What are your favorite maps to find the good roads? I've found the DeLORME Washington (I'm in the Seattle area BTW) Atlas and Gazetteer http://www.delorme.com/atlasgaz/ to be too big to fit in a tank bag and often inaccurate (dirt road, paved road, fire road, gated road all the same) and have so much detail and are so busy to be difficult to deal with.

Thomas Guides http://www.thomas.com/ have better accuracy. At 10 miles/page however you are continually flipping and checking.

Anyone tried Destination Highways? http://washington.destinationhighways.com/

I'm not saying I'm opposed to just taking off and getting lost, but sometimes if just as much fun to check out a squiggly line to.... well heck, just to find it.

Your example (dirt road, fire road...etc) are all off highway routes. Is that what you're interested in?

You're in the Norton section, so I assume you're riding a Norton. Get in touch with the local NW Norton Owners if you haven't already. I grew up in Seattle, but didn't live there during my motorcycle days. You have great roads either into the Cascades or on the Olympic peninsula. Any of the passes such as Snoqualmie, White and Stevens have nice alpine scenery and winding routes.

David

>Your example (dirt road, fire road...etc) are all off highway
>routes. Is that what you're interested in?

No. Just the frustration of finding a road on a map that looks great and finding out it's a dirt/gated road, etc.

>Get in touch with the local NW Norton Owners if you
>haven't already.

Yep. Great group. Been a member for 3 or 4 years. Current ride is an '73 850 Roadster.

>You have great roads either into
>the Cascades or on the Olympic peninsula. Any of the passes
>such as Snoqualmie, White and Stevens have nice alpine scenery
>and winding routes.

Great places indeed!. I've been riding in the area since I got my license in 1970 (amazing how far one of the Honda Trail 90s could go). I'm wanting to further afield as many of the great roads around here that used to be pastural valleys now have housing developments on them, or at least a distressing increase in traffic.

I'm wanting to go to Oregon, norther Nevada, Idaho, etc and want a way to scope out some good destinations.

Carey

After leaving Seattle I moved to Moscow, Idaho. Lolo Pass up the Clearwater River from Lewiston is a nice road. I didn't do much road riding then as I was riding smaller Japanese machines up to 1970.

I didn't get into Nortons until 1973 and I was already in California. We have the roads and the weather here. Come on down! Highway 1 south to Big Sur or Monitor Pass looping to Sonora Pass at nearly 10,000 feet are particularly nice on a Commando.

David