Wayah Road from US19/74 to US64, or the reverse route.
Scenery
Hard to keep your eyes on the road at times! The west end starts you going up a gorge tracing the stream with some waterfalls mixed in. Once you reach the peak (the AP trail crosses around here) 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 and at a little gas station/convenience shop. IIRC, this station has REAL gas (no ethanol).
Drive Enjoyment
I'm rating this as a three. Some sections are real nice; some are dirty. The west side of the road is hard for me to read where it looks like there's loose gravel, but it's really not.
Tourism Opportunities
Not a whole lot between the two main roads. Take this drive for the scenery and the curves.
Great road. Found out about it reading a bulletin board at Deals Gap. Not a lot of traffic. Great scenery, good elevation change.
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3 riders found this road review useful
Moe-Moe
October 12, 2012
17 McR Points
Motorcycle Type : Cruiser
I recently came across this road by accident while on a trip to the Smokies with my father (our 1st father-daughter trip!!). We hit all of the "classic" roads in the area, but I'd still have to say this one was our favorite and will be a "must ride" every time I return to the area. There is quite a bit of shifting involved and has some very tight, blind, decreasing radius turns but all in all we loved it, we felt like OWNED the road. We didn't see one vehicle until we were taking a photo opp at a bridge.
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2 riders found this road review useful
ThomSS
July 17, 2019
3743 McR Points
Motorcycle Type : Other
We started at 74 and rode west to east. First couple miles is a beautiful ride along the Nantahala River with places to pull off. Road twists and winds and takes you past Nantahala Lake, it ends at Loafer's Glory General Store where you can purchase Wayah Road t-shirts and decals. Not a road you want to be too aggressive on. For the most part road is in decent shape, there are plenty of twists, you do have to watch for loose gravel in the curves from time to time especially once you get east of the lake. Nice scenery, hardly any traffic until you get to the far east end. If your in the area be sure to find this road, a true hidden gem! If road was a little better I would give it 5 stars.