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Bangor–Middle Ridge–Cashton Loop

Bangor–Middle Ridge–Cashton Loop is 40.8 miles of loop riding through La Crosse and Monroe Counties in Wisconsin — the Coulee Region, the coulees, ridge tops and river bluffs of south-west Wisconsin. Moving time is about 50 minutes; allow 70 with stops — a half morning. It is scored CS-3, Spirited: 59 corners, 122° of turning per mile, 1,317 feet of climbing. The roads it uses, in the order you ride them, are in the app.

Curviness
CS-3Spirited · 1.44/mi
Distance
40.8 mi50 min riding
Corners
5944% sharp · Mixed
Climbing
1,317 ft32 ft/mi · Rolling
Shape
LoopHalf morning
Roads
Mixed roads27% county & local
Traffic
3,900vehicles a day, median
Speed limit
55 mphtypically 55
Open this route in the app

About this road

Bangor, Middle Ridge, and Cashton form a classic Coulee Region triangle of small towns linked by connecting ridges. Honest climbing, good scenery, and strong local feel define the roads. Cashton serves as a center for Amish commerce and culture in the area. Ridges provide the through-routes; valleys provide the scenery and the challenge. Passing through Bangor, Middle Ridge, and Cashton lets everyday regional life become part of the ride. Ideal for riders who want a balanced sample of Coulee topography and living cultural landscape, without the longer commitment of a full-day expedition. The combination of elevation, scenery, and visible traditional agriculture makes the day coherent and satisfying. Every segment contributes to the same ridge-and-valley and cultural conversation. Climb the ridges, pass the buggies near Cashton, stop in the towns. The culture is part of the road.

How it rides

59 corners over 40.8 miles — 1.44 a mile, and 122° of turning for every mile ridden. That scores CS-3, Spirited on the five-point curviness scale. 44% of those corners are sharp ones, and the road reads as mixed.

What it climbs

The road climbs 1,317 feet in total, 32 feet per mile, between 727 and 1,367 feet — 640 feet of relief. The longest single climb is 459 feet over 3.1 miles, and the steepest grade on it is 8.5%. By Driftless standards that is rolling.

Surface, speed and traffic

Paved end to end. 27% of it is back road rather than highway, the other 73% state or US route. Posted speeds run to 55 mph, typically 55, measured across 58% of the route. Where traffic counts exist — 23% of the miles — the median is 3,900 vehicles a day, busiest at mile 30.4 with 5,600.

Where to stop

2 of the towns on this road have somewhere to stop — 3 fuel, 2 food, 2 bars.

Longest stretch without fuel: 22.4 miles. Worth knowing before you set off if your tank is small.

Listed alphabetically, and chosen by us rather than rated by anybody. The order you reach them, and the mile each one sits at, are in the app.

Worth knowing

Turn-by-turn directions and the spoken guidance are in the app. Every figure on this page is measured from the route itself — corner counts and gradients from the road geometry, elevation from the national elevation dataset, traffic from the state transport departments where counts exist.

Nearby roads