Mount Hamilton Road — San Jose to Lick Observatory

This fantastic road is in the top 5 in California; probably in spot two or three. We build roadtrips around hitting this one at the right time of day (weekday morning, or really early on a weekend to avoid traffic). You can do it as an out-and-back, or make it into a one-way and head down the backside (which is also good) to exit in Livermore or Patterson at I-5. I usually find myself redoing a section or two if I'm going all the way through because it's just such a fantastic road and deserves to be driven.

Speaking of the road, it is very tight, technical and full of hairpin turns but has one of the best road surfaces you'll find on a twisty road anywhere. Over the past 10 years they've resurfaced the road from the bridge by the CalFire Smith Creek Station all the way to the top. In several spots, they've widened it, which is a good thing, because this is a very narrow road. Our Mustang GT driver, Kallen, dislikes the road because he feels like his car doesn't fit in his lane (he also dislikes heights).

And that leads us to the potential drawbacks of this road which are the narrowness, lack of guardrails and extreme drop if you make a mistake. Traffic could be a third issue, because there are many cyclists and tourists on the weekend and work trucks during the week. It is never fun coming around a corner and finding a Ford F350 in your lane.

However, hit this at the right time and it's one of the best roads you'll ever drive. If you haven't driven it, make Mount Hamilton Road centerpiece of your next driving trip!