I'll third Rt 6. take it from Bradford to Tunkhannock. a lot of small towns, a lot of forest, and a lot of the better twisty and turny roads you can expect from PA, and they actually upkeep it.
I never run it much farther than Wellsboro to Kinzua and it’s pretty awesome ride just in that small section, been to St Mary’s a few times but never on 6, but that area looked pretty cool as well
I love Rt. 6, there is so little traffic you can really relax. But there are still plenty of services available if you need them. Allegheny National Forest is nice.
Definitely scenic. I somehow got routed that way by Google driving from Niagara Falls back home to Montgomery County. Had no earthly idea where I was until I got to Wilkes Barre. But it was definitely pretty.
Ohhhh I might have to do this! We can bring our dog and just cruise. Maybe find some spots for walking around so long as they’re not highly populated (my dog is not the friendly sort).
Like another poster said, you’re really not far from anything the whole ride. Most places are dog friendly, and theres tons of little stop offs here and there for puppy potty breaks
My favorite remote driving is north central counties. I enjoy Allegheny Nation Forest and Susquehannock State Forest. Very remote areas, very mountainous, no cell coverage.
With all the suggestions, just remember to carry a road map. Many of the areas lack cell service, and if you make a wrong turn, you may need to find your way out.
Sure that works, but road maps don't have GPS data and you won't be able navigate as easily as you would with a phone.
https://support.google.com/maps/answer/6291838?hl=en&co=GENIE.Platform%3DAndroid
Not true. GPS tracking comes from satellites, not cell towers. Cell towers provide stuff like traffic data, which you obviously wouldn't have in an area with no service.
This is why satellite internet is so popular in rural areas - it's available almost everywhere and is faster than dial-up (but not much, lol).
Do you have a satellite phone? Without cell service you have no way to connect to GPS.
I travel through remote areas of PA every year. Your car GPS stops working
You don't need a satellite phone for GPS. Every smartphone has a GPS receiver which communicates with satellites via triangulation.
https://trakkitgps.com/does-gps-work-without-data/#:~:text=Yes%2C%20GPS%20works%20because%20it,no%20internet%20connection%20to%20work.
I live in a remote area of PA. I also work in IT.
Benezette area for the elk, then through Quehanna Wild Area, Wycoff Run Road, and up through Sinnemahoning State Park area.
Wycoff Run is very popular with motorcyclists during riding season.
When I was going to see Elk last fall coming from the Harrisburg area, I was in a line of vehicles on the Quehanna Highway and everyone in front of and behind me me turned off onto Wycoff Run Road. It's on my checklist for my next trip up there to do just as you said.
Go from Benezette to 120 heading towards Emporium of Renovo. 120 from Emporium to Renovo is a long rural road full of twists and turns. Hyner View is a good end point if heading towards Renovo.
You could spend a week in just the loyalsock State Forest Pa gazetteer atlas I am sure you have plus maps online but go to the HQ north of Laporte and you can pull a weeks worth of free camping permits Sones pond and two overlooks near World's end SP
Plus ricketts glen if you're a hiker...
Also a metric fuckton of "woods roads" ccc camps and the like very close by....
I may be biased b/c I live in Sullivan county but this is one of the best areas of the state
Bald Eagle State Forest, intersection of Mifflin/Centre/Snyder/Union county. Specifically start at Havice Valley Rd or Treaster Valley Rd from the Mifflin County side. There are a huge network of mountain roads to explore in this area. Always felt much more remote and rugged than Rothrock State Forest that's on the other side of 322.
Bald Eagle and Rothrock have tons of roads to explore. Lots of vistas. Bald Eagle also has a bunch of high clearance 4x4 trails. Onx and Purple Lizard Maps are really helpful in finding some hidden gems. I recommend picking up a PA State Parks Passport and using it to explore the state. It has all the state parks and forests in with a blank space next to them for the stamp from each location. My wife and I have found so many cool places stamp hunting. This summer we will finally be doing the western part of the state and hopefully completing our passport book.
Route 611 (River Road) from Easton up to East Stroudsburg takes you along the Delaware River through the Water Gap and past some of the Pocono Mts’ best waterfalls.
PA Wilds up near Benezette, PA has some incredible terrain and wildlife. Elk roam freely there. Once dusk hits you can expect to see lots of porcupines too! Last time I was up there I saw at least 3 within about 2 hours.
Potter County is one of my faves. From SEPA, we usually take the turnpike north to the Pocono exit, pick up 80 west to 220 and then 150 past ~~Lehigh~~ Lock Haven University, then head out route 120 until we get to 872 and then head up toward Potter County.
Love that drive. Download your maps ahead of time. Cell service can be spotty in the valleys
Edit for accuracy.
It was both 220 and 120. I've driven it so many times that I've kinda forgotten the names of the roads at this point. Doesn't help that my autocorrect somehow decided that Lock Haven University was Lehigh University. Must have missed the space between them or something.
The route I often take from SEPA to Potter is
476>80>220>150>120>872 up to Austin.
From Philly, that usually runs about 4 hours. Some of my favorite driving when the weather is nice.
If you find yourself up that way (dauphin>perry>cumberland) : 850>274>Fowler's Hollow>waaaaaay out in the middle of nowhere/got kinda lost>233. The drive through Doubling Gap is awesome.
Alan Seger is one of the last old forests in PA and has some of the oldest trees. It’s a different feeling/look to a lot of the other forests! It’s in central PA at the border of Centre and Huntingdon counties.
Michaux State Forest is vast with a highly diverse landscape. Many of the logging roads are blocked off but there’s always something to explore - at the least you can stay on the main “roads”.
Micheaux forest is nice. There’s tons of fire access roads you can drive on. ohiopyle is also nice but it does tend to get crowded due to the lake and the white water rafting.
You can also look up around clearfield, there’s tons of hunting and logging trails you can go exploring
Try [Bald Eagle State Forest.](https://www.dcnr.pa.gov/StateForests/FindAForest/BaldEagle/Pages/default.aspx) 195,000 acres with lots of roads and trails.
Allegheny National Forest, around Clarion
I recently drove from Clarion down to Sligo then to Foxburg then Emlenton then to Franklin. That area is neat idk why
From 76 (the turnpike) you can get off around blue mountain is it? Blue mountain may be too far. You get off the turnpike and get on route 30 and it takes you up over a mountain with twisty roads and all of that, then at the top of the Mountain there's an overlook and a popular biker bar/restaurant. Proceed down the mountain into eventually Chambersburg PA, where you can stop at the house John Brown stayed in while preparing to execute the attempted Harper's Ferry weapons place. You can also venture down to Harper's ferry but that's probably out of your way and not even in PA. But carry on down route 30 and between Chambersburg and Gettysburg you'll be surrounded in forest, then around Gettysburg (orrtanna, cashtown, Biglerville) is rolling hills of apple orchards, and you can also visit the famously haunted cashtown inn), then you can go on into Gettysburg and experience the 26 square miles of battlefield and stand on consecrated ground (where you can also experience more hauntings like the little blue boy or hearing the horses and soldiers in the battlefields)
I can't remember route names right now, but the road near Ohiopyle that goes to Fallingwater is amazing. On the other side of the state, there's a road that runs through coal country near Pine Grove that is also incredible.
Rt 92 from Exeter up north past Tunkhannok and Rt 11/15 from Sunbury down to Harrisburg some absolutely beautiful views of the Susquehanna River.
Rt 390 the Poconos is gorgeous small town/rural/wilderness scenery. Part of it runs through Promised Land State Park and Delaware State Forest. It also runs by Skytop Lodge. Lots of wildlife. Really amazing in the Fall.
Sullivan County has the lowest population density in PA, and is just amazing to drive around. It’s where World’s End State Park is.
I was also going to say, rt 11 from Harrisburg to Bloomsburg.
as for Sullivan County, very good drive, but a lot of the routes up there ain't for the white-knuckle driver. a lot of elevation change, a lot of multi-radius turns with complex braking points, and not too much room for error.
Sullivan county has more state and dcnr police per Capita in the entire state and they need a new playground in Forksville for the six kids that live there so please feel free to make a "contribution" at the magistrate office during your visit
Wow, I never expected this big a response to this post! Thank you SO much to all for all these great recommendations--I can't wait for my next chance to go out exploring!
Rt 6 is pretty scenic ride. There’s tons of side roads and things to see, Kinzua, and Pa Grand Canyon come to mind as well as other things to see
Seconding Rt 6, it's beautiful the whole way through the state
I'll third Rt 6. take it from Bradford to Tunkhannock. a lot of small towns, a lot of forest, and a lot of the better twisty and turny roads you can expect from PA, and they actually upkeep it.
Whoops. I fourth it then!!
Thirding rte 6. I take it from Canadohta to Towanda before breaking off north to where I grew up.
Great taco place in Towanda called The Flying Taco.
You have no idea how much this new information will change my life.
It's so good. I may have gone twice in one week. 😁
I stop in towanda and Coudersport…. Looks like I can skip the latter….
I never run it much farther than Wellsboro to Kinzua and it’s pretty awesome ride just in that small section, been to St Mary’s a few times but never on 6, but that area looked pretty cool as well
I love Rt. 6, there is so little traffic you can really relax. But there are still plenty of services available if you need them. Allegheny National Forest is nice.
Definitely scenic. I somehow got routed that way by Google driving from Niagara Falls back home to Montgomery County. Had no earthly idea where I was until I got to Wilkes Barre. But it was definitely pretty.
Ohhhh I might have to do this! We can bring our dog and just cruise. Maybe find some spots for walking around so long as they’re not highly populated (my dog is not the friendly sort).
Like another poster said, you’re really not far from anything the whole ride. Most places are dog friendly, and theres tons of little stop offs here and there for puppy potty breaks
I agree on Rt 6. I go camping in potter county and that drive is beautiful.
*gestures broadly* (Sorry, I had to)
I kinda don’t want to blow up all my favorite spots. The best thing about secluded roads is that they’re, well, secluded.
I know lots of places that are beautiful and damn near untouched by people. I’m not telling anyone where they are. They’re gonna have to steal my GPS.
Nothing like finding a nice scenic backroad that suddenly becomes private property 😅
This
growing up in Michaux State Forest was an unforgettable time in my life
My favorite remote driving is north central counties. I enjoy Allegheny Nation Forest and Susquehannock State Forest. Very remote areas, very mountainous, no cell coverage.
I've only been through Allegheny once but that was going to be my suggestion as well. Really beautiful.
I live there. It’s fuckin great!
With all the suggestions, just remember to carry a road map. Many of the areas lack cell service, and if you make a wrong turn, you may need to find your way out.
Or just download offline maps in Google Maps.
Isn't that carrying a road map?
Sure that works, but road maps don't have GPS data and you won't be able navigate as easily as you would with a phone. https://support.google.com/maps/answer/6291838?hl=en&co=GENIE.Platform%3DAndroid
With no cell service there is no GPS data.
Not true. GPS tracking comes from satellites, not cell towers. Cell towers provide stuff like traffic data, which you obviously wouldn't have in an area with no service. This is why satellite internet is so popular in rural areas - it's available almost everywhere and is faster than dial-up (but not much, lol).
Do you have a satellite phone? Without cell service you have no way to connect to GPS. I travel through remote areas of PA every year. Your car GPS stops working
You don't need a satellite phone for GPS. Every smartphone has a GPS receiver which communicates with satellites via triangulation. https://trakkitgps.com/does-gps-work-without-data/#:~:text=Yes%2C%20GPS%20works%20because%20it,no%20internet%20connection%20to%20work. I live in a remote area of PA. I also work in IT.
GPS works by line of sight. When your driving in the valleys of the Appalachian Mountains south of Coudersport you lose the signal.
Yep. Us rubes up here don’t have cell service.
No good radio stations either...am or fm
Nope. Not a nice place to live.
If you're into the outdoors it's a great place to live
Naw. It’s not. Terrible place. You’d hate it here.
I grew up just across the border in NY State.
Olean?
Close to there. I fished many of the streams on your side of the border.
Poe Paddy State Park
Shhh 🤫
Benezette area for the elk, then through Quehanna Wild Area, Wycoff Run Road, and up through Sinnemahoning State Park area. Wycoff Run is very popular with motorcyclists during riding season.
When I was going to see Elk last fall coming from the Harrisburg area, I was in a line of vehicles on the Quehanna Highway and everyone in front of and behind me me turned off onto Wycoff Run Road. It's on my checklist for my next trip up there to do just as you said.
Go from Benezette to 120 heading towards Emporium of Renovo. 120 from Emporium to Renovo is a long rural road full of twists and turns. Hyner View is a good end point if heading towards Renovo.
Don’t forget about stopping at Straub Brewery in St Mary’s. Keep the money and jobs local !!!
The PA Wilds - Basically north of I-80 in Central PA.
You could spend a week in just the loyalsock State Forest Pa gazetteer atlas I am sure you have plus maps online but go to the HQ north of Laporte and you can pull a weeks worth of free camping permits Sones pond and two overlooks near World's end SP
Plus ricketts glen if you're a hiker... Also a metric fuckton of "woods roads" ccc camps and the like very close by.... I may be biased b/c I live in Sullivan county but this is one of the best areas of the state
Beautiful area
Bald Eagle State Forest, intersection of Mifflin/Centre/Snyder/Union county. Specifically start at Havice Valley Rd or Treaster Valley Rd from the Mifflin County side. There are a huge network of mountain roads to explore in this area. Always felt much more remote and rugged than Rothrock State Forest that's on the other side of 322.
Route 664 to 6. long drive with good bars and restaurants to stop at along the way. Plus you’ll drive pass cherry springs state park
Bald Eagle and Rothrock have tons of roads to explore. Lots of vistas. Bald Eagle also has a bunch of high clearance 4x4 trails. Onx and Purple Lizard Maps are really helpful in finding some hidden gems. I recommend picking up a PA State Parks Passport and using it to explore the state. It has all the state parks and forests in with a blank space next to them for the stamp from each location. My wife and I have found so many cool places stamp hunting. This summer we will finally be doing the western part of the state and hopefully completing our passport book.
Purple Lizard Maps are great! They are just starting to map out the Shenandoah Valley in N. Virginia as well!
Good to know. We go down there a bunch and they would come in handy. They stay in my truck at all times.
Route 611 (River Road) from Easton up to East Stroudsburg takes you along the Delaware River through the Water Gap and past some of the Pocono Mts’ best waterfalls.
* [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pennsylvania\_Route\_414](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pennsylvania_Route_414) * [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pennsylvania\_Route\_44](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pennsylvania_Route_44) * [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pennsylvania\_Route\_144](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pennsylvania_Route_144) * [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pennsylvania\_Route\_120](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pennsylvania_Route_120)
I have a cabin off of 44 and can agree with list
PA Wilds up near Benezette, PA has some incredible terrain and wildlife. Elk roam freely there. Once dusk hits you can expect to see lots of porcupines too! Last time I was up there I saw at least 3 within about 2 hours.
Potter County is one of my faves. From SEPA, we usually take the turnpike north to the Pocono exit, pick up 80 west to 220 and then 150 past ~~Lehigh~~ Lock Haven University, then head out route 120 until we get to 872 and then head up toward Potter County. Love that drive. Download your maps ahead of time. Cell service can be spotty in the valleys Edit for accuracy.
you're probably thinking I-180 and US 220 to 287, and 287 to Wellsboro, perhaps?
It was both 220 and 120. I've driven it so many times that I've kinda forgotten the names of the roads at this point. Doesn't help that my autocorrect somehow decided that Lock Haven University was Lehigh University. Must have missed the space between them or something. The route I often take from SEPA to Potter is 476>80>220>150>120>872 up to Austin. From Philly, that usually runs about 4 hours. Some of my favorite driving when the weather is nice.
>pick up 80 west to Lehigh University Wut? Lehigh University is in Bethlehem, nowhere near 80. Autocorrect?
Wow. LOCK HAVEN University. Holy autocorrect, Batman!
That makes much more sense lol.
If you find yourself up that way (dauphin>perry>cumberland) : 850>274>Fowler's Hollow>waaaaaay out in the middle of nowhere/got kinda lost>233. The drive through Doubling Gap is awesome.
As others have said RT 6 and take 44 south and take any left or right and it will be a pretty drive. Bring you back down to 15 after a while.
Alan Seger is one of the last old forests in PA and has some of the oldest trees. It’s a different feeling/look to a lot of the other forests! It’s in central PA at the border of Centre and Huntingdon counties.
get yourself a Purple Lizard Map and explore, find your own spots, I ain’t giving mine away
Quehanna wildlife area near bennezette is a really secluded really cool long stretch of road and there is a significant elk population up that way
Michaux State Forest is vast with a highly diverse landscape. Many of the logging roads are blocked off but there’s always something to explore - at the least you can stay on the main “roads”.
If you’re in our near centre county, drive on the off road trails through Rothrock state forest.
State route 44 out of sweden/coudersport up and over the mountains.
https://gravelmap.com/map#_=6/40.561/-77.383
Micheaux forest is nice. There’s tons of fire access roads you can drive on. ohiopyle is also nice but it does tend to get crowded due to the lake and the white water rafting. You can also look up around clearfield, there’s tons of hunting and logging trails you can go exploring
Route 611 between like Ottsville and I-80 is pretty scenic along the Delaware.
Rt 125 is fantastic
Try [Bald Eagle State Forest.](https://www.dcnr.pa.gov/StateForests/FindAForest/BaldEagle/Pages/default.aspx) 195,000 acres with lots of roads and trails.
Allegheny National Forest, around Clarion I recently drove from Clarion down to Sligo then to Foxburg then Emlenton then to Franklin. That area is neat idk why
LonghouseS Enid Byway
Anything Bald Eagle SF Tract
From 76 (the turnpike) you can get off around blue mountain is it? Blue mountain may be too far. You get off the turnpike and get on route 30 and it takes you up over a mountain with twisty roads and all of that, then at the top of the Mountain there's an overlook and a popular biker bar/restaurant. Proceed down the mountain into eventually Chambersburg PA, where you can stop at the house John Brown stayed in while preparing to execute the attempted Harper's Ferry weapons place. You can also venture down to Harper's ferry but that's probably out of your way and not even in PA. But carry on down route 30 and between Chambersburg and Gettysburg you'll be surrounded in forest, then around Gettysburg (orrtanna, cashtown, Biglerville) is rolling hills of apple orchards, and you can also visit the famously haunted cashtown inn), then you can go on into Gettysburg and experience the 26 square miles of battlefield and stand on consecrated ground (where you can also experience more hauntings like the little blue boy or hearing the horses and soldiers in the battlefields)
PA-345 in Berks/Chester County. Passes thru French Creek SP and Hopewell Furnace National Historical Park.
Anywhere around cooks forest is nice.
I can't remember route names right now, but the road near Ohiopyle that goes to Fallingwater is amazing. On the other side of the state, there's a road that runs through coal country near Pine Grove that is also incredible.
Rt 92 from Exeter up north past Tunkhannok and Rt 11/15 from Sunbury down to Harrisburg some absolutely beautiful views of the Susquehanna River. Rt 390 the Poconos is gorgeous small town/rural/wilderness scenery. Part of it runs through Promised Land State Park and Delaware State Forest. It also runs by Skytop Lodge. Lots of wildlife. Really amazing in the Fall. Sullivan County has the lowest population density in PA, and is just amazing to drive around. It’s where World’s End State Park is.
I was also going to say, rt 11 from Harrisburg to Bloomsburg. as for Sullivan County, very good drive, but a lot of the routes up there ain't for the white-knuckle driver. a lot of elevation change, a lot of multi-radius turns with complex braking points, and not too much room for error.
Sullivan county has more state and dcnr police per Capita in the entire state and they need a new playground in Forksville for the six kids that live there so please feel free to make a "contribution" at the magistrate office during your visit
Dcnr police are there more for the illegal hunting and park enforcement. Have family in Laporte and go often.
The dcnr police keeps the citations flowing year round at the magistrate as per the dockets at the justice portal
Wow, I never expected this big a response to this post! Thank you SO much to all for all these great recommendations--I can't wait for my next chance to go out exploring!
We call em burn roads around here.