route planning help, CO to MD

So in August I'm planning to take a 3 weekish road trip on the bike. Finding the way out hasn't been a problem, After getting the hell out of the Baltimore/DC metro area I'm planning to ride down the Blue Ridge Parkway to just past Roanoke, cutting west to Jellico, TN where I'll pick up the TransAmerica Trail (a nearly all dirt route from TN to Oregon) and head west. Tentatively I'm hoping to make it to Salida, Co before turning around to make it back to Maryland before classes start for the fall on August 31st.

Problem is, I can't figure out an interesting way to get home. I'll have about a week, possibly plus a day or two, to make the trip and I want to avoid divided highways as much as possible. I'd also like to avoid "arrow straight for 100 miles" type roads, but I'm not sure how possible that will be in say Kansas or in any other of the flyover states.

Anyone got any suggestions? I've thought about simply following US 50 all the way back, and/or possibly popping up to Indiana to finish riding the National Road the wrong way when I get in the region. I've also thought about just clicking "Go Home" on the garmin after setting it to avoid major roads.

Just follow your nose as you go. No need for an excruciatingly planned out return trip.

If you see an interesting looking road going roughly your way, turn down it and ride.

You could build a big ramp at the CO/KS border and try to "fly over" KS.

Anyway, KS has some nice roads, but they are hidden and won't take you where you want to go. US36 is better than I-70, but still not spectacular. US-24 is an option, also.

I have not driven US50 through KS. It doesn't look too exciting. Be sure to use "old 50" when US50 runs with I-35.

The Flint Hills region of KS is beautiful, and actually hilly. There are some fun roads around Manhattan, Council Grove, Alma, Wamego.

MO has some great roads off of 50 in the central/eastern parts of the state, at least between 50 and the Missouri river.

The "avoid highways" setting on your Garmin actually means "avoid controlled access highways." It will do just what you want.

Enjoy the trip.

-Brian

Kansas is definitely thin on interesting roads, but MO has some great ones.

We have awesome barbecue, though.

How about this:

Take folks like myself and others who would offer you a place to stay overnight and a beer or several, map them out and connect the dots in roughly one-day intervals ;).

Southern MO has some nice hilly stuff with the Ozarks. Find highways that run through national forests and state parks. Just watch out for the deer.

I'm in Columbia, MO. Halfway between KC and STL.

Clem

I envy you. Have a good time!

Kansas roads blow. Avoid it like the plague. Ditto Oklahoma and North Texas unless you like brown and gray dirt as far as you can see.

How about up around the Dakota badlands? I've heard that's really interesting.

I would suggest avoiding US 24 most of what I've driven on it is fairly boring. US 50 on the other hand as has been suggested is kinda nice especially through Missouri and southern Indiana. Just skip Illinois if you can. It's better than northern Indiana, but not much. If you are driving through Indiana my suggestion for interesting roads is stay south of I-74. The majority of the roads in the north half of the state are laid out in a 1 mile grid. Southern Indiana on the other hand has some nice terrain to follow.