CA 108
So on this trip I drove most of the major east-west passes through the Sierra Mountains, and in my experience the best of the bunch is hands down route 108 through the Stanislaus National Forest. It definitely seemed to be one of the least congested which is a huge plus, I guess because it's sort of in no-mans land with Lake Tahoe to the north and Yosemite to the south, where most people gravitate towards. With so little activity it does feels properly remote, and when you stop to enjoy a vista you truly feel like you have it all to yourself. If/when I come back here to potentially do some camping in the future, this will be the area I look into first for sure. One might think a lesser trodden route means the roads are less looked after, but luckily that is very much not the case. The road surface is fantastically smooth and the sweeping curves have the perfect balance of speed vs sharpness for a spirited yet relaxed cruise 😎 Sonora's Pass on the east end is a pretty serious grade to navigate, but it's definitely one of the most pleasant (and safe) ones I encountered.
