Saturday SkyWayah

Leaving the resort, we will start off the day with a drive to the western end of the Cherohala Skyway in Tellico, TN. The Skyway connects Tellico Plains, Tennessee, with Robbinsville, North Carolina, and is about 40+ miles long. The Cherohala Skyway is a wide, paved 2-laned road with elevations range from 900 feet above sea level at the Tellico River in Tennessee to over 5400 feet above sea level at the Tennessee-North Carolina state line at Haw Knob. While on the skyway we will make a quick pitstop for some pictures and to stretch our legs. From here we will make our way into Robbinsville, NC where we will stop for lunch. This would also be a good time for anyone needing fuel to refill.

 

From Robbinsville, we will start our afternoon drive making our way to the start of Wayah Rd.The west end starts you going up a gorge tracing the stream with some waterfalls mixed in. Once you reach the peak there is a large lake at the top. Nice winding road around it then the fun begins; lots of tight curves and more elevation changes. Keep your eyes on the road: not much in guard rails protecting you from some rather large drop-offs! Eventually you "wind down" on some less technical roads ending at a small gas station. From here, we will make our way back to the resort to conclude our day.

 

This drive is approximately 200 miles totalling almost 5 hours or driving time. Previous QDM and/or HelenBack spirited driving experience is required. While this drive is not designed to be the "fastest" of the day, it is going to be a ton of work since about a 100 miles of it will be spent navigating curvy roads.