State Scenic Highway 53 53
State Scenic Highway 53 is a scenic drive in California. Within California it covers roughly 10 miles. The map below shows its route. Use “Plan a drive” to open it in the Road Sorties route planner — already routing along State Scenic Highway 53 with scenic roads turned on, ready to add your own stops.
State Scenic Highway 53, known locally as the Clearlake Expressway, runs north-south along the east side of Clear Lake in Lake County. It's eligible for California's scenic highway program but has not been officially designated by Caltrans. Clear Lake is the largest natural freshwater lake located entirely within California, and SR 53 skirts its shoreline while bypassing the center of the city of Clearlake through a neighborhood known locally as the Avenues. North of Lakeshore Drive the road narrows from expressway to a plain two-lane highway before ending at its junction with State Route 20. The lake's volcanic backdrop, Mount Konocti rising to the west, is visible from much of the drive.
- Clearlake Expressway, Lake County
- east shore of Clear Lake
- largest natural lake entirely in California
- bypasses Clearlake via 'the Avenues'
- eligible, not officially designated
Plan a drive on State Scenic Highway 53 →
About this drive
This is a scenic drive — a road worth taking for the views and the journey itself rather than the quickest line between two points.
Where to Stay along State Scenic Highway 53
2 campgrounds and RV parks sit within about 5 miles of State Scenic Highway 53.
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