JeepSnake
April 12th, 2006, 07:23 PM
Hey y’all,
I promised Maurice during our last visit to Gadsden that I would tell him about one of the routes that we enjoy taking to Pigeon Forge in September for Shades of the Past. Since some more of our Alabama & Georgia friends might head that way at various times, I told him I’d just post the route here. So, here it is…
Note: Sandy & I first took this route in 2000 going up in our Jeep, and ran it coming home in 2004 in Mom’s Mustang. We haven’t driven it in a Cobra – yet. Since everybody’s starting point varies, I’ll start the route from Ellijay, Georgia.
Start off in Ellijay with a fried pie, or two, at Panorama Orchards on the main 4-lane, which is GA Hwy 5/515. If it’s close to dinnertime (that’s the midday meal in Alabama-speak!), take old Hwy 5 into historic downtown for some good home cooking at the Davis House, just north of the town square.
Now that you’re properly fueled up, set out north on US 76 - GA 5/515 to Blue Ridge. Here, GA 5 breaks off from the main road, turning north toward Tennessee. You will come down off the ridge and into the town of McCaysville, Georgia. (http://www.blueridgemountains.com/mccaysville.html) Plan to spend a little time here just looking around, and take a photo or two of your Unique crossing the old iron bridge across the Toccoa / Ocoee River. Once across the river, you’re in Copper Hill, Tennessee, heading north on TN 68.
Now, for a large leg of your journey, you’re going to be in the Cherokee National Forest, passing through Ducktown & Turtletown, and crossing the Hiawassee River. Then, still on TN 68, you come out of the hills into Tellico Plains, Tennessee, western terminus of the Cherohala Skyway. (We have not been through the Skyway, but I think Mom & Dad have. An alternate route here would be to take the Skyway across to the east side of the mountains, then run the Tail of the Dragon back to the west…)
In Tellico Plains, you can either stay on TN 68, or get on the secondary state road, TN 360. (We ran TN 360 in the Mustang, but I honestly can’t remember if the surface was good enough that you would want to run it in a Cobra. This would just be an on-the-spot call to make.) With either highway, you will come out on US 411, then turn north in order to cross Tellico Lake on the Little Tennessee River.
Once you’ve made it across the river, you very quickly turn east on TN 72, a road that varies in style a great deal over the short length you are on it. It has wide-shoulder parkway-type sections, no-shoulder hedgerow-bounded farming areas, and lakeside views as it cuts east over to famed US 129. Here, you turn east/south on US 129, as if you’re aiming to run the Tail of the Dragon. US 129 follows the bank of the Little Tennessee River, carrying you up the valley and past a TVA dam (can’t remember the name!).
Then, you make your final turn to the north onto the Foothills Parkway. Twisty, but not overly so, it has several scenic overlooks that will provide you with a good opportunity to stretch your legs while taking in beautiful views of the Smokies’ southwestern slopes. The Foothills Parkway runs into US 321 in Walland, Tennessee, and from there you just head over to Townsend and on into Pigeon Forge.
So, that’s how we’ve done in twice. You may or may not want to run it. The nice thing is that there are so many options open to you from this route: the Cherohala Skyway, the Tail of the Dragon, US 321 through Wear Valley, Little River Road through Gatlinburg… It can make the trip a little more interesting than the usual I-75, US 411, or US 19 to Cherokee & US 441 to Gatlinburg routes.
(For mileage comparison, leaving from Ellijay, there is only ~10 miles difference between this route & the US 19/Nantahala Gorge/Cherokee/US 441 route to Pigeon Forge.)
Hope this helps somebody plan a fun trip!
I promised Maurice during our last visit to Gadsden that I would tell him about one of the routes that we enjoy taking to Pigeon Forge in September for Shades of the Past. Since some more of our Alabama & Georgia friends might head that way at various times, I told him I’d just post the route here. So, here it is…
Note: Sandy & I first took this route in 2000 going up in our Jeep, and ran it coming home in 2004 in Mom’s Mustang. We haven’t driven it in a Cobra – yet. Since everybody’s starting point varies, I’ll start the route from Ellijay, Georgia.
Start off in Ellijay with a fried pie, or two, at Panorama Orchards on the main 4-lane, which is GA Hwy 5/515. If it’s close to dinnertime (that’s the midday meal in Alabama-speak!), take old Hwy 5 into historic downtown for some good home cooking at the Davis House, just north of the town square.
Now that you’re properly fueled up, set out north on US 76 - GA 5/515 to Blue Ridge. Here, GA 5 breaks off from the main road, turning north toward Tennessee. You will come down off the ridge and into the town of McCaysville, Georgia. (http://www.blueridgemountains.com/mccaysville.html) Plan to spend a little time here just looking around, and take a photo or two of your Unique crossing the old iron bridge across the Toccoa / Ocoee River. Once across the river, you’re in Copper Hill, Tennessee, heading north on TN 68.
Now, for a large leg of your journey, you’re going to be in the Cherokee National Forest, passing through Ducktown & Turtletown, and crossing the Hiawassee River. Then, still on TN 68, you come out of the hills into Tellico Plains, Tennessee, western terminus of the Cherohala Skyway. (We have not been through the Skyway, but I think Mom & Dad have. An alternate route here would be to take the Skyway across to the east side of the mountains, then run the Tail of the Dragon back to the west…)
In Tellico Plains, you can either stay on TN 68, or get on the secondary state road, TN 360. (We ran TN 360 in the Mustang, but I honestly can’t remember if the surface was good enough that you would want to run it in a Cobra. This would just be an on-the-spot call to make.) With either highway, you will come out on US 411, then turn north in order to cross Tellico Lake on the Little Tennessee River.
Once you’ve made it across the river, you very quickly turn east on TN 72, a road that varies in style a great deal over the short length you are on it. It has wide-shoulder parkway-type sections, no-shoulder hedgerow-bounded farming areas, and lakeside views as it cuts east over to famed US 129. Here, you turn east/south on US 129, as if you’re aiming to run the Tail of the Dragon. US 129 follows the bank of the Little Tennessee River, carrying you up the valley and past a TVA dam (can’t remember the name!).
Then, you make your final turn to the north onto the Foothills Parkway. Twisty, but not overly so, it has several scenic overlooks that will provide you with a good opportunity to stretch your legs while taking in beautiful views of the Smokies’ southwestern slopes. The Foothills Parkway runs into US 321 in Walland, Tennessee, and from there you just head over to Townsend and on into Pigeon Forge.
So, that’s how we’ve done in twice. You may or may not want to run it. The nice thing is that there are so many options open to you from this route: the Cherohala Skyway, the Tail of the Dragon, US 321 through Wear Valley, Little River Road through Gatlinburg… It can make the trip a little more interesting than the usual I-75, US 411, or US 19 to Cherokee & US 441 to Gatlinburg routes.
(For mileage comparison, leaving from Ellijay, there is only ~10 miles difference between this route & the US 19/Nantahala Gorge/Cherokee/US 441 route to Pigeon Forge.)
Hope this helps somebody plan a fun trip!