Skip to Content

How to Get There Without Using the Interstate – RV Traveling the Beautiful Two Lanes

| Updated Apr 22, 2024

Charles Kuralt once echoed John Steinbeck by writing, “The interstate highway system is a wonderful thing. It makes it possible to go from coast to coast without seeing anything or meeting anybody. If the United States interests you, stay off the interstates.” RV traveling is more satisfying when you stick to the 2-lane roads as much as possible. Where Interstate highways offer a faster way to get between points, they lack the scenic beauty of America’s open roads.

There are Many Reasons To Avoid Interstates

Interstate highways are indispensable if you have vehicle problems or need major shopping areas, but the back roads and scenic byways offer quite a few advantages and are seldom far from the major roadways. Some of the best reasons to avoid the interstates include:

  • Traffic Congestion – Because they run alongside the Interstate system state roads and U.S. highways have a lot less traffic and tractor-trailers are a rare occurrence. If you are trying to avoid rush hour and large commercial vehicles, the 2-lane roads are ideal for RV drivers.
  • Lack of Scenic Stops – As mentioned, you can now travel the country without seeing much. Since the RV lifestyle is all about seeing the sights and experiencing localities, RV traveling on the 2-lanes is the way to get to historic markers as well as state and national parks.
  • Point-to-Point Travel – The interstates are all about getting you from one location to another in the shortest possible time. Some offer exits into small towns, but many times the villages and burgs that have made America great are secluded from the Interstates. U.S. highways tend to wind through these small towns, where rustic storefronts filled with mom and pop businesses are still the order of the day.

San Simeon and Big Sur

How to Get There Without Using the Interstate - RV Traveling the Beautiful Two Lanes 1
Classic 2-lane adventure.

Route 1 along western California widens frequently, but in between, it is a 2-lane road that follows the coastline. The RV parks through Big Sur and San Simeon fill with whale watchers between October and April. You will also find historic sites like Hearst Castle and experience natural features like the Redwood forests. North America’s only elephant seal population is only found along Route 1 in San Simeon, where RV resorts are often the only inhabited areas. Fill your tanks before San Simeon because prices at the coastal resorts are astronomical.

California 89 and 99

How to Get There Without Using the Interstate - RV Traveling the Beautiful Two Lanes 2
You could drive forever.

Cutting inland above Monterey Bay allows the RV traveler to avoid San Francisco’s heavy traffic. California’s connecting state roads, 89 and 99, widen briefly in places like Redding and Red Bluff but narrow down to 2-lanes as they take you through the northern part of the state. There are beautiful state parks, and Burney, California offers a casino, RV parks, and majestic Burney Falls. The tiny town of Mount Shasta sits a short distance off I-5, but State Road 99 is the town’s Main Street. You will find ample sites for recreational vehicles, world-class skiing, marvel at the backdrop of a towering dormant volcano, and drink from the headwaters of the fabled Sacramento River in the town’s City Park.

Oregon’s Valleys and Badlands

How to Get There Without Using the Interstate - RV Traveling the Beautiful Two Lanes 3
Onward to the Oregon Badlands.

From Newport, Oregon to Boise, Idaho, U.S. 20 is a mostly 2-lane road every RV driver will love. The views are spectacular, and communities like Sisters and Sweet Home are little more than wide spots on the 2-lane road with RV parks, skiing, and recreational opportunities that are one-of-a-kind. Outside of Bend, Oregon, you will cross the Oregon Badlands, a National Park renowned for its high desert ecosystem.

Like most small roads, the 2 lanes give way to larger highways as they pass through larger towns, but those are few and far between, and even the biggest ones take only a few minutes to pass through. U.S. 20 traverses almost every type of terrain, from lowlands in the West to forested mountains, high desert, and plains as you go eastward.

Florida A1A

How to Get There Without Using the Interstate - RV Traveling the Beautiful Two Lanes 4
Worth the time it takes.

Florida’s A1A is primarily a 2-lane open road following the entire eastern coastline of the state, avoiding both I-95 and U.S.1. For beach lovers, the First Coast Highway should not be missed because it goes through Fernandina Beach, the famous surfing town of Cocoa Beach, and many others. Scenic stops along the way include the nation’s oldest city, St. Augustine, closeup rocket launches at Cape Canaveral, and the coral reef of Key Biscayne. From Spanish history to world-renowned sport fishing, A1A is a 2-lane road the RV driver will love. Our Content Director used to travel A1A from Juno Beach, FL all the way to Ft. Lauderdale – just for relaxation.

Crossing Texas

How to Get There Without Using the Interstate - RV Traveling the Beautiful Two Lanes 5
Go around Houston.

You can rush across Texas on I-10, but that will eliminate many of the best views and locations the state has to offer. A better idea is to take the 2-lane roads across Texas, experiencing winding hills, breathtaking vistas, exotic animal ranches, and quaint communities like Junction, the halfway point between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Texas 105 allows the RV driver to bypass Houston and Austin and connects to other scenic roads. U.S. highways 190 and 290 cross the Texas Hill Country on 2-lanes.

Eventually, westbound RV travel will take you back to I-10, but a majority of western Texas has 2-lane service roads and ranch roads that parallel the interstate and have very little traffic on even the busiest days.

The King’s Road Through Maine

How to Get There Without Using the Interstate - RV Traveling the Beautiful Two Lanes 6
West Quoddy Head, Maine

U.S. 1, known as the King’s Road, is a major thoroughfare through the southern states but transforms into a scenic country road as it follows the Atlantic coast through northern Maine. There are plenty of RV parks along the way, and exceptional opportunities to discover everything Maine has to offer. Along the open road, you’ll find beaver dams, taste the state’s famous lobster rolls, stroll rock-strewn beaches, and much more.

The road is wider and more congested in cities such as Saco, but the beauty of locations like Machias makes it worth taking the scenic route. If you want to visit West Quoddy Head, Maine, the easternmost point in the U.S., the King’s Road is the only way to go, and the track eastward from it is little more than a country road.

Which ones have you traveled?

Let us know in the comments or in our social media posts! Which ones do we need to add to this list?

Ready to Plan an RV Trip? Here's the tool we use:

How to Get There Without Using the Interstate - RV Traveling the Beautiful Two Lanes 7
You can learn more about this tool at https://rvlifestyle.com/rvtripwizard

Planning an RV Trip has never been easier than with RV TripWizard. It is a comprehensive tool that Jennifer and I use whenever we are planning a trip. It works seamlessly with all our devices and gives us access to the info we need on where to stop, what camping is nearby and what we should do in an area.

Best of all, you can try it for free to see how it will fit into your trip planning process.

Mike Wendland

Published on 2024-04-22

Mike Wendland is a multiple Emmy-award-winning Journalist, Podcaster, YouTuber, and Blogger, who has traveled with his wife, Jennifer, all over North America in an RV, sharing adventures and reviewing RV, Camping, Outdoor, Travel and Tech Gear for the past 12 years. They are leading industry experts in RV living and have written 18 travel books.

20 Responses to “How to Get There Without Using the Interstate – RV Traveling the Beautiful Two Lanes”

April 23, 2024at4:41 pm, Suzanne Wise said:

Highway 2 through the sandhills of Nebraska and Highway 20 in Nebraska that goes along the northern border of the state.

Reply

April 26, 2024at3:12 pm, Team RV Lifestyle said:

thank you for adding to the list! Team RV Lifestyle

Reply

April 29, 2024at8:16 am, dianne judy said:

YES I take HWY 2 all the time when going west beautiful & peaceful

Reply

April 23, 2024at3:06 pm, Matthew Ross said:

US 6 for 3205 miles from Provincetown MA to Bishop CA

Reply

April 23, 2024at10:51 am, Susan Johnston said:

Okay, basic info but no details? How about Big Rig Friendly info? Or how to set up my GPS to look for those smaller “Blue Highways”?

Reply

April 23, 2024at8:27 am, Dan Basko said:

Hiway 83 from South Texas all the way north to the Canadian border. Lots of stops and old towns and very little traffic. Road is well maintained.

Reply

April 23, 2024at4:39 pm, Team RV Lifestyle said:

Thank you for sharing, Dan! Team RV Lifestyle

Reply

April 23, 2024at7:03 am, Annette L said:

We love getting off the interstate using safe RV worthy roads. “How to Get There Without Using the Interstate – RV Traveling the Beautiful Two Lanes” doesn’t give info for people with big rigs:/

Reply

June 02, 2022at11:03 pm, Our 13 Best RV Road Food Stops – so far! said:

[…] least that’s our feeling. Sometimes, we saw a highway sign on a two-lane somewhere. Maybe it was a bunch of cars and RVs parked in the lot outside that signaled “Great Road Food […]

Reply

May 26, 2022at5:18 pm, Our 13 Best RV Road Food Stops For 2022 | RV Lifestyle said:

[…] least that’s our feeling. Sometimes, we saw a highway sign on a two-lane somewhere. Maybe it was a bunch of cars and RVs parked in the lot outside that signaled “Great Road Food […]

Reply

July 15, 2021at10:25 am, Sls said:

And US 11 north/south which starts in eastern New Orleans and runs northward to the Canadian border between NY and Quebec (it even extends into Quebec as route 223)…rich in historical locations especially through the Shenandoah Valley; Civil War battlefields, etc.

Reply

July 15, 2021at10:15 am, Sls said:

Old U.S. 40 traveling east/west through Indiana, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. US highways 41 and 27 north and south Florida to Michigan–great roads.

Reply

July 09, 2021at8:31 am, M2bh said:

And don’t forget, doing so may also help to costly toll roads!

Reply

July 09, 2021at8:33 am, M2bh said:

And don’t forget, doing so may also help to *avoid* costly toll roads!

Reply

July 05, 2021at3:16 pm, Daryl Gerke said:

For the last 20 years, we have trekked between AZ (where we live) and MN (where there are grandkids.) We often take the back roads, and two of our favorites were the Sante Fe Trail and the Mormon Trail. Still on the bucket list is the full Oregon Trail, but we have done parts. All three have detailed maps from the National Park Service — great fun and highly recommended. Many small RV parks along the way.

Reply

June 15, 2021at10:07 pm, Ralph said:

Travel US Hwy 54, start in Missouri go thru Kansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, back into Texas by El Paso. Much of it is 2 lane, many small towns with interesting sights to see. Does have a fair amount of semi-truck traffic which is the only drawback.

Reply

June 15, 2021at1:48 pm, Joanne Talarico said:

Right now we are traveling on highway 30 thru Nebraska instead of I80. We’re parallel to the railway with views of farmland, cattle, and small towns.

Reply

June 15, 2021at10:55 am, Eileen Herberger said:

TECHNICAL CORRECTION FOR INFORMATION POSTED ABOUT MAINE: West Quoddy Maine is not the easternmost point in the US. Although it is for the contiguous United States. The Aleutian Islands cross the 180 degree meridian into the Eastern Hemisphere. They are the easternmost part of the United States. Semisopochnoi Island in Alaska with gps coordinates 51°57′42″N 179°46′23″E – easternmost point in all U.S. territory by longitude .Alaska has both the easternmost and westernmost points in the United States?
I love the articles but as a Trivia buff I had to send this reply.

Reply

December 25, 2021at7:00 pm, Karen Trekell said:

Great point. I have been to West and East Quoddy and do remember something about the contiguous US. Still a milestone and it is absolutely gorgeous there.
I went tent camping there in September and remember being the only tent with lots of RVs. We froze our tushy off.

Reply

June 14, 2021at4:21 pm, Beth Gorton said:

Route 100, up through central Vermont. US 20 goes coast to coast, to Boston – the section through central NY state is gorgeous, through rolling farmland. I rarely drive interstates now that I’m retired – it’s all about the journey, after all!

Reply

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Back to top
23 Shares
Share
Tweet
Share
Pin23
Email