Hobby Thread - March 8, 2025 [TRex]

Welcome hobbyists! Pull up a chair and sit a spell with the Horde in this little corner of the interweb. This is the mighty, mighty officially sanctioned Ace of Spades Hobby Thread.

We gave the Ace of Spades Wheel of Hobbies(TM) a spin. Turns out, the Wheel has a case of wanderlust. It said ROAD TRIPS and SCENIC DRIVES. Let's go for a ride!

Road trips and scenic drives? That is not a hobby, is it? More like an activity? or a more enjoyable way to get from here to there? Well...

Who is TRex to argue with the Horde? So it shall be written, so it shall be done. Anyway, even though TRex has short arms and a small dinosaur brain, TRex believes that road trips qualify as a hobby for purposes of the Hobby Thread. We will think of it as a transit-related travel theme, which qualifies it as a hobby.

The great thing about this topic is that there is beauty all around us. Not every road makes the "top 10" lists but there are lots of gems. The other great thing is that scenic drives remind us that sometimes the journey is just as important (or more important) than the destination.

Some roads are for a leisurely stroll through the countryside. Others are for more spirited adventures (ahem). Some roads beg for a particular type of vehicle such as a convertible or a motorcycle. Riding along the coastline on a sunny day in a drop top? Yeah...

What road trips are memorable for you? What trips would you like to do? Any trips that massively exceeded your expectations or fell short of the hype?

A few ideas below to get you started thinking. No list will capture all the best roads and opinions of "best" will vary.

Feel free to talk about road trip logistics too. Maps, triptiks, GPS successes and failures, road signs, punchbuggy, license plate games, etc. I have thoughts of doing a "road side attraction" theme at some point. Yes or no?

What are you hobbying these days? As per usual Hobby Thread etiquette, keep this thread limited to hobbying. Your participation does not need to limited to the theme. All hobbying is welcome. However, politics, current events and religious debates can live in threads elsewhere. Play nice. Do not be a troll and do not feed the trolls. Pants, as always, are optional.

Is the Pacific Coast Highway in California the most well-known scenic drive in the United States? Got to be up there. Bixby Bridge leaps over Bixby Creek in Big Sur, just south of Monterey and Carmel. The rest of the coastline down past Hearst Castle to Morro Bay is dramatic all the way.

Other parts of PCH and roads along the coastline in California, Oregon and Washington have their own flavor. Some are scenic, some are historic, some are developed and commercial and others are sparse and mostly untouched other than building the road.

In Europe, one of the most well-known Alpine passes is the Grossglockner pass in Austria. Snow capped Alps, twisty roads, and cows with bells in the fields make it a destination road when weather permits.

We are also partial to the Stelvio Pass in Italy (named by Top Gear as the best driving road...in the world) and the Furka Pass in Switzerland (used for chase scenes in the James Bond movie "Goldfinger").

Winter weather closes the Alpine passes for part of the year and their popularity can produce congestion at times but they are magic when the stars align.

Skyline Drive tracks the spine of the Appalachian Mountains through the Shenandoah National Park. It starts in Front Royal, Virginia and then turns into the Blue Ridge Parkway for the run to Asheville, North Carolina.

It is a slow speed jaunt rather than a high speed thrill ride. Leaf peepers flock to the road in the fall to see the waves of orange and red overcome the green hillsides. The road is gentle and winding as it traces the natural topography. Each scenic vista is a post-card photo and picnic opportunity.

North Wyoming roads are hidden gems. They are not well-known and you need to make a point to be there. The Beartooth Highway is in Wyoming and photo below is from Beartooth Pass. Continue over the mountains, and across the border and into Red Lodge, Montana.

Would you believe this is Colorado? Take the High Road from Santa Fe to Taos, New Mexico and keep going north. Colorado is known for the mountains, but is an incredibly varied state. Everything to the east of Denver and Pueblo is flat. The south has flatlands and sand dunes. The west edge has red rock that is more commonly associated with Utah. Route 141 from Naturita to Gateway is stunning.

Top tip: motorcyclists know the best roads. If you are looking for scenic drives, do interweb searching to see where the motorcyclists go. Follow them.

The Black Hills of South Dakota are known for Mt. Rushmore, Deadwood and Crazy Horse. But roads like 16A are the main event. No coincidence that the biggest motorcycle gathering in the United States is in nearby Sturgis.

This photo is near the Norbeck Overlook on 16A which provides a unique vista through the trees looking directly at Mt. Rushmore. Clearly, winter weather can be a factor. Makes for beautiful scenery, but if you are badly underdressed, consider buying an extra sweatshirt in Sturgis or Deadwood during your trip. Some say.

Did you miss the Hobby Thread last week with a theme of museums? The comments may be closed, but you can re-live the content.

Notable comments from last week:

Remember to push the clock forward tonight. Come back in the fall for a refund. Unless PDJT wipes out daylight savings time.

Words of wisdom:

"Because despite all our troubles, when things are grim out in that wide round world of ours, that's when it's really important to have a good hobby." Posted by: tankascribe at June 22, 2024 07:41 PM (HWxAD).

If you have trouble finding something in the content or comments that resonates with you, hijack the thread for your hobbying as you see fit. We will feature a different theme next time. Send thoughts, suggestions and photos of your hobbying to moronhobbies at protonmail dot com. Do mighty things.

posted by Open Blogger at 05:30 PM

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