Just In Time For Summer: 9 New National Scenic Byways And All-American Roads

The last time I cruised along Route 2 in Western Massachusetts, I was a minor strapped in the back seat of my parents’ car, and the road was just asphalt under our tires. When we met again a few weeks ago, we had both advanced to the next level. I was now behind the driver’s wheel, and the Mohawk Trail was a National Scenic Byway, one of the highest accolades — and greatest compliments — a U.S. road can receive.

Earlier this year, the Federal Highway Administration unveiled 34 new National Scenic Byways and 15 All-American Roads in 28 states, bringing the total to 184 in 48 states. (Hawaii and Texas are two exceptions, but this could change in the Lone Star State: Its senate passed the Texas Scenic Byways bill last month.) The announcement was a long time coming. The agency, which has been running the program since 1991, last bestowed the honor in 2009.

“One of the things we know about Americans is that they love their cars and the open road. That is a big part of this,” said Mark Falzone, president of Scenic America, a nonprofit dedicated to preserving the country’s beauty. “We are seeing a revival in scenic byways, and it couldn’t come at a better time, because of covid-19 and restrictions.”

To be considered for the designation, the route must satisfy a few prerequisites. It must be a state scenic byway, possess regional importance and exhibit one (Scenic National Byway) or two (All-American Road) of six “intrinsic qualities.” The application only requires the minimum number, but many of the roads contain several of the characteristics: cultural, natural, historical, recreational, archaeological and scenic. I could count the Mohawk Trail’s attributes on five fingers.

At 69 miles, the Mohawk Trail is a condensed road trip, and yet it took hours to complete. The dog-eared line about the journey eclipsing the destination applied. The road opened in 1914 as one of the country’s first leisure drives. However, Native Americans had been hunting and trading on its unpaved predecessor, hence the name of the byway and the logo of a Mohawk raising his open arms to the sky.

Because only the co-pilot had received her vaccine, my mother and I stuck to outdoor attractions. We strolled around Williams College’s torn-from-an-admissions-catalogue campus and grabbed a Mediterranean lunch in Williamstown’s one-street downtown. We explored the outbuildings of Mass MoCA, a contemporary art museum that occupies a former printing factory. I didn’t remember the microbrewery, and not because I had been barely out of juice boxes on our last family vacation here. Bright Ideas Brewing is a fairly new addition to the complex.

At several points along the route, I scrambled out of the car to walk with soft footsteps on the Mohican-Mohawk Recreation Trail. Other reminders of the original travelers appeared through the windshield, such as the “Hail to the Sunrise” statue (the image on the byway signage) and Salmon Falls in Shelburne Falls, where the Mohawks and Penobscots agreed to a hunting and fishing treaty in the 1700s. “I remember scrambling over those rocks,” my mother said of the glacial potholes at the falls, dating our earlier trip to Pre-Liability Times.

As the sun started to descend, I climbed up Poet’s Seat Tower in Greenfield, the byway’s eastern terminus. From my stone perch, I surveyed a land that did not settle for being just scenic.

Here are the other National Scenic Byways and All-American Roads from the Class of 2021, and whom they are best for, based on interests.

U.S. History Buffs

Cumberland Historic byway, Tennessee

Where: Celina to Cumberland Gap

How far: 200 miles

What: The route echoes with the footsteps of pioneering explorers who traversed the northern Cumberland Plateau in search of opportunity to the west — in Tennessee and Kentucky. The Obey and Cumberland rivers supported the burgeoning lumber industry and the rise of Nashville.

Revolutionary Heritage Byway, Rhode Island

Where: Bristol

How far: five miles

What: Ignore the fact that the town’s namesake is in England. Patriotic Bristol holds one of the country’s oldest Fourth of July celebrations, which marches — and floats — down the byway. The road appeals year-round, with centuries-old estates, museums, a state park, gardens, a historic district and a waterfront that upholds the town’s shipbuilding and sailing traditions.

Boom or Bust Byway, Louisiana

Where: Lisbon to Vivian

How far: 137 miles

What: The byway records the highs, lows and comebacks of such Louisiana industries as oil and gas, lumber and agriculture, including cotton. Abandoned oil field equipment appears like a ghostly apparition, and Oil City stays true to its name with the Louisiana State Oil and Gas Museum. Casinos offer a personalized boom-or-bust experience.

Other options: A1A Scenic and Historic Coastal Byway, Florida; Battle Road Scenic Byway, Massachusetts; Brandywine Valley Scenic Byway, Pennsylvania; Norris Freeway, Tennessee; Sequatchie Valley Scenic Byway, Tennessee

Epic Road-Trippers

California Historic Route 66 Needles to Barstow Scenic Byway, California

Where: Needles to Barstow

How far: 178 miles

What: The western leg of the Mother Road wriggles through ghost towns, dusty outposts and the Mojave Trails National Monument, which contains the most unadulterated section of Route 66. There are a few places to stop for an Americana fix and pics, such as the Baghdad Cafe, the setting for the 1988 movie, and the “Roy’s Vacancy” sign.

Great River Road National Scenic Byway, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Louisiana

Where: Itasca State Park, Minn., to Venice, La.

How far: 565 miles in Minnesota, 242 miles in Wisconsin, 322 miles in Iowa, 556 miles in Illinois, 63 miles in Kentucky, 186 in Tennessee, 391 miles in Arkansas, 724 miles in Louisiana

What: The Great River is none other than the Mississippi, the major artery that flows with history, commerce and wildlife. Built in 1938, the road covers 3,000 miles in 10 states, eight of which earned All-American Road status for their sections. (Missouri and Mississippi earned their badges in 2000.) If Mark Twain were alive to update “The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn,” surely he would swap out the boy’s raft for a sporty red convertible.

Check out the rest of the article from The Washington Post here.