This thread is about those seemingly endless stretches of highway that are devoid of any points of interest or even variation in scenery. These are roads that are mostly straight, don’t go through any towns, and offer nothing to see but the same numbing landscape for miles and miles. The type of highway where it takes great effort to resist the temptation of going more than 80 MPH. I want to read about your choices.
As thread starter, let me suggest the first monotonous stretch of highway: I-90 just to the west and east of Moses Lake, Washington. Once you climb out of the Columbia River Gorge, it’s just nothing but irrigated fields for miles.
I-70 through the entire state of Kansas. At one point while driving through there from Denver to Tampa I though I had died and gone to motorist hell. The same fucking cornfields through the entire freaking state.
[ul]
[li]Crossing the Nullabor Plain. And here.[/li][li]Interstate 40 across the Texas Panhandle.[/li][li]Interstate 40 from just before Needles, California, west to Barstow and then Highway 58 to Bakersfield.[/li][li]Interstate 80 across Nevada.[/li][li]US Highway 12 across Lolo Pass and down into Idaho.[/li][li]Canada Highway 1 from Winnipeg to Calgary.[/li][/ul]
I-55, southern Mississippi into Louisiana. Straight, flat four-lane bordered on both sides by endless stands of pines. Worse, IMO, than driving through wide open flat.
I’ve never driven long distance away from the east coast so I would pick I-95 from Jacksonville to Savannah then Savannah to I-26(Charleston) – ~175 miles worth of gas stations, Cracker Barrels and marshes.
Oh god, yes. I think the last remotely interesting thing to see on this drive is the freakishly huge cross somewhere in Texas. And I could live without seeing that…
Fourthed, but I’m going to stand up for Missouri here. When I drove across on I-70 on my way from PA to CA I did at least get to stop at the Winston Churchill Museum, which was certainly a highlight of the trip (well, second to winning back all the costs of the trip in Vegas).
But I-70 through Kansas, wow. I was glad I’d brought an armload of CDs instead of hoping for the radio.
Seconded. I enjoy long road trips when I get the chance, but that stretch of drive on the 40 made my one and only journey from LA to Laughlin fairly miserable. Not to mention it was really hot and Laughlin sucks out loud.
I’m just guessing it was this highway - pretty damn boring, just scenery. But when we drove from Vegas to Flagstaff, I saw an unbelievable double (almost triple) rainbow.
If this is the same highway, then it gets a lifetime pass from me.
It’s been a long time since I’ve done it, but I’d vote for I-80 across Nebraska as a good second to I-70 across Kansas. And I think I’d rather go east than west on 70. At least going east you’re coming to something besides wide open flat plains.
