Straight Road
The Straight Road, also known as the Straight Way or the Lost Road, was an invisible bridge that curved from the earth and led westward from the Belegaer to the realm of the Valar.
The Straight Road, also known as the Straight Way or the Lost Road, was an invisible bridge that curved from the earth and led westward from the Belegaer to the realm of the Valar.
History
It was a route that left Earth's curvature through sky and space to the land of Aman. The Straight Road, so called because it followed the old path across Belegaer from before the Akallabêth and Change of the World, was only kept open to Elves, who were allowed to sail by it under special grace of the Valar.
It is noted in earlier writings by J.R.R. Tolkien that some mortals besides those carried on Elven ships like the Ring-bearers could also come across this path, such as Ælfwine in The Book of Lost Tales.
According to unfinished notes for The Lost Road (and somewhat related to later in The Notion Club Papers), Tolkien saw the location of the Straight Road as possibly somewhere near the Azores in modern times. The first location reached from the hidden path was Tol Eressëa.
The end of the Akallabêth mentions tales and rumours concerning mariners lost at sea who, by fate or grace of the Valar, had entered the path until they reached Avallónë.