Three Routes Out of the City This Weekend

Not every trip needs a plan. These three routes are all under four hours from the city, all worth leaving before sunrise for, and all different enough that the choice mostly comes down to what kind of tired you want to be by Sunday night.

The first heads north along back roads instead of the highway, trading an hour of travel time for coastline the whole way. The second cuts inland toward higher ground and cooler air. The third is the least scenic and the most reliable — a straight shot to a stretch of river we keep coming back to.

None of these require much planning beyond a full tank of gas and a willingness to leave before the city wakes up. That, more than the destination, is usually the actual point.