Fontana Lake next to Great Smoky Mountains National Park (Photo: by Charles Snodgrass courtesy of the Bryson City / Swain County NC Chamber of Commerce)Ĭlimb aboard the Great Smoky Mountains Railroad at the historic train depot in Bryson City for an unforgettable ride through the surrounding countryside. The park service ferries family members across the lake each summer to visit the cemeteries. Government settled with the county and decided once and for all that the road wouldn’t be finished. Once you see daylight again, you can access several park trails. From there, grab a flashlight and follow the road through the 0.25-mile tunnel to see its end. Three miles from the park entrance is the parking area. From Bryson City, head north on Fontana Road, which turns into Lake View Drive just past the park boundary. Today, it’s known as “The Road to Nowhere,” and ends in a tunnel inside the park. Government promised to build a new road along the north shore of the new Fontana Lake to allow residents to access their family cemeteries, but the road, known as Lake View Drive, was halted due to an environmental issue. When the Fontana Dam was built in 1944, the resulting Fontana Lake displaced hundreds of small communities and flooded Old Highway 288, the road that accessed them. (: by Charles Snodgrass courtesy of the Bryson City / Swain County NC Chamber of Commerce) Float past Tom Branch Falls along Deep Creek’s 2-mile tubing section. While this trail is often used by folks tubing Deep Creek in the summer, the park service doesn’t recommend it as people get seriously injured every year and even drown. Hike the 2.4-mile Three Waterfalls Loop to see Juney Whank Falls, Tom Branch Falls and Indian Creek Falls. This isolated part of the park doesn’t offer access to other park roads or regions, but it is worth a visit for the incredible waterfalls. Tucked into the foothills of the Smoky Mountains southwest of Cherokee, Bryson City is a small and adorable North Carolina town that lets visitors explore Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Fontana Lake and surrounding national forests filled with hiking and water activities like whitewater rafting and paddle boarding.īryson City is just three miles from the Great Smoky Mountains’ Deep Creek area.
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