Modoc Volcanic Scenic Byway
Modoc Volcanic Scenic Byway is a National Forest Scenic Byway in California. Within California it covers roughly 85 miles. The map below shows its route. Use “Plan a drive” to open it in the Road Sorties route planner — already routing along Modoc Volcanic Scenic Byway with scenic roads turned on, ready to add your own stops.
Modoc Volcanic Scenic Byway is a 120-mile National Forest Byway across northeastern California's Modoc National Forest. It's part of the larger 500-mile Volcanic Legacy Scenic Byway system that eventually reaches north to Oregon's Crater Lake. The Forest Service designated the route in 1996, recognizing a landscape shaped almost entirely by volcanic activity: lava flows, cinder cones, and rugged plateau country typical of the Modoc Plateau's violent geologic history. Travelers can pick up the byway from the southwest via US Highway 89 and Forest Service Road 15, or from the north via State Highway 139 and Forest Service Road 49, giving the route two very different approaches into the same volcanic backcountry. Because it runs largely through national forest land rather than towns, the drive is long on remote scenery and short on services, better suited to travelers already equipped for a day in the backcountry than a casual sightseeing loop. As a piece of the broader Volcanic Legacy corridor, it's one link in a much longer chain of volcanic scenery stretching from California's Modoc Plateau into the Cascades of southern Oregon.
- 120 miles
- Modoc National Forest
- designated Forest Service Byway (1996)
- part of Volcanic Legacy Scenic Byway (500 mi)
- US-89/FR-15 or CA-139/FR-49 access
- Modoc Plateau volcanic geology
Plan a drive on Modoc Volcanic Scenic Byway →
What is a National Forest Scenic Byway?
National Forest Scenic Byways are routes designated by the U.S. Forest Service that thread through the mountains, canyons and old growth of America's national forests and grasslands.
Where to Stay along Modoc Volcanic Scenic Byway
6 campgrounds and RV parks sit within about 5 miles of Modoc Volcanic Scenic Byway.
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