spirited driving opportunities near NJ/PA border

coma24

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It's been my dream to push the car through corners along winding country roads, but without being in any sort of residential or high traffic area. May I humbly present: Decktertown Turnpike (county rd 650) from the corner of Coleville Lusscroft Rd (519) to 206.

Reposition to the next fun spot, take 206 south to Tuttles Corner Dingmans Rd (560) to Bevans Rd to Walpack Rd (heading south).
Disclosure: I haven't driven this reposition leg yet....I actually took Old Mine Road, but would not recommend, the road isn't in a good shape. They're apparently re-surfacing it, but are likely starting from the section near rt 80.

Follow Walpack Rd south for many GLORIOUS miles. It will transition to Walpack Flatbrook Rd (NPS Rd 615). At the fork, turn left to stay on NP Rd 615, there is a sign saying "road closed 2 miles." It's a lot longer than 2 miles. It ends just before the intersectionof NPS Rd 615 and Old Mine Rd with a cement barricade. Take in the view of the river...make a 180 and high-tail it back outta there. There are no houses, no businesses and I didn't see a single other car (on the dead end road). It's as close to a private test track as I've ever seen. I drove in Smooth the whole way down, then Sprint on the way back. I thought my face was going to fall off a couple of times.

Keep the map screen up so you have an idea of what's coming up. There is ONE hair pin corner that will give you a problem if you're screaming through it. The rest, however, is a rare opportunity to push the car through some corners. The absolute speeds aren't ridiculous (compared to freeway driving) but the rolling hills, the corners and the trees surrounding the road make for spectacular visuals.

If you're NOT a performance oriented driver, it's still a very pretty drive and lets you get to know the car quite well.

Once you turn around, go back to the fork and make a left. NPS Rd 615 becomes Pompey Rd. Make the left at Old Mine Rd to head southwest, parallel to the river (I haven't driven this section yet, but will next time around). It'll loop around to the northeast (best to chart all this on Google Maps), then you make a right (Old Mine Rd) rather than continuing onto NPS Rd 615 (where you would eventually reach the closed section of road from the other side this time). Take Old Mine Rd into Milbrook Village, then take Old Mine Rd all the way to rt80. Other than the section that dead ends at the concrete block, there is a good chance there will be SOME sort of oncoming traffic, so be sure to have good lane discipline at all times...but there are some great straight-line sections with great visibility.

Picture a lot of this, with a variable amount of trees:
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Could be a nice rally drive :) ? I didn't check out the map, how long is the drive?
there's a slightly different version of the drive (starting from rt80 at old mine rd) very well documented here:

I would say go with that. The only 2 modifications would be:
- don't turn onto Main St from Walpack Flatbrook Rd, but continue to the fork onto the road that dead-ends if you want the 'closed road' experience that I described above.
- longer stint on Deckertown Turnpike at the end (heading east), skipping the sawmill rd portion to rt23, but that is up to you.

The guy in that video reports that whole loop taking around 2.5hrs. The portion I drove was around 60-75mins.

Definitely check out the full description in that YT video, there's a list of all the roads in order (he misses one or two at the end before Deckertown Turnpike, but otherwise it's accurate), as well as a link to a map. Actually here's that map link: https://caltopo.com/m/5Q251
 
Well, I know what I'm doing this weekend, thanks for the tip! :D
 
@knewman if you do the drive before me, please take note of the road conditions on Old Mine Rd and report back. That video was filmed 2 years ago, but there is a comment from 9 months ago saying that "it" had just been resurfaced. The problem is, the road is incredibly long, and I know with certainty that they didn't resurface the entire length, because the southbound segment that I drove (starting from Deckertown Turnpike) was sketchy, to the point where I was driving pretty slowly and darting from left to right to avoid the most severe bumps/potholes for fear of getting a flat since I'm running 21's. That's why the version of the drive I posted at the start of the thread bypasses a significant segment of Old Mine Rd.

I am VERY excited to try Sunrise Mountain Road (included in the video, but not in the route I drove and initially reported) since it's an actual 1 way. It changes things significantly if you're not going to have any oncoming traffic.

I'm going to explore the area, come up with some options, then potentially organize a driving event there, with options for sightseeing and spirited driving alike (not sure how that will work yet, but it'd be nice to cater to both, likely with the fast folks leaving first, with a bit of spacing, and some sort of agreement on procedures for overtaking, being aware of who is behind you, etc, then the casual crowd leaving immediately after). Of course, none of this matters if only 3 people come, but I'll come up with a system that scales in case we get more :) There are apparently some great places to check out the river, mountain views, a couple of restaurants, etc. My hope is that it could make for a really fun blend of meeting up and talking with fellow owners, combined with sightseeing and pushing the car for those who are so inclined.

Before any of that, though, I want to drive it for myself to better understand the road conditions for 2025 (vs older videos), and any other limiting factors.
 
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