Tail of the Dragon

On our return trip from Sweetwater TN we elected to take the more direct route back to Upstate SC, one that would add a couple of hours to our travel time but take us straight through the mountains. With Nantahala National Forest on one side and Great Smoky Mountains National Park on the other, our course would hug the Little Tennessee River and the shores of the lakes created by multiple dams for the duration. The river flows through six impoundments in total: Fontana Dam, Cheoah Dam, Calderwood Dam, Chilhowee Dam, Tellico Dam and Porters Bend Dam. Tellico Dam is actually further west from our start point (see my post on Fort Loudoun), and Porters Bend is closer to the headwaters of the Little Tennessee, but Chilhowee Lake is at the intersection of US 129 and the Foothills Parkway, and from there we passed the rest of the dams on our way east towards Fontana.

This section of road heading to the TN/NC border & Deals Gap twists and snakes its way up in elevation, the curves popular with motorcycle and sports car enthusiasts who flock to the region for the 318 curves encompassed in a mere 11 miles. Named “The Dragon” or "Tail of the Dragon" (for its supposed resemblance to a dragon’s tail), the curves have names like Copperhead Corner, Hog Pen Bend, Wheelie Hell, Gravity Cavity, Beginner's End, and Brake or Bust Bend.

My first visit to the Tail of the Dragon was on a UIUC ecology trip to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. I don’t remember if I was behind the wheel of the 8-person passenger van, but I do remember the emergency stop we made when someone (not me!) became carsick… If you can believe it, the speed limit on the Dragon used to be 55 mph; in 2005 it was lowered to 30 mph due to the increased amount of emergency calls stemming from frequent motorcycle accidents. 

0.7 miles south of the gap (and the state line) is the community of Deals Gap, located at the intersection of US 129 and NC 28. From here we followed NC 28 along Cheoah Lake to continue east, while 129 cuts south to Robbinsville*. Despite the fact that we had been driving the southern border of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park almost the whole way from the Foothills Parkway, the only Park Service facilities on this end of the Park are the 20 Mile Ranger Station and Twentymile Trail Trailhead, about halfway between Deals Gap and Fontana. However, don’t expect too much in the way of facilities; it’s really only a jumping-off point to the trails on this end of the park. One popular destination is Twentymile Cascade, a 1.25 mile roundtrip, although the Twentymile loop trail will take you on an eight mile hike from the trailhead.

stretching our legs at Twentymile

Just a little further is the Lewellyn Branch lake access point on Cheoah Lake. A result of a partnership between NC Wildlife Resources Commission and Alcoa Power, the boat ramp and pier are open to the public. Not only a great spot for fishing and boating, Cheoah Lake is also a spot to do some sightseeing; Cheoah Dam was the location of the scene in the 1993 movie “The Fugitive” where Kimble jumps from the dam to escape his pursuers…

About 23 miles from our starting point on the Foothills Parkway we finally reached our next destination. There, just before NC 28 crosses over the Little Tennessee, a road splits off to the left, leading to the bottom of the highest dam east of the Rocky Mountains – the TVA Fontana Dam. We skipped the view from the bottom this time in favor of more time on top, but that's a story for next time...

*Another route from Sweetwater back to SC would have been to take the Cherohala Skyway, the National Scenic Byway that crosses through the Cherokee and Nantahala National Forests connecting Tellico Plains TN with Robbinsville NC. Over forty miles long, it runs roughly parallel to the route we took; however it can easily be accessed from Deals Gap by continuing on US 129 south instead of east on NC 28…