Roxbury Gap? Over Northfield Mountain?

[summitchallenger]

So I am considering a new way to get to the 'Bush from the Barre/Montpelier. I usually go via 100B through Moretown...it is fast and good roads.

I've been eying going down 89 to Northfield, and then drive over the mountain to either Moretown or Warren.

How are these two routes? Are they paved? Dirt? Narrow and crooked?

[jwt]

SC,

We generally use Ex 4 and head up 12A N to Roxbury Gap Road. . . . . dirt about 1/2 way up, but in IMHO easier, safer, than pavement most of the time with snow and ice. The top is somewhere near 2000 feet so you get a little bit of an idea of snow levels on the mountain, although it is not near the dumping bowl for holding snow Slidebrook is. but still, gets the adrenaline going.
Well plowed, people live up there year round,but without snow tires aand or 4 wheel drive, and most of all, an ability to drive steep, sometimes icy roads with control will put you in the ditch on occasion.

Last thing during freeze thaw cycles. . . .have a good clearance. . . . . . many of my Saabs have had scrapes on the way up. It is sure fun to 'stay on the ridges' when it is rutted. . . . . . . . . kinda like picking your way down Rumble with little snow cover in a car.
It is smooth as pavement right now . . at least last weekend.

[jkvt]

So I am considering a new way to get to the 'Bush from the Barre/Montpelier. I usually go via 100B through Moretown...it is fast and good roads.

I've been eying going down 89 to Northfield, and then drive over the mountain to either Moretown or Warren.

How are these two routes? Are they paved? Dirt? Narrow and crooked?

I would say stick to 100B. The Gap roads are twisty, dirt, bumpy and can be hazardous during snowfalls. They are fantastic for a nice drive but if you are trying to get to the mountain for first trax I wouldn't recommend it.

jkvt

[summitchallenger]

Similar to App Gap or Lincoln Gap?

[jkvt]

Similar to App Gap or Lincoln Gap?

In between on dirt.
As jwt said have clearance. I have beached a SAAB on the Roxbury Gap before and I have pulled a few cars out of rutts on the Rox Gap as well.

jkvt

[noski]

Similar to App Gap or Lincoln Gap? The difference there is Ap Gap is paved, plowed and salted. Lincoln Gap is closed in winter. There are many GPS users who have found that the Lincoln Gap road in winter is NOT the most direct route.... :wink: I would stick with 100B from Barre/Montpelier- You spend alot more time going 50mph+ rather than 30-40mph on gravel roads.

[Yard Sale]

SC,

We generally use Ex 4 and head up 12A N to Roxbury Gap Road. . . . .

jwt-

Coming from the south I typically take exit 5 and approach Rox Gap on 12A S. And your right! On snowy nights I find Rox Mtn. Rd. is usually in better shape than 12A or 89. Probably splitting hairs, but it seems exit 4 is a more roundabout because your jumping off the highway a little sooner. Travelling on Friday nights with a car full of sleeping kids and wife I have plenty of time to ponder shaving minutes off our weekly commute. Do you feel it is faster off exit 4, or do you just prefer to get off the snowy interstate?

[gratefulskier]

I live in Randolph, less than 3 miles from the interstate. I take 12A to Warren Mountain Road 90% of the time. I use the interstate when I'm concerned about clearance and also when temps are really close to freezing and any recent snow that's fallen has been heavy.

The worst conditions that I've seen on Warren Mountain Road have been when a few inches of heavy snow get packed down solidly. At times like that, even 4WD/AWD with good snow tires can be insufficient.

When I don't take this route to the mountain, I use the interstate most of the time, but I also use Bethel Mountain Road occasionally.

One of my favorite drives home came two years ago on a snowy Sunday evening. My car was having no problems on the mountain road, but someone had decided that his Audi's AWD meant he didn't need snow tires. He was on a summer-only soft rubber tire. I pushed him out of the ditch once, with help from his passengers. He went right back in. We pushed him out again. He went back in two more times before he got to 12A. I stayed behind him with my blinkers on the whole way down, laughing to myself.

So, I think it's a good route if the conditions are good and you have the right vehicle and tires. At other times, it's a skating rink up there.

On a powder day, when I want to be there early, I don't want to risk being in a ditch on a dirt road when the lifts start turning.


GS

[boze]

I've found 89 to 107 to 12 to Camp Brook / Bethel Mountain Rd to 100N to be the most consistently reliable, and expedient route.

For some reason, VT DPW cannot seem to clear snow from 89 past 4pm. Go figure. The local roads are often in much better shape, and Bethel Mountain Rd is paved, and frequently plowed. No issue in 4x4 w/ good all seasons or FWD w/ good snow tires.

[jwt]

YS,
Yeah, I like Ex 4. . . . . . . . . getting off the generally windblown I89 as early as possible. If the conditions are dry and windless, you can probably make a case for Ex 5 because it is less mileage to Rox Gap Rd from the North. And you can get behind some who are slower than 50 ( which is the speed limit on most of 12 A N. . . . .and the little sleepy towns, with a few snowmobilers and farmers are just a way of helping me adjust from the madness of running a business in MA. The valley is for more 1950 than Mad River Valley will ever be. . . . . . .no tourists, no money, no SHERIFFS ( so far) and no swanky stores.

Nothing wrong with all that, but I like the pace changing mode it sets me in. . . .and once in a while, you get to race a train!

And I do try to respect the folks who want to drive slow. . .exspecially thru the villages, but 50 is about average.

Then there is the Carrie Howe Rd shortcut. . . . . . . all dirt, less drainage so ruttier, and a ball of fun, especially in a 900.

[Hawk]

I use the Warren Mt. Road/Roxbury via Exit 5 and 12A South pretty much every drive all year. I have only had 1 or 2 bad experiences and it was in the spring mud season. In the winter I have found that it actually drives better than the paved roads in snowy conditions. They plow it often and I find the dirt/snow mix is very predictable and drivable. Even during fairly icy nights the dirt seems to mix in and give you good traction.

Also IMO it is faster than exit 3 or exit 4.... At least it is for me :)

[djd66]

I take exit 5 also. Never taken exit 4, I may have to check it out sometime. I take exit 5, Lover's lane shortcut by the Mobile - its about 30 minutes to the mountain from the highway. I have been taking the Roxbury Gap in all kinds of weather. I might take a pass on it if it is a bad storm.

[slaw]

As a weekend warrior I go Exit 4 60% of the time. Exit 5 the rest. Marginal difference between the two and I like getting off 89.

I think of the trip as something like; one hour from my house to 89, one hour on 89, one hour from Vt line to SB. Add time for traffic, weather, or a wife telling you to slow down.

[noski]

These are the directions we posted with Win's input on the new and improved www.madrivervalley.com http://www.madrivervalley.com/vermont/valley/index.asp?contID=6

[CapeSkiGuy]

In dry conditions, and light traffic, I make it in under half an hour from the parking lot at LP to Route 89 via Warren Mt. Road. In wet conditions, considerably longer. Ihave not tried it in heavy snow (yet). Northfield Mt. Rd. is also an option, largely unpaved, but workable. Comes out just north of the Mobil Station / General Store in Moretown. Nice covered bridges too. Longer than Rox Gap, shorter than the Exit 9 route.

If the weather is bad, I try to avoid going all the way to Exit 9. The stretch of 89 north of Exit 5 gets mean in a hurry. Last year I saw cars blowing in all directions, literally, when a sudden snow squall ruined visibility. The wind really seems to whip up along that stretch.

This season I will try Bethel Mt. Road, because everyone seems to feel it is plowed better than 89, and I have 4WD this year.

And what is it with those guys with the Audi AWD's? I see those cars in ditches a lot...usually after the driver blows by me on a snowy highway.

[shadyjay]

Almost on a daily basis now, I take Moretown Mtn to/from work, since I leave WAB, pick up my work partner off the Common/Mtn Road in Moretown, then head over to Northfield via Moretown Mountain Road, and pick up 89 at Ex 5. In Moretown, its all dirt roads, but is paved for the short stretch in Berlin, and freshly paved "through the bridges" in Northfield. Moretown Mtn Road is actually on both sides of the mountain, all in Moretown. It doesn't have any of the crazy turns as App Gap does, and there's no "vista" at the top. The downhill from the top into Moretown is pretty steep. Don't know how it is in the winter - guess I'll be finding out very soon. They have recently (in the past week or so) dumped some more gravel on the road - some on the Common Road caught me off guard last night near the skate ramp.

My guess is that during the winter on a daily basis, it'll be easier to head up 100B to 89 at Exit 9. Don't know off-hand how Moretown HD handles their roads during winter.

[ski_resort_observer]

From Montpelier to the Bush, 100B is the fastest. I commuted from Mount Peculiar to the Bush for 3 years. The thing about the gaps is that Roxbury Gap is pretty short but dirt, Bethel Mt Rd is paved but much longer, nice view of kmart from the top tho and from I89 Moretown Gap just doesn't work, also longer than Rox Gap. The Rox gap dirt road can't be much more than 4m. If your determined to use a backroad either Randolph/12A or Northfield/lovers lane then over rox Gap is probably the fastest.

In the winter I usually go to Middlesex then down 100B from I89 north. Not interested in a risky route to save a few minutes.