The best motorcycle roads in California
The twistiest paved roads in California, from Ten Bear Road in Siskiyou County on down. Distances, how twisty each one is and how to string them into a ride.
Looking for the corners in California? We measured 404 named paved roads and picked the five that never stop bending.
The headliners
Ten Bear Road
In Siskiyou County. 10 miles, about 20 minutes at a relaxed pace.
Twistiness: ●●●●● Hairpin heaven
Fairfax-Bolinas Road
In Marin County. 12 miles, about 25 minutes at a relaxed pace.
Twistiness: ●●●●● Hairpin heaven
Mineral King Road
In Tulare County. 12 miles, about 25 minutes at a relaxed pace.
Twistiness: ●●●●● Hairpin heaven
Ten Bear Road
In Siskiyou County. 14 miles, about 30 minutes at a relaxed pace.
Twistiness: ●●●●● Hairpin heaven
Million Dollar Road
In Fresno County. 9 miles, about 20 minutes at a relaxed pace.
Twistiness: ●●●●● Hairpin heaven
When you want to settle in
Not every ride is about hairpins. These are longer paved roads that keep twisting the whole way, good for a long cruise where you can find a rhythm.
- Watts Valley Road, in Fresno County: 18 miles
- Parkhill Road, in San Luis Obispo County: 18 miles
- Empire Grade, near Boulder Creek: 18 miles
How we picked them
We looked at the shape of every named paved road in California and measured how much each one bends along its length. Then we ranked them by bends per distance, so a short hairpin road and a long mountain highway are compared fairly. Gravel, tracks, residential streets and anything under about 6 miles are left out.
What this does not tell you: how nice the scenery is, how good the surface is, how busy the road gets, or whether it is closed for snow. Check before you go, especially in the mountains and in winter. Then ride it and see for yourself.
Turn it into a ride
Open the MotoRidez planner and link a few of these into a loop, or hit Surprise Me and let it pick a twisty route from wherever you are. Every ride you record is remembered, so next time it can send you down roads you have not tried yet.
Questions riders ask
What is the twistiest motorcycle road in California?
Ten Bear Road in Siskiyou County. It is 10 miles long and bends more for its length than any other named paved road of that size in California.
How do you work out which California roads are twisty?
We measure how much each road bends along its length from its shape on the map, then rank roads by bends per distance. Gravel, tracks and residential streets are left out.
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