Last month, I embarked on one of my longest single road trips when I drove the Autopian‘s Nissan Murano CrossCabriolet 4,050 miles across America. About half of that mileage happened all in Texas, where I found myself hitting up some of the state’s most popular and most obscure spots. But what surprised me most was that, almost out of nowhere, I found myself driving on some of the best roads I’ve driven in America. Here’s how you can find them, too.
Saying that Texas is a big state would be a gross understatement. Texas is so huge that you could drive across America from the bottom of the state, and a good half of your drive would just be Texas. The state is so massive that it could easily take more than one day of driving just to leave the state.
Much of the state’s roads are mind-numbingly boring, even at 80 mph. I’m no stranger to driving in Texas, and most of the time, I feel like the state’s roads have about as much thrill as the average road in Illinois. The roads are just long, straight, and flat forever. A lot of the time, there isn’t even much to gander at aside from small towns in the middle of nowhere or oil wells.
That changed last month when I descended into the state for the Lone Star/No Start Lemons Rally, a crazy weekend-long, nearly statewide scavenger hunt with cars. Not only was this trip the longest time I’ve ever spent in Texas at once, but it was also the most driving I’ve probably done in a single state outside of Illinois. Apparently, I drove 2,070 miles in Texas over the course of five and a half days.
The Texas Drive Started Flat…
Griffin and I entered the top of Texas on Wednesday night through a little town called Farwell. We then continued southeast, eventually reaching our overnight halt in Lubbock. You might remember my story about the weird, sort of run-down hotel that Griffin and I stayed in that night. I still think fondly of that hotel.
Anyway, the next morning, we beat it from Lubbock to San Marcos. Most of this drive was nothing to write home about. It felt like driving in the Midwest, only there were ranches on both sides of the road rather than endless cornfields. It was just northwest of San Marcos that things suddenly got awesome.
…Then Suddenly Got Twisty
Apparently, we entered an area known as the Texas Hill Country. Here’s what Texas Parks & Wildlife says about the region:
The Texas Hill Country is located in Central Texas. The land is rolling to hilly grassland. It sits on the Edwards Plateau. A plateau is high, flat land. Over many millions of years, this plateau has been eroded into a hilly terrain. There are many springs and some steep canyons in this area.
There are also hidden, underground lakes in the Edwards Aquifer. An aquifer is an underground layer of rock or sand that captures and holds water. The underlying limestone rock of the Edwards Aquifer has many holes and caves with water running through it. Water comes to the surface as springs through cracks in the limestone. This aquifer provides drinking water for 1.5 million people, as well as for farming and wildlife habitat. People who like to explore caves enjoy the caves of the Hill Country. Central Texas was once a land of many springs. Human use and development has stopped the flow of many springs. One spring that still flows is at the bottom of a lake! The San Marcos Springs are found at Texas State University’s Aquarena Springs. People ride glass-bottom boats to see them. It is a favorite spot for divers who come to see water bubbling out of the ground!
In the central part of this region, there are large granite domes or uplifted areas. The most famous one is Enchanted Rock near Fredericksburg. This was considered a sacred (holy) place for the Native Americans that lived here long ago. This central area not only has unique rock formations, such as Enchanted Rock, but it also has unique minerals.
All of that is awesome, and I highly recommend exploring it. But what blew my mind was the roads. All of these springs, rocks, habitats, and forests have led to a road system with a whole lot of bends, dips, hops, and cambered turns.
This wasn’t something where you could just set your cruise control and forget it. No, just maintaining the speed limit on these roads required both hands on the wheel, real focus, and no automation. We got deep into Hill Country in the evening, so our cameras didn’t catch anything worthwhile. But we did notice that the curves were so sharp, numerous, and often blind that locals would drive 20 mph under the limit, maybe for fear of disappearing off pavement and into the night.
But little did I know that Hill Country was really only the appetizer.
The next day, we started the first round of the Lemons Rally. The checkpoints had us driving back through Hill Country to the Old Tunnel State Park in Fredericksburg. Apparently, this park does have a railroad tunnel in it, but the Lemons checkpoint was right at the top.
Great Views, Better Barbecue
Still, the view was incredible. If you had told me that this shot was taken in Texas, I probably wouldn’t have believed you:
Our day was full of checkpoints, and one of them had us driving through Leakey, Texas. On the way to Leakey, we drove down Ranch Road 336. When combined with Ranch Road 335 and Ranch Road 337, these roads make up what is known as the Texas Twisted Sisters. Apparently, this road is iconic among motorcyclists, but honestly, it’s awesome in a jacked-up drop-top crossover, too!
If you run all of the roads, you will drive a loop that’s roughly 105 miles long. We did not do the whole loop, but what we did drive was shockingly awesome. Admittedly, I was too busy driving to get shots.
What was amazing was that it wasn’t total balls-to-the-wall driving, either. Sometimes, the road opened up to cute little small towns before returning to the twisties.
It was in one of these areas where we found a hole-in-the-wall barbecue joint on the side of the road in Leakey. Actually, calling the Hog Pen a hole-in-the-wall doesn’t do it justice. The restaurant is basically three metal walls on a plot of land. That’s right, it’s not even enclosed, and it’s barely even protected from the weather. The bathroom is a glorified outhouse on the property. It’s even run by your stereotypical “ma and pop,” two sweet older folks just cookin’ up some good eats.
If the aesthetic wasn’t cool enough, the food was better. The Hog Pen had what was legitimately the best barbecue I’ve ever eaten. The food was so good that I bought the restaurant’s merch, and I never buy restaurant merch! I’m told things get pretty wild in the summer, too, as the restaurant’s name is not just a reference to good pork, but the fact that it’s a hangout for huge motorcycle groups.
Some Of The Most Incredible Roads
After getting a good fill of BBQ, we set out for more of the Lemons Rally scavenger hunt.
Immediately leaving Leakey found us hitting some more epic roads, and this time I made sure to stage my phone camera. According to the GPS data attached to these photos, they were on Ranch Road 337.
These were stunning from multiple angles. The turns were sweeping, there were cliffs on the edge of the road, and we were high enough up to get a picturesque view of the hilly, green area. I remarked to Griffin that, to me, this felt like the Texas version of the iconic Angeles Crest out in California.
I spent much of the time just amazed, thinking, “Just how is this Texas?” I’ve driven in Texas several times over the years, and I hadn’t ever seen anything like this. Everything, from the steep climbs and long downgrades to forests and mist, felt more like what I’ve experienced out east or maybe in the Pacific Northwest. I just assumed — perhaps foolishly — that Texas was nothing but ranches, cowboys, and flatlands.
Being in this business has given me the privilege of trying out some of America’s best highways, from the Pacific Coast Highway to even a brief stint down the Blue Ridge Parkway. I think the Texas Twisted Sisters rank pretty high, and the wild part is that they’re comparatively pretty obscure. Basically, every car person has at least heard of roads like the Tail of the Dragon and the PCH. How many have heard of these roads in Texas?
Weirdly, something else that I liked about the Twisted Sisters was that Texas held no punches about safety.
Before and after extremely twisty sections are signs that state how many motorcyclists have died on the road since a certain point in time. Sure, the numbers aren’t that high. But remember, this isn’t like the PCH or Angeles Crest, where there are enough cars and motorcycles to create small traffic jams. We barely saw anyone else on the Twisted Sisters despite it being a weekend. So, the signs are grim, but I think they’re necessary. They’re a reminder to stop yourself from doing something you cannot recover from.
Here’s more information about the Twisted Sisters from motorcycle peer-to-peer rental site Riders Share:
Ranch Road 337
Ranch Road 337 takes you southwest from Leakey for about 21 miles toward Camp Wood. The corners here have better sight lines than what’s coming later, so you can see your exits and build confidence with the road surface before things get more demanding. The elevation changes enough to keep it interesting but the grades are manageable, and there’s usually decent pavement throughout this stretch.
Ranch Road 335
Ranch Road 335 runs about 29 miles and this is the section that’ll test your skills. The turns come at you faster with less space between them, and plenty of corners tighten up mid-turn instead of opening like you’d expect. The road gets narrow with drop-offs on the sides in sections, so there’s nowhere to go if you get in too hot. You’ll spend more time in second and third gear here than anywhere else on the loop.
Ranch Road 336
Ranch Road 336 covers about 14 miles before you hit US-83 back to Leakey. The turns space out more compared to 335 and the road widens back up, plus the pavement condition tends to be better through this section. You’ll ride through some canyon scenery along here with the elevation dropping down and climbing back up as you head north. NOTE: A lot of riders like to continue on Ranch Road 337 until they reach Medina, TX. We definitely recommend this if you don’t want the ride to end, but keep in mind you’ll be adding an extra 37 miles to your trip.
Here’s a neat video from a motorcycle perspective:
Apparently, the Texas Twisted Sisters aren’t even the only great drives out there. If you ask some enthusiasts, other high marks include the Davis Mountains scenic drive, the Ross Maxwell scenic drive, Farm to Market Road 170, and some other places that I didn’t get the chance to drive.
Texas Is Beautiful
I left my drive of the Texas Twisted Sisters, eager to find more driving roads. The rest of our trip didn’t really have thrilling drives. Instead, it was about learning some great Texas and national history. We also got to go to places most people drive by without a single thought, and read historical markers that nobody ever pays attention to. We also found ourselves driving along the coast, parking in front of an aircraft carrier, and seeing people drive their cars on a beach
I even loved witnessing the heartbeat of Laredo, where I saw beautiful murals, kind cats, and a unique nightlife.
I think the biggest lesson I learned after this drive was to give places like Texas a chance. Without getting too many details, there are some huge, depressing, legal, and expensive reasons why someone like me should never set foot in Texas, let alone drive 2,070 miles in it. This road trip didn’t change that. But what it did change was my outlook. The lands, the roads, and so many of the people I met in Texas were wonderful, thrilling, and heartwarming.
It was also a great reminder to leave the interstate and go exploring. Texas is famous for its frontage roads and endless highway-side shopping. If you never leave the interstate, you may think that Texas is nothing but endless commerce. But take a detour and ignore the GPS, and I think you’ll be amazed. I’m willing to bet most states are like this, even punching bags like Nebraska. Turn off that GPS, turn off the highway, and see where the roads leave you.
But if you’re ever in Texas for long enough, be sure not to miss Hill Country and at least try out the Twisted Sisters. Just take it easy. Don’t be the person to add a fatality to the grim signs on these routes. Trust me, you’ll have a blast even at a safe speed!
Next time look up “Willow City Loop” or “Devil’s Backbone“, which I think you may have run through part of in your travels. You missed out on Rio Frio, and maybe driving pass the location of an insanely cool 18 music festival.
If you and Griffin went through Farwell, that means you drove right through where I live and under the overpass to the Air Force base where I work.
My girlfriend and I moved from Florida to New Mexico in 2024. We tried to avoid big cities so that meant 2 lane state highways through Texas. The last leg, Witchita Falls to here was my favorite. We took Highway 287 to Highway 183/287 then to Highway 86. The hill country was amazing. There was no traffic and the scenery was pretty awesome. We went through Turkey, TX and it was like stepping back in time 80 years.
I had been to Texas a few times but never strayed off the interstates. There is so much more to see once you get off the super slab.
We took 2-lane Hwy 83 north from I-10. I was amazed that it was most 40’ or so wide and posted at 70mph. Interns stop sign in Menard, TX, and was disappointed that there was no Menards store there. 😉
Please tell the top image is a reference to the Bit.Trip games — one my best friend’s coolest creations!
(You could probably complete Runner 2: Future Legend Of Rhythm Alien in the time it takes to drive across Texas)
Fun fact, FM 2769 in Austin has more turns than the tail of the dragon IIRC, something like 130?. I rode that area around the Colorado River every Saturday or Sunday morning for years. You can get your knee down in a couple places around there (not that I would), Lime Creek road will let you get well into triple digits (not that I would), and there a neat down hill run going by the World of Warcraft guy’s house that was fun to do in neutral (that I would do). Most parts of 2769 I did in 2nd and 3rd gear and just rolled on and off the throttle, depending on conditions, and traffic. Actually shifting was just too tiring. One corner I could never master was a tight off camber left with a big elevation drop/rise at the apex.
My grandparents wintered in the Texas Hill Country for a number of years so I knew exactly what you were talking about before I even clicked on the article. Might have to take the fun car back to the area some time.
“Texas is so huge that you could drive across America from the bottom of the
state, country and a good half of your drive would just be Texas.”Fixed it for you. 🙂
Y’all come back now ya hear!
My wife and I drove through Leakey on the way to Garner State Park last month. The rhythm of the road joints through the town forced me to pull over to make sure there wasn’t something wrong with our vehicle. Nope, no problem, just a road engineer that decided years ago to engage in some annoying performance art.
Agreed, the roads through that area are amazing. Come back anytime, and remember that Austin is the progressive/cool people part of the state!
A honda Ruckus! love those things, I had one as my commuter for a few years before I got my motorcycle.
I’m glad you got to enjoy some good things the state has to offer
Texas 336 and 337 are burned in my memory as a child. My grandmother lived out there and during the summers from 1957 to 1960 my mother would drive me from Austin to Camp Wood down these roads to spend the hot months with her. Yes, my mother… driving these winding roads…in her 1957 DeSoto. Her salmon over white DeSoto Fireflite
I remember her downshifting that Chrysler transmission at the beginning and at the end of the large hill on 337, just so there would be enough power going up and enough control going back down.
Those roads…in that car…in that era…are memories that cannot be forgotten.
Austin hill country is great. Dallas area is terrible. Just drove there again on I-20 for the holidays and oh my god the amount of roadside litter was more than I saw anywhere else. What happened to “Don’t mess with Texas”? There are other reasons I hate the place, but that stood out this time.
I spent nearly 8 years dating and then married to a woman in SE TX and I am only going back for funerals of friends I made there. The weather from May to October is awful. Hot, incredibly humid. 26 inches of rain in one day not long after I moved there. Golf ball sized hail a different summer that destroyed our roof, but not our cars because they were inside the garage, the roof of which got destroyed. And was repaired by Latinos. Almost certainly by Latinos who are scared to be here anymore.
They physically work harder than almost any Caucasians are willing to in this country.
Like a lot of states, it has its pluses and minuses. For me, I’m happy to be back in the PNW. I miss my ex, but I would rather be here than down there in my misery.
The hill country is pretty cool. I didn’t take any of the roads you highlighted. I didn’t even know they existed. I-10 at night is pretty scary, seeing all the deer along the roadside. And the dead ones on the roadway and shoulder.
And Mr. Beranek is not wrong about the hubris or the Cowboys. Living in Beaumont, 80 miles E of Houston and ~30 miles from LA, I was amazed at how the fan base was mostly about the Cowboys. Open carry of AR-15s at H-E-B grocery stores is not something I miss. But I do miss H-E-B. Great produce. Great meat.
I grew up just south of Beaumont in Groves and Port Arthur and can understand the misery you associate with that area. We moved to Houston in the late 90s and the reasons to visit the Triangle are less and less every year. We have the same oppressive summer weather in Houston but the building and ppl feel less oppressive somehow.
The Neches River Wheelhouse is not a bad place to spend an afternoon. I also liked J Wilson’s and JW’s Patio in Beaumont. The Triangle certainly got better than the first time I visited on business in oh, 2001 or so. Lots of great places to eat in Houston, but man! The traffic around there. All these wanna be NASCAR drivers in F-150s. I get the appeal of Hill Country.
I see a lot of my friends from back home mentioning the Wheelhouse on FB but I’ve never been. I’ve been back to see my friends play in clubs on Crockett street but otherwise I haven’t been anywhere in Beaumont other than Parkdale and my mom’s old condo but she moved to Louisiana a few years back. We went to visit her over Christmas and as we drove through Beaumont we were saying we’ll probably never exit in that town again. Weird.
We were on our way across TX in the hill country, headed to LBJs ranch. We came to a crossroads and saw a couple of big rigs and a lot of dusty pickups parked up at Pete’s diner. It looked slightly disreputable, so of course we stopped for lunch. The pick ic tables were covered with butcher paper and a roll of paper towels were at the end of each table.
The food was reasonably priced, served cafeteria style and was among the best BBQ pork we had since The Smokey Pig in Bowling Green, KY.
Mercedes, great write up!
I did a similar drive with my 2nd-gen Probe GT (a fine driving car regardless of which end is driven) back in ’96. I took off from my home in Pearland and kept going to Alamogordo via US 90 for most of trip. Leakey was definitely the highlight of the drive.
Beautiful country!
Highway 90 beats the pants off of Interstate 10.
I grew up hating Texas, because of the hubris, the Cowboys, and their damn cheerleaders. When you’re from Chicago, things don’t look “bigger” in Texas. I would imagine that a lot of New Yorkers feel the same way.
Then when I discovered my biological heritage at 46, it turns out my grandfather was 100% Texan, from a long line of Texans going all the way back to the Republic.
So one of these days, I’ll have to drive down and see some of the places where they lived, and learn more about their particular part of Texas, which is very different from the parts of Texas I’ve been to.
But Mercedes, I completely agree about those misgivings you have. Texas’ problems are mostly self-created.
It is wonderful to read such a celebration of the American road trip. My job in semi-retirement frequently involved driving between South Carolina and Wisconsin. (yes, you can go by way of the Tail – I took my bike across it on a trailer, meaning to go over and back riding, but it was April and it snowed. The trailer was exciting enough.)
Anyway, I was always saddened by how many young people thought me crazy for risking the supposed terrors of a road trip. I’ve been on American roads most of my life, first as a trucker then in a variety of cars, and when I was young we couldn’t wait to get our license and go. Now all I hear from too many young people is a parade of horribles – “what if this, what if that”. Usually, the “what ifs” are an opportunity to meet new people – I have been many times surprised at the help offered me on the road.
As to the “huge, depressing, legal, and expensive reasons”, I think most of them are invented by the drooling political haters of the Left and Right in an effort to divide us. I live in rural South Carolina and I found this place because a gay friend told me about it. He used to come through here in the 60’s with his boyfriend and New York plates – now they faced some “depressing, legal, and expensive reasons”. But they went anyway. He told me that it had changed here, and he was right. The South learned its lesson and tries not to hate.
We had no phones, no GPS, no airbags. But we had faith in ourselves. I am sad that our young people seem to have lost that. Don’t let the haters win – get out there and go!
“Just how is this Texas?”
I recall driving through hill country myself thinking it looked an awful lot like the south of France. There was even a castle!
So much of Texas is flat with boring roads, but tucked off in certain corners are some sweet rides/drives. And for the most part, the roads are good to excellent (always thought TX had some of the best state roads). Nothing clears my mind like taking a road I have to pay attention to.
It makes my heart happy to hear about my Hill Country home finally getting the awesome driving road recognition it deserves.
If you’re ever in the north central part of the state going east to west or the other way it’s worth taking Highway 82 instead of the interstate, has a lot of neat towns and stops like Nocona, TX, where the last North American baseball glove factory is still running. They do tours and sell wallets made off the off-cuts and are pretty cool!
“I saw miles and miles of Texas….”
Asleep at the Wheel (and they weren’t kidding)
I can’t not think of HEB when I hear that song.
Isn’t Asleep at the wheel the governor of Texas?
As I read Mike F’s comment, I thought, Yeah, I’ve danced to that song by Asleep at the Wheel in Austin. <smile>
Like others here, I dearly miss HEB since I moved away from various Texas cities. Always, always shop there when I return once or twice a year. Yes, MaximillianMeen, HEB and “Miles and Miles of Texas” do go together.
Beto O’Kitty, you had me LOL’ing – for real – when I read your comment! That name or “Governor Hot Wheels”.
The sun has riz and the sun has set, and here I is in Texas yet.
The interstates across Texas are boring. They’re intentionally designed to be a way to get all the way across the country without seeing a damn thing. That’s why the first rule of mollusk road tripping is to get off of them and onto the the Farm to Market and Ranch Roads, the state highways, and even a fair number of the US highways. The second rule is when in West Texas and eastern New Mexico remember to adjust your range of vision out to the far, far distance so that you can pick up the subtle changes in the land.
Especially driving I-10 in West Texas at night. There’s this white line you can look at and after that gets boring there’s a yellow one you can watch for a while.
Don’t forget counting down how long it takes to get to the next mile marker.
Then doing the math to calculate the percentage your odometer is off from the mile markers “for fun”.
Having lived in many different states across the country I can attest to the existence of many fun driving roads everywhere.
Hill Country has some pretty incredible roads- and some decent wheeling too. Too bad ya’ll didn’t have time to take the Murano to Hidden Falls.
Outside of that area, the roads are boring.
Have to disagree there. East Texas has some pretty scenic roads, too. Especially around Rusk and Palestine. Just not as curvy as the Hill Country.
I remember FM 138 between Garrison and Center being pretty fun.
Must not have gotten far north enough, lived in Houston 12 years.
You don’t have to go too far behind the Pine Curtain – as long as you stay east of 45 things start being less horizontal around Huntsville or Livingston.
I drive from Houston to Indiana and back a couple times a year. Prior to this year, with 69/59 mostly being done and being the GPS’s preferred route, I used to take a lot of back roads to the north/northeast, winding through hilly forests. I always looked forward to that on the drive back especially. I’d get a couple hours of driving joy before hitting 45 for the last hour or so back.
In ’87-’89 I would take my little 1800E from Huntsville down to East Houston (think San Jacinto Monument) almost every weekend (taking laundry home from college). I found all the best twisty roads between those two places. East Texas is indeed gorgeous in parts.
We live in Kerrville. Glad you enjoyed my old motorcycle roads!