By now most people have experienced the disappointment that is dragon riding and are wondering why they didnt implement it fully or if it was even possible. with the help of a glitch, which I take no credit in finding, it is possible. somewhat. Here are two videos I made just a while ago. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8uEqKiobbKg http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xQx7IXQJAM4 Sorry for the quality and camera work. I filmed it with my iPhone. It seems that telling your dragon to land while hovering around the college of winterhold will glitch the dragon, and it will fly on its own. it flew me to Shearpoint and landed. the flight took a couple minutes because the dragon was flying very slow, but it was awesome to see the landscape and ride a dragon without constraints. I think what they should do is make a toggle between flight mode and combat mode. say click the right stick makes you toggle between the two, or locking on to an enemy and attacking. Combat mode is the dragon riding we have now, but flight mode is what we want. make the dragon fly slower but give the player full control over it. Right stick would make the dragon turn left and right and fly up or down. obviously there would need to be a minimum and maximum altitude that you could fly but I think it is very doable.
*edit this also works at lakeview manor. The dragon doesn't fly far. It lands across the lake to the north but still, awesome view

Confirmed locations:

College of Winterhold
Throat of the World
Lakeview Manor
Hlaalu Farm
Riften Stables

The flight is sooooo slow. That would be annoying. They'd have to make it that slow just so the player doesn't feel the space is too small.

Works for me i can get lost for hours like that

It is very slow but it doesn't really bother me at all. I think they could even speed up the flight and still make it work. Plus it's another alternative to fast travel. I myself would rather have no loading screens and a scenic view of skyrim.

I don't care that its slow. The view is fantastic. What a way to sightsee! I'd be all for it.

It's like with people wanting a real time carriage ride mechanic. It will drive real slow but it's a scenic view of skyrim, and another way to fast travel without using a loading screen.

I wish they made it so you Were the Dragon rather than let me ride it. I haven't gotten to that point yet myself anyways, but It'd have been cooler to see everything through the dragons eyes.

Well who knows why Bethesda did not implement player control or more roaming options. They did say that they were not aiming for riding dragons in a sense where the player can control them. I think it is all a part of lore and the personality and build of a dragon. I think they have made it good to implement like this because skyrims dragons are made to dominate and are not easily ordered around. It is perfect dragon riding imo.

If they added player control it would totally ruin the build of TES dragons.

After having just engaged in a dragon vs dragon fight, I am going to have to disagree here. I thought it was a blast! Who cares about lore that can change at any time? I want to have fun!

I do. A lot. If they didn't follow lore, I wouldn't even bother reading it after a while. But dragons submit to power, so this isn't completely out of the question.

I understand the whole free roam dragon riding makes them weak argument, and I love the lore. but this is also a game, and in its current form the dragon riding mechanic isn't very fun or useful. Dragon riding fast travel is already in. I'm telling the dragon to go to a specific place. So you already have full control over it so to speak. So why not just give me total control with free roam. It's clear that it can be done.

I personally find it useful and fun the way it is, really. I'm not against freeroam, as far as going to different locations, and it wouldn't really go against lore since dragons respect power, and probably would listen to you if you told it where to go, so maybe they could have made it like the carriage idea where you travel on it in real time instead of just fast traveling. Or tell it in what direction to fly. But that is it. Dragons are not horses or dumb animals. They're smarter than most people in Skyrim in fact. Which is why I'm against complete control over them. But not real time travelling on them. I shouldn't be controlling it like a horse or a banshee from halo.

Completely understandable. Maybe i was a little harsh on it. i have had some fun with it and it does get you places very fast. its just kind of annoying when you have to use a loading screen to make the dragon go from whiterun to western watchtower. i mean its right there just fly to it without a loading screen. lol. I would be completely happy with a real time carriage system for dragons. Just not this loading screen travel.

I hear you on the loading screens.

Werewolves move much faster than the slow dragons so it's very feasible. Also, (I posted this in another thread and should post it here) I sort of "glitched out" Odahviing on The Throat of the World by sending him down the mountain and then telling him to land. Could it be that it's an altitude/pathing issue?

I think so. He never lands on the throat of the world with you on him. At least not for me.

We went across low-res Whiterun and all the way to Eldersblood Peak's base where we had a dragon duel and a skirmish with the good folks at Silent Moons Camp.

I just wished the dragon didn't fly around in circles. It would be nice if the dragon flew somewhere randomly, even If I couldn't control it. I have to force it to fight foxes and mudcrabs just to make it move to different places.

I'm for this^
I also wouldn't mind just telling them where to go and then sitting back and enjoying the ride like Colonel said. Perhaps if you could also set custom locations for the dragon to fly to and then circle. Might be asking a bit much there. Either way, I'm for it!

Just going to say there was a mod in oblivion for rideable dragon so yea it should be do able.

If anyone finds anymore locations where this happens post it here.

This is what I'm saying- we could control the dragon, fly it around, have a few dogfights with dragons and when it comes to landing or ground attacks, let the animations take control. I mean, I'm accepting the fact that there would still be a few restrictions- like not being able to fly below a certain altitude but to be able to control a the flight path atleast... only a dream I suppose.

I like how a completly unintended glitch that doesnt even do what people want with dragonriding = 'bethesda could have done it and they cheated us'

No one said they cheated anyone.

Well... "bethesda could have done it" actually was a mission statement long before the glitch. Between the game jam and what modders have done... it's possible.