Trans Mountain Road

Scenic drives are kind of my thing, and the drive up Trans Mountain Road was completely satisfying. Not only is the drive an adrenaline rush (albeit a tad bit scary too), the city views are quite astounding at the top. It's also an excellent way to skip the traffic when traveling from New Mexico to El Paso (and probably visa versa but can't confidently confirm that part). I was leaving New Mexico after having a wonderful dinner and saw that there was a ton of traffic getting back to El Paso on my GPS. It suggested an alternate route; Trans Mountain Road. Normally, I'd probably just sit in traffic when I'm in an unfamiliar place. I'm from the Bay Area (California), and I am no stranger to horrible traffic. But who the hell wants to sit in traffic while they're on vacation?! I already deal with that 5 days out of the week, so spare me. It was still daylight so I decided to do it. I've driven on many windy roads, but I'll admit that this one was kind of nerve racking. Mostly because some of you Texans just don't know how to drive (sorry, not sorry). But once I got to the top of the hill and those views started to appear, it became enjoyable. I saw a vista point with a few cars parked in the distance and immediately pulled off to park there. Yep, this was it. I hit the jackpot. The pictures of the vista point doesn't do it justice. The views are outstanding! Panoramic beauty and lots of it. There's even a cute little lookout point and some picnic tables up there. It was windy as hell though, so not sure if I'd sit out there and eat something for fear of being blown over. Maybe in the summer when the weather is warmer and the winds are milder, but still. Fantastic city views of El Paso and some nice views of the New Mexican desert hills. This is definitely a hidden chill spot. I can only imagine how gorgeous the sunrises and sunsets are, but I'm sure it's even gnarlier to drive this road when it's dark. In any event, it's a lovely vista with an adventurous drive and a nice escape from traffic.

TransMountain will always hold a special place in my heart... When COVID hit, I had just met my current gf. We weren't able to do normal couple stuff like going to the movies or going out to dinner so we spent countless hours sitting on this mountain looking at the city lights and talking. This is also the place I asked my gf to be my gf. If you want to do a could mountain hike, this is a good place. If you want to sit and have a picnic, this is also a good place. If you just want to go out for a drive and enjoy the scenery, definitely recommend through here and don't miss the giant rock that looks like an elephant

Since the Summer of 1969 Woodrow Bean Trans Mountain Highway has been a top of the line engineering and excavation work featuring a lovely drive through the mountains from west to east or east to west in El Paso, Texas. Depending on your destination driving through it can significantly cut your drive time down to 20 minutes less. It has breathtaking views and access to different hiking trails. Sadly not all people feel comfortable driving it and it shows making it dangerous specially for truck drivers. You may also stop and park to enjoy the majestic views covering Texas, New Mexico and Mexico. Given the time when it was built I am amazed at the ambitious and successful project. It took some genius calculations to get it done with dynamite. Every time I drive through the magnitude of its engineering blows my mind.

Great place to get away and enjoy the views and our sister country Mexico. The scenery is beautiful the wind chill was awesome it must see.

The road is a great bypass of I 10 and the craziness on that road. Just be prepared for the construction currently going on, you have to slow down in certain parts.Also watch out for cops, they will pull you over and give you a ticket. Trust me I know. Overall this is a great ride to see Franklin Mountain, and see East and West El Paso at the designated scenery stops located on both sides of the mountain.

When going through El Paso take the detour through the Trans Mountain Road. It has beautiful views and there are spots to pull off and admire the view or even have a picnic at a covered table. You can also take one of the hiking trails.

I have a confession to make: I'm sort of scared of driving on Transmountain...especially on my own. It's rare that I use it if I'm driving alone. The road is pretty curvy and near the mountains so I guess that's what freaks me out the most. Another thing...I'm not really a fan of heights either. I'll tolerate them if I must but yeah not really my thing. The road seems to freeze with ice quicker too. Also, it gets shut down if it's too windy.The good news about using Transmountain is that you can typically get to other sides of town quicker than using I-10 or US-54. As crazy as I-10 is, I still prefer it over Transmountain. The best part of using Transmountain are of course the beautiful mountain views. We used it to get to the northeast the other day. We wanted to see the bright yellow poppies we get around March. It was nice being able to go and see them just to ease our minds for a bit. I recommend going to see the poppies if you can. We have to be mindful of others so use social distancing or just take a drive nearby. You get the best view across the street from the archaeology museum. Be aware of parking if you pull over. There can be cops around there. They'll ask you to move your vehicle or leave.

This is a must do for any visitor - doesn't matter which side of the mountain you start on, both sides have gorgeous scenery of the city and the mountains. Look out for falling rocks - thats not just something they say - they really do fall - just look at the ones in the median for an idea. There are also snakes and deer to watch for, as well as mountain lions and the occasional bear. After all, it IS part of a mountain range, right?If you decide to hike - please note that part is government property with its own set of hazards - and not for public use. There are several places to pull off the road and check out the views and enjoy picnics under the awnings on the tables. Its really nice.

Listen up. This is my urgent suggestion while visiting El Paso:::Do yourself a favor and take a ride to TRANS MOUNTAIN! If you go in the daytime, you will see the different shades and colors that the mountains have to offer. If you go at night you will be above all of El Paso overlooking Juarez, Mexico with such a brilliant view it will certainly take your breath!**This mountain is notorious for getting you from one side of El Paso to the other in a fraction of the time that one would if traveling via freeway.**

What an awesome drive! Straight from the outlets, bypass El Paso to the east side. We stopped a few times on the picnic turn offs to take in the scenery. The speed limit is reasonable and you won't have to use the gas much driving from west to east because it's a steady decline.