Roads Worth Driving in Ohio

Ohio's best drives are Route 555 through the southeast hills, US 52 along the Ohio River, the Hocking Hills loop on Routes 374 and 664, Route 39 through Amish country, and US 6 along Lake Erie. The flat Ohio you know from I-70 is real, but it's maybe a third of the state, and the rest is worth a tank of gas.

People from elsewhere think Ohio is a place you drive through. People from Ohio know it's a place you drive around in, deliberately, usually with a stop for pie somewhere in the middle. This is a list for the second group, and for anyone willing to join it.

Route 555: the Triple Nickel

Start here. Route 555 runs south from near Zanesville down toward Little Hocking, through the Appalachian foothills of southeast Ohio, and it does not go in a straight line for more than a few seconds at a time. Motorcyclists come from out of state for it. The road climbs a ridge, drops into a hollow, crosses a creek, and does it again, over and over, past farmhouses and hayfields and the occasional dog that considers the road his.

There is almost nothing on it, which is the point. Fill your tank in Zanesville, check your brakes, and don't plan on cell service the whole way. It's the kind of road where you find out whether your passenger gets carsick. Go in October if you can. The hills go orange and the light comes in sideways through the trees.

US 52 along the Ohio River

US 52 hugs the Ohio River across the bottom of the state, roughly from the Cincinnati area east through Ripley, Portsmouth, and on toward Ironton. It's a different kind of drive: flat, steady, the river on one side and hills on the other, Kentucky sitting quietly across the water.

Stop in Ripley. It's a small river town with real history tied to the Underground Railroad, and it looks like it hasn't been in a hurry for a long time. Portsmouth has floodwall murals painted along the river that are worth walking, not just driving past. This is the road for a slow Sunday, windows down, radio on whatever comes in.

The Hocking Hills loop: Routes 374 and 664

Southeast of Columbus, the land drops into gorges and the roads follow. Route 374 and Route 664 wind through Hocking Hills, past the trailheads for Old Man's Cave, Cedar Falls, Ash Cave, and Conkles Hollow. The road itself twists through hemlock woods, and the sandstone cliffs show up right at the shoulder in places.

Practical notes, because this one gets crowded:

• Go on a weekday if you can. Fall weekends bring everyone in Columbus with a Subaru.
• Winter is underrated. The waterfalls freeze and the roads are quiet, just watch for ice in the shaded curves.
• Logan is the supply town. Get food and gas there before you head into the hills.
• The parking lots fill early on Saturdays. The road is still good even when the trails are full.

If you grew up doing school trips to Old Man's Cave, this loop is a memory with a steering wheel attached.

Route 39 through Holmes County

Route 39 runs through the heart of Ohio's Amish country, through Sugarcreek, Walnut Creek, Berlin, and Millersburg. The hills roll, the farms are tidy in a way that makes you feel bad about your garage, and you will get stuck behind a buggy. That's part of the deal. Give them room, pass wide, and slow down over hills where you can't see what's coming.

The eating is the other half of the drive. Cheese houses, bakeries, and family-style restaurants line the route, and the trail bologna and swiss around Trail is its own small pilgrimage. Come hungry, leave with a cooler. The back roads off 39, especially the county roads south toward Charm, are quieter and just as pretty if the main route gets thick with tour buses in the fall.

US 6 and the Lake Erie shore

Along the north coast, US 6 tracks the lake through towns like Vermilion, Huron, and Sandusky, with Marblehead and the Lake Erie islands hanging off the top. It's less about curves and more about the water, which changes color with the weather and behaves more like a small ocean than a lake.

Vermilion looks like a New England fishing village that got lost. Marblehead has the lighthouse everyone photographs. In summer you can catch the ferry from Port Clinton or Catawba to Put-in-Bay and leave the car behind entirely. In winter the lake freezes at the edges and the whole shore goes gray and quiet, which has its own appeal if you're built that way. Perch sandwiches are the regional food group. Order one anywhere that smells like they fry a lot of them.

Covered bridge country: Ashtabula County

Up in the far northeast corner, Ashtabula County has a collection of covered bridges scattered across its back roads, from small nineteenth-century spans to the long modern one over the Ashtabula River on State Road. The county puts out a driving map, and following it takes you down township roads through vineyards and creek valleys most Ohioans have never seen. The Grand River area nearby has become genuine wine country, so the covered bridge loop pairs well with a tasting room stop for whoever isn't driving.

Best in early fall, when the creeks are low and the maples are turning. It's about as far from the freeway version of Ohio as you can get without leaving the state.

What to bring, what to wear

None of these drives require anything special. A full tank, a paper map for the parts of the southeast where your phone gives up, and something for the weather, which in Ohio means all of it, sometimes in one afternoon. Layers matter more than gear.

If you want to signal where your loyalties sit while you're leaning on the hood at a Hocking Hills overlook, the Ohio State Pride Tee does that without saying anything. And if you're the type who yells the first half of the state's favorite call-and-response at strangers in parking lots, the O-H Tee will get you an I-O somewhere between Zanesville and the lake, guaranteed by nobody but reliably true. The rest of our Ohio collection covers the state's other running jokes and regional loyalties.

Common questions

What is the best driving road in Ohio?

Route 555, the Triple Nickel, is the usual answer and the right one. It runs through the southeast hills with constant curves and elevation changes, and it draws drivers and motorcyclists from well outside Ohio. Go with a full tank and low expectations for cell service.

When is the best time for a scenic drive in Ohio?

Early to mid October, when the hills in the southeast and the Amish country turn color. Weekdays beat weekends everywhere, especially in Hocking Hills. Winter drives along Lake Erie are quieter and starker, if that's your taste.

Is Ohio actually flat?

The western half mostly is, which is where the reputation comes from. The southeast third of the state is Appalachian foothills, with real ridges, hollows, and gorges. If you've only seen Ohio from I-70 or I-75, you haven't seen the part worth driving.