The best motorcycle roads in New Mexico
The twistiest paved roads in New Mexico, from New Mexico Highway 152 in Sierra County on down. Distances, how twisty each one is and how to string them into a ride.
Plenty of roads in New Mexico go from A to B. These ones take the scenic way around every hill, creek and bluff. We checked 23 of them.
The headliners
New Mexico Highway 152
In Sierra County. 8.3 miles, about 20 minutes at a relaxed pace.
Twistiness: ●●●●● Hairpin heaven
Ski Run Road
In Lincoln County. 12 miles, about 25 minutes at a relaxed pace.
Twistiness: ●●●●● Hairpin heaven
Sandia Crest Road
In Bernalillo County. 13 miles, about 30 minutes at a relaxed pace.
Twistiness: ●●●●○ Very twisty
Hyde Park Road
In Santa Fe County. 15 miles, about 30 minutes at a relaxed pace.
Twistiness: ●●●●○ Very twisty
Reserve Beaverhead Road
In Catron County. 13 miles, about 30 minutes at a relaxed pace.
Twistiness: ●●●●○ Very twisty
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.
- Pinos Altos Road, in Grant County: 17 miles
How we picked them
We looked at the shape of every named paved road in New Mexico 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 New Mexico?
New Mexico Highway 152 in Sierra County. It is 8.3 miles long and bends more for its length than any other named paved road of that size in New Mexico.
How do you work out which New Mexico 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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