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6 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Sport

This road simply put is a total waste of time for motorcyclists in it's current condition. The route and scenery are 5 stars, however the quality of the pavement is renders it worthless. The surface is 100% washboards, tons of gravel and littered with tourists from the Minnesota, Canada, Michigan and such who go 15 miles per hour. With that said, even if said tourists were absent, the washboards ruin the experience and make it unsafe.

HOWEVER, ADOT has posted that this beautiful route is to be resurfaced in 2017, starting in March and should be completed by October 2017. So if this road does get smoothed out, you will be able to run endless twisty turns and take in amazing scenery. If you're a beginner, you might stay clear of this road. If a mistake is made at the wrong place you will be on a helicopter ride out of the canyon (if you're lucky) because there are areas that literally drop off several hundred feet.

The food at Tortilla Flats is nothing to write home about, but will do in a pinch if you are starving. The ideal situation would be a resurfaced road, and then go in the summer months when it's cooler out as the snowbirds will be gone.

Be sure and fuel up before you get on the Apache Trail because there is not a gas station of any sort. You will need enough fuel to get you 50 miles minimum.

Many people get to Tortilla Flats and turn around. Mistake. The best part of the run is an 8 mile or so stretch of pavement from Tortilla Flats to the dirt road where you can turn around. If you have an enduro bike you can continue to Roosevelt, but again you better have plenty of fuel to get you there because it's an unforgiving and desolate region, yet filled with gorgeous scenery. Don't get in a hurry or things will turn tragic.

Go to google earth and pull up the area and view it from your computer if you have never seen this route before.

2 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Other

As of 6/9/18 this road has been resurfaced. Nice and smooth....granted the older reviews regarding rough and nasty road surface were accurate at the time of posting but no longer.

Nice and smooth and worth the trip.

2 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Cruiser

This used to be one of my favorite rides because it was close. Not so much anymore. The road is absolutely horrible and very poorly maintained, if it is maintained at all. If you want to shred your tires, then this is the road for you.Washboard, pot holes and all. Lots of marbles, and sand on the road. This combined with sharp turns and improperly banked and graded turns, proves at least a deadly combination for a date with road-rash...or worse. Definitely not for a novice rider. Tortilla Flat is cool and touristy, but the food lacks anything exciting.

0 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Sport

This has to be one of the worst stretches of paved roads in AZ! It's terrible at best and dangerous at worst! From potholes to sand & gravel to sheer cliffs and no guardrails; this road is a recipe for disaster. I've ridden dirtbike trails that were safer. The road truly looks like it hasn't been maintained in 20 years. I wouldn't recommend this ride to my worse enemy! Anything short of a 4x4 or your grandma's Cadi is asking for trouble. While the scenic views are spectacular they are not worth it IMO. If you have a two wheeled vehicle and you're thinking of taking a ride to Tortilla Flats, do yourself and favor and don't!

0 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Cruiser

Road is a kinda beat up & bumpy but not enough to keep you away. Novices be careful! some nice tight corners in there but could be easy for a newbie to make a mistake. I been riding a year & slid twice. my own fault entered corner too fast/ too far inside, and tried to brake DOH! no harm done recovered easily road was forgiving, but there are a few turns where that could be very bad. overall a great ride Nice scenery not much traffic plenty of places to pull off for pics or let tailgaters go by.

0 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Sport - Touring

I've ridden over 250k miles, mostly in Arizona. The road to Tortilla Flats used to be one of my favs. It's close, and has a fun amount of curves and pretty scenery. I hadn't taken that ride in about 15 years. I recently started riding again and decided to go to my favorite nearby road. (Tortilla Flats) Boy was I disappointed. It's just a crumbled shadow of its former self. So bumpy and full of loose, deteriorating tarmac that I couldn't even enjoy the ride! I don't know if there are any plans on resurfacing it but I will not be back until they do. Really not enjoyable at all it's so bad.

0 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Cruiser

The pavement condition to Tortillas Flats is BRUTAL!!!
You can't come close to enjoying that what could be nice road because of that. I won't be back until it's newly paved.

0 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Sport - Touring

Nice ride but the road conditions have really deteriorated. A lot of gravel and loose sand in corners

2 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Sport - Touring

The road is now a washboard all the way to Tortilla Flat. Unless you want to stress test your bike, wait till it's resurfaced.

2 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Enduro

Nice scenic ride. Plan to hit Tortilla Flat for lunch, listen to a little live music on the patio and then head on down the road. If you're on a dual-sport, don't stop when the pavement quits, cause the scenery doesn't! A few nice lakes along the way.

18 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Cruiser

rode this route to Roosevelt lake on 4-8-2018. Repavement of the paved portion is good, but no markings as of that date. And the unpaved bit is as mentioned..totally unsuitable for street bikes, but the scenery is great. We survived.

17 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Cruiser

Sunday ride so the traffic was heavier than normal. Otherwise nice ride.

5 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Cruiser

Always a fun ride

31 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Touring

As of summer 2019, the road was in excellent conditon. Fabulous scenery, tho only a few pullouts.

17 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Cruiser

This is a good ride that is very close to the SE Phoenix burbs. Very heavy traffic on weekends as Canyon Lake is very popular. Continue on past Tortilla Flats as some of the best views are near the end of the pavement.

59 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Cruiser

Great back road to mining attraction

41 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Cruiser

A really good ride with lots of turns and awesome views of the desert as you pass large Saragosa cactus and lake that pops up out of nowhere. Weekends get really busy.

10 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Sport - Touring

Lots of curves within a short distance. Awesome (if) you don't get stuck behind a boat trailer.

10 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Touring

Great ride!

135 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Touring

Day trip the west valley for some nice curves and a burger and fries with a cold beer.

29 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Cruiser

This is a great ride during the weekday after work. Great views and less traffic during weekday.

145 McR Points

Motorcycle Type :

soldier on to roosevelt lake.

13 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Cruiser

Riden this route dozen times....even before state fixed the road up. Much better now and there are plenty of out of state riders too. Enjoy the ride and a burger once a month at least.

166 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Cruiser

Rode on a rented Harley.

46 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Touring

Some very tight turns & switchbacks. Beautiful views. Heard it can get very busy on weekends. The Goldfield Ghost Town near the start on the ride is worth the stop.

0 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Sport

Great ride! Once you get off the main streets and onto the highway, the scenery completely changes and it's like your're in a different world! The road is super curvy, so for us sport bikes it's a blast! After the town of Tortilla Flat, the roads had a lot of gravel on them, so use caution there. We kept going until we ran out of pavement! If you've got an ADV, etc. bike however, keep on going because the view in incredible!

22 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Touring

Good road. Scenery was great.

31 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Cruiser

Great road, awesome scenery; only drawback is it's too short a ride. Once you leave the city, the recently repaved road is great; very smooth. Hills, tight turns, incredible views all make for excellent riding. The road is barricaded where the pavement gives way to dirt road, so you can no longer ride to Roosevelt Lake this way.

344 McR Points

Motorcycle Type :

stop off at the flats, but when your done there continue onto rosevelt lake dirt road with some washboards but awesome, desert, canyon, then runs along river

344 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Adventure Touring

stop in the flats and enjoy, but then continue onto the dirt road, some washboards but totally worth it

0 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Touring

Nice ride. Don't ride the trip on a holiday; way too much traffic. I am sure I wil enjoy the ride more on a non holiday ride.

2 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Sport

This is an excellent ride.
On the way you have Mammoth Saloon. Nice ghost town to visit and stop for a drink and snack.
Then another stop at Canyon Lake Restaurant. Nice place for lunch or dinner by the lakeside.
Tortilla Flats is an excellent place to stop to cool off.
The ride is a long winding road with excellent site seeing and a couple of stops for a good visual.

Enjoy

0 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Touring

This is a great trail for those who like exciting. Narrow road with a couple of one lane bridges to navigate. Stop and eat at Tortilla flatts and turn around to see everything you missed the first time. Tight turns; a few switchbacks, and several places to pull off to the side for pictures and a rest. If you have ever ridden in the Badlands in South Dakota you know how tight the pull offs can be. Still a great slow ride.

0 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Sport

What looked like a wonderful twisty sportbike road, turned out to be a gravel strewn washboarded teeth rattling ride to Tortilla Flat. Best left for adventurer and enduro bikes. The only saving grace is good scenery and a couple of nice lakes.

0 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Sport

It's a washboard in both directions. If you stay to the right side of your lane it's not so bad, but that's also dangerous being close to the mountain or the cliff. I was almost always behind a car going UNDER the speed limit. If you're looking for some fast "twisties" like I was, this isn't it.

I met 2 other riders in the parking lot of the restaurant and we went down together, which was more fun. Going with other people definitely adds to the experience.

I'm honestly not sure if I went all the way or not... I went to the restaurant and turned around, because I thought that's the end of it. But looking at the map now, it looks like that's just the beginning of it. Maybe someone can reply and let me know!

0 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Cruiser

I was not impresses with the tortilla flat ride. Nice winding roads unfortunately too rough to enjoy. The food at tortilla flat was sub par. The scenery however was outstanding which is the only reason I would do this trip again.

0 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Cruiser

I was not impresses with the tortilla flat ride. Nice winding roads unfortunately too rough to enjoy. The food at tortilla flat was sub par. The scenery however was outstanding which is the only reason I would do this trip again.

2 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Enduro

I just rode this today. Holy cow, this road is TERRIBLE from Apache Junction to Tortilla Flat! There are huge asphalt blisters in the middle of the lane, both directions, about every 10-12 feet. Then like others said, you have plenty of out of state people going 15 mph and NOT pulling over when traffic stacks up behind them.

HOWEVER, once past this disaster, the road is quite pleasant. Yeah it turns to dirt, but it's an awesome view and the road quality is vastly better than the pavement. my V-Strom handled it just fine. For a great (but long) round trip, go to Roosevelt Lake and take 188 SE to 288 and take it north all the way to 260. Then go west and then south on 87 back to Phoenix. Note: 288 turns into "512" north of Young, and elevation exceeds 7500' so it may get chilly.

70 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Other

The repave was scheduled for last Spring, but ADOT took down all the signs and has postponed indefinitely. Not worth the effort to hit those last 8 miles until that happens because the road surface is brutal, and traffic is always a problem on weekend. The food at Tortilla Flat should avoided. Better options right at beginning of Apache Trail Rd, but it would be a GREAT road if and when it gets redone.

3 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Touring

Road is newly paved. Excellent ride and beautiful scenery. Glad I did it

0 McR Points

Motorcycle Type : Touring

Amazing short ride through the Superstion Mountains on a brand new paved road. Plenty of twists and turns, slow riding. Posted speed limit is 10-25mph most of the way to Tortilla Flat. Be sure to stop for a picture at the lookout point. Tortilla Flat has a population of 6 , heavy with tourists and the like most days of the week. The saloon is unique, with dollar bills everywhere on walls and ceiling. The road past TF turns to gravel.