near a chicken farm somewhere between Coalinga and Los Banos.

[myosh_tino]

Somehow that part of I-5 is a state scenic route. I've never been on it, so I can't personally call bullshit.

Actually, chickenshit is more like it. You hit a terrible wall of stench near a chicken farm somewhere between Coalinga and Los Banos.

The scenic route designation is only from CA-152 to I-580 which is the only stretch of I-5 in northern California that I have not driven.  The rest of I-5 south of CA-152 does not and should not be a "scenic" route.

DBR96A, that stench you speak of is a massive cattle farm at the CA-145 exit near Coalinga.

[NE2]

The scenic route designation is only from CA-152 to I-580 which is the only stretch of I-5 in northern California that I have not driven.  The rest of I-5 south of CA-152 does not and should not be a "scenic" route.

Damn, you're right. Somehow I got it in my head that the part south of Bath is also in it.

[myosh_tino]

that the part south of Bath...

When I saw that statement, I had to stop and think for a moment.  Then it hit me... "Los Banos" is Spanish for "Bath"   

Good one NE2! 

[iamathousandapples]

I-70 from immediately after you get off the Turnpike to Columbus. All the exits are exactly the same(McDonald's, Wendy's, Subway... repeat ad nauseum) and the only really interesting thing you pass is the bridge in Wheeling. Actually, nearly all of Southeast Ohio's interstates are boring and deceptively long.

Also seconding the Western Kentucky Parkway. I thought Caneyville to E-Town would be interesting but it's nearly all incline with only trailers to dot the landscape. No Farms no nothing.

[agentsteel53]

five sheets of high powered blotter acid

Can I see your hazardous materials shipping paper, please

here you go, good sir!

[Charles2]

U.S. 50 and U.S. 56 in Kansas west of I-35 are torture.  Miles and miles of farm land.  Every intersection is at a right angle.  Small towns every 20-30 miles with a farmers co-op, a stockyard, one or two gas stations doubling as the local grocery store and cafe, one or two churches, and a blinking yellow light at the only major intersection in town.  Still, every time I've ever visited out there I'm fascinated with the complete contrast to how things are in other parts of the country I've visite

And for just boring as hell: U.S. 82 in Mississippi.  Travelling west from Columbus and Starkville, there ain't nothing.  Nada.  Zilch.

[hbelkins]

They have people to fix boring roads now:

[vdeane]

Or is that to make the road boring?

[TCN7JM]

I like most of I-29, but the only stretch of road I've ever fallen asleep on during a road trip is I-29 between Sioux Falls and Watertown. I actually like the road in northern South Dakota, nice and hilly in the Glacier Lakes region. Then I swear as soon as you pass the casino at the North Dakota border it gets flat and straight, and boring again. In my experience, the whole of I-29 in North Dakota is boring, but I've only clinched it from SD to the ND 17 exit near Grafton, and for some reason I doubt it gets more interesting on the northernmost forty miles.

And I actually quite like I-94 in North Dakota. That is in Valley City, there's a gigantic buffalo in Jamestown (along with a rare-in-the-region left exit), and it's pretty nice west of Dickinson (from what I've seen; I've not been west of Medora).

I-39 is an obvious pick for most boring road, and trust me I agree it's boring as hell, but the most boring road I've ever been on is that stretch of I-29.

[DevalDragon]

I would not say this is boring, especially on the PA side. The narrow lanes, sometimes 45 mph speed limit and on ramps with the stop signs at the end make this drive quite entertaining, as does the short 70 MPH stretch thru West Virginia with the steep grades out of the river valley.

I-70 from immediately after you get off the Turnpike to Columbus. All the exits are exactly the same(McDonald's, Wendy's, Subway... repeat ad nauseum) and the only really interesting thing you pass is the bridge in Wheeling. Actually, nearly all of Southeast Ohio's interstates are boring and deceptively long.

[SD Mapman]

I like most of I-29, but the only stretch of road I've ever fallen asleep on during a road trip is I-29 between Sioux Falls and Watertown. I actually like the road in northern South Dakota, nice and hilly in the Glacier Lakes region. Then I swear as soon as you pass the casino at the North Dakota border it gets flat and straight, and boring again. In my experience, the whole of I-29 in North Dakota is boring, but I've only clinched it from SD to the ND 17 exit near Grafton, and for some reason I doubt it gets more interesting on the northernmost forty miles.

And I actually quite like I-94 in North Dakota. That is in Valley City, there's a gigantic buffalo in Jamestown (along with a rare-in-the-region left exit), and it's pretty nice west of Dickinson (from what I've seen; I've not been west of Medora).

I-39 is an obvious pick for most boring road, and trust me I agree it's boring as hell, but the most boring road I've ever been on is that stretch of I-29.

No, US 212 between Faith and Newell is worse. (Actually, any stretch of road West River is boring)

[tidecat]

I-65 northeast of the Mobile area and southwest of the Montgomery area, then again starting about 25-30 miles north of Louisville up to about Seymour.

[SD Mapman]

I-65 northeast of the Mobile area and southwest of the Montgomery area, then again starting about 25-30 miles north of Louisville up to about Seymour.

At least there's actual towns there.

[theline]

^^ I'm assuming you're referring to Indiana when you say "actual towns." There's not much in Alabama along that stretch. Back in the '60s, the interstate was built along new terrain that avoided most actual civilization, and there has not been a whole lot of impetus for growth in the decades since.

[Zzonkmiles]

I just read through all 11 pages of this topic and will be happy to add my contribution:

Insterstate 20 in Georgia between Augusta and Atlanta's eastern suburbs.  Wow, that is a miserable stretch of road.

Sing along with me!

"Up the hill! Down the hill! Look at the trees! Turn!"
"Up the hill! Down the hill! Look at the trees! Turn!"
"Up the hill! Down the hill! Look at the trees! Turn!"

This goes on without any deviation for about 100 miles.

Interstate 40 in North Carolina between I-77 and I-85 is also a beast because I-40 goes on for so much longer than you think in NC.  I guess it's like I-81 in Virginia in that it looks shorter than it really is.

I-10 between Jacksonville and I-75 is boring too when you go through that huge forest and there is a section with no exits for maybe 25 miles or so. Yeesh.

[roadman65]

I-70 east of Limon, CO.  Until you reach Kansas it is the most boring road you will ever find.

Then US 19, 98, and 27 Alternate from Cross City, FL to Perry, FL is another boring road.

[oscar]

Insterstate 20 in Georgia between Augusta and Atlanta's eastern suburbs.  Wow, that is a miserable stretch of road.

Sing along with me!

"Up the hill! Down the hill! Look at the trees! Turn!"
"Up the hill! Down the hill! Look at the trees! Turn!"
"Up the hill! Down the hill! Look at the trees! Turn!"

Hey, at least you have hills, trees, and turns.  I-5 through California's Central Valley has almost none of any of those.  Just the smelly cattle ranch near Coalinga, mentioned above, which will wake you up to hit the "recirc" button on your climate control if you forgot to do that before the ranch.

[wphiii]

All the exits are exactly the same(McDonald's, Wendy's, Subway... repeat ad nauseum)

To be fair this is the vast majority of Interstate exits in the country.

[Arkansastravelguy]

I-29 through Iowa and I-40 from Little Rock to Memphis gets my vote


iPhone

[djlynch]

I-95 in Florida seems really long to a kid eager to see Mickey Mouse. When you are a child and you reach you think WDW is just around the next exit. I vividly recall my dad telling me we still had about 3 more hours to go...

If you live in the southern end of the state, seeing the "Welcome to Florida" sign is both welcome (yay, nearly home!) and loathsome (great, five more hours to go!)...I imagine Texans on opposite ends of I-10 think the same way.

Only five hours? Not if you're seeing that sign on I-10. (Although, given that I'm in Austin, I'm used to the state line being an indicator of another several hours' travel. The fastest you can get anywhere that isn't Texas is a little over three hours to Nuevo Laredo, or roughly four hours to I-35 at the Red River or I-10 at the Sabine.)

[countyguy]

Aren't you here because you like signs?  I like signs and feel that stretches of road with a lot of signs are interesting.  You can't usually go wrong with interstates, unless there is a long exit-less stretch and you can't see many signs. (Exits=signs )

I live in Florida and am fond of US 19/98 from Homosassa to Chiefland.  Although I am a fan of the signs at freeway exits (indifferent toward Clearview), I find the stretch from Homosassa to Chiefland to be better than the Suncoast Pkwy.

I remember US 71 in Iowa from Carroll to Spencer to be very boring.  It was all cornfields with few signs, no curves, no hills, no trees, and no towns.  It got better north of Spencer, though.