Mohawk Trail · MA-2

The best-known motorcycle road in Massachusetts: MA-2 leaves Greenfield, passes by Shelburne Falls, follows the Deerfield River to Charlemont and climbs through Mohawk Trail State Forest to Whitcomb Summit before dropping into North Adams through the famous hairpin. It's 33 miles of river valley and then mountain climb, with overlooks at the top. Stop in Shelburne Falls or Charlemont. The hairpin is tight and downhill, so take it slow. In October, foliage traffic fills the road with slow cars.

The Mohawk Trail follows a route used for centuries as a footpath between the Connecticut and Hudson valleys, and in 1914 the state dedicated it as a scenic touring road for the new automobiles. Along the way are the landmarks of that era: the Hail to the Sunrise statue in Charlemont, the bronze Elk on the Trail at Whitcomb Summit, a 1923 memorial to the Elks who died in World War I, and the Hairpin Turn above North Adams, with its view down the Hoosic valley. The road caught on fast: on a single day in 1915, 700 cars drove it.

Shelburne Falls, a short detour off MA-2, is worth the stop: the Bridge of Flowers crosses the Deerfield River and the glacial potholes are right below the dam. In Charlemont the river fills with rafters in summer. There's fuel in Greenfield, Shelburne Falls, Charlemont and North Adams, and the road chains with Mt Greylock or the hilltowns loop for a full day.