Mad River Byway
Mad River Byway is a State Scenic Byway in Vermont. Within Vermont it covers roughly 35 miles. The map below shows its route. Use “Plan a drive” to open it in the Road Sorties route planner — already routing along Mad River Byway with scenic roads turned on, ready to add your own stops.
Vermont's Mad River Byway runs 36.5 miles on Routes 2, 100, 100B, and 17 through the Mad River Valley, from Middlesex to Granville. It passes Moretown, Waitsfield, Fayston, and Warren. Much of the drive runs alongside the Green Mountain National Forest, following its namesake river through a valley whose history reaches back long before European settlement. Farms, old churches, war memorials, and well-preserved 19th-century architecture line the route through each small village. The valley is also home to two of Vermont's best-known ski areas, Sugarbush and Mad River Glen, drawing visitors in winter as well as during fall foliage season. Antique shops, artists' studios, and small breweries have filled in around the working farms in recent decades, giving the drive a mix of old agricultural Vermont and newer recreation-driven economy packed into a comparatively short byway.
- Mad River Valley
- Sugarbush and Mad River Glen
- 36.5 miles
- Waitsfield
- Green Mountain National Forest
- Routes 100/100B
- historic village architecture
Plan a drive on Mad River Byway →
What is a State Scenic Byway?
State Scenic Byways are roads a state has formally recognized for their scenic, natural, historic or cultural value — each state's own curated collection of drives worth taking slowly.
Where to Stay along Mad River Byway
No campgrounds are listed close to Mad River Byway yet, but there are rooms near the route.
Campsite and lodging links are affiliate links — booking through them may earn Road Sorties a small commission, at no extra cost to you. Recreation.gov links are not affiliate links.