A Simple Afternoon Ride on KY 227

Sometimes I just want a good road. I don't want places to stop. I don't want interesting places to eat. I don't want 'touristy' stuff.
I just want to ride. I just want to feel the rhythm of road rolling behind me. I want to feel alone and let the day roll away.
KY 227 in Northern Kentucky fills that need. There aren't any places to stop and see along the way. Only great road and beautiful scenery to soothe your mind as you ride on through.
While it's not particularly long (at least the section that is profiled here), it is a good, simple, fun ride. Most importantly it will put a little bit of a smile on your face, and leave you thinking: I'd like to come back and try this road again.

Pretty typical of most of the roads in this area, KY227 starts out in the middle of farmland and some great scenery (it ends the same way it starts out).

A hallmark of Kentucky backroads, the sweepers were always great on this road. Almost every turn had about .5 miles of good line of sight. Very few turns had limited line of site.
If you look at the inside of the first curve, you can see a bit of pavement that is discolored from the rest of the road. Beware of this stuff, the pavement basically looked like it was melting away and could make for a bumpy turn!

Blue skies, great sweepers, and a few different places to pull off and take some pictures makes me happy when I'm riding any road.
Traffic was almost non-existent on this road. With no traffic, you have two options either push your bike a little bit, or choose to slow down and enjoy the sites without worrying about somebody running up on your rear.
One thing to note, while there is very little traffic on this road, the traffic I did pass drifted quite a bit out of their lane. I think because people aren't use to seeing many people driving this road they tend to get sloppy going through turns. Make sure you give yourself a little extra space and hug that curve on the outside.






While there weren't any real 'twisties' on this road, the whole thing was pretty much one sweeper after another through great landscape. Thinking back I can't remember a single straight away.

Right at the Owen County line, the road's condition takes a turn for the worse. You'll definitely want to slow down and watch the road closely. I hit a couple of potholes that about knocked my teeth out.
Look at the edge of the road below compared to those above to get an idea of what I mean in road quality (notice the lack of an edge in the picture below?)

Lots of great scenery to admire along the way, including quite a few streams that run right along the road.

If you do get the chance to try this road, I'd highly suggest riding it in spring. I'm not sure what those purple trees are but they were in full bloom all along the road.


Barns. What would a Kentucky backroad be without barns along it? Not a Kentucky backroad, thats for sure. KY 227 did not dissapoint, offering up its fair share of old deserted barns.
I often wonder what these are even used for - if anything. I rarely see them storing anything.

Elevation Profile

Things to Consider
This isn't a 'destination' road. Like I said above, I was just looking for something to ride - not places to stop or eat at. This road delivered what I was looking for.
The pavement is in great condition for most of this route, but do be aware of spots in some of the curves where the pavement has basically 'melted' away - could make for a rough and exciting turn depending on your speed.
Right around the Owen County line, about 10 miles north of Stamping Ground, Kentucky, the road takes a noticeable turn for the worse - some of the potholes look big enough to knock a few screws loose. Beware.
The last portion of 227 from Stamping Ground, KY to KY460 isn't anything special. I'd turn around at Stamping Ground and do the loop again.
Beware of the cars on this road, the locals like to drift on this road. I came around more than one bend with a car coming towards me in my lane.
Final Thoughts
I enjoyed this road, great scenery and fun sweepers to lose yourself on. But, I wouldn't go out of my way to ride to it for sake of this road alone. It's not too long and doesn't offer much in the way of things to do. On the other hand, if you're in the area with some time to kill and just want to enjoy your bike on a good road KY 277 is just what you're looking for.
Other Roads To Consider
Destination Rabbit Hash: Kentucky 536
Tobacco Farms and a Motorcycle Paradise: Kentucky 10
Burgers and Saddlebags on Kentucky 338
Riddles Run Rd: Kentucky 2852


More Pictures

This is a motorcycle ride in the state of Kentucky. This motorcycle route has 4 scenery characteristics and other road conditions to help you plan your road trip. This motorcycle map was created by OpenRoadRider in April. Click here to see other Motorcycle Roads by OpenRoadRider