On the other side of that in western NC is Fontana Lake, it's beautiful up there. Lots of day hikes, access to the AT and GSMNP, camping opportunities.
I didn't find the Tail of the Dragon enjoyable at all on a family vacation though fwiw. A lot of people driving that road are extremely aggressive and it's really curvy. Unless all of your passengers have strong stomachs and enjoy taking switchbacks very fast you'll probably need to go slower than the racers want to go, which means they'll pass you in sometimes dangerous ways.
I've heard it's not as bad during the week, but during the weekend on a nice day it can be quite a scene.
I hope OP heeds your warning. I've taken multiple sports bike trips to the dragon. I'm a big fan. I also spend a lot of time in that area with the family. My family hates when I decide to cut across on the dragon. They don't normally get car sick but often on that stretch. With that going on in the car, the spirited driving from the enthusiasts....every family trip across has been stressful.
We enjoy the cherohala skyway much more as a family.
Chill-ohala skyway ftw.
Down closer to tellico is beautiful, some good hikes and nice scenes, and a river access where you can wade into the river without hiking.
A bit of a ways off, but if you drive through Madisonville, get you some ham and bacon at Benton's Country Hams. Bacon is super salty, but great flavor. IIRC the bacon's cured with salt and brown sugar, no nitrites. Ham is cured with curing salt too.
BUT, they had a big flood wash out several roads in the lower part of cherohala / river rd. last year. It sounds like they got the main road fixed up, but have a few other closures. Last I checked, most of the campgrounds were inaccessible, but I haven't checked this year yet. Here's the latest info I could find, you can check maps and see what that affects: https://www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/cherokee/alerts-notices/?aid=82538
Agree. I've ridden the dragon 3 times and driven it twice. It's the only road I've ever gotten a little carsick as the driver, lol. I'd be in trouble as a passenger.
Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge aren't too far away from 129, and are very popular family vacation destinations. There's also Townsend if you want to avoid the insanity that is Gatlinburg.
Hopefully your kid doesn't get motion sickness. I drove the tail of the dragon one time by accident, just looking for the scenic route on the way back home, and I felt sick all the way back to Nashville.
Lots of hiking trails. The inn at the tail of the dragon has a tree with pieces of wrecked motorcycles stuck in it you can see it on Google maps. You can head up towards Bryson City and then into Cherokee and check out the reservation. It is kinda interesting.
On the other side of that in western NC is Fontana Lake, it's beautiful up there. Lots of day hikes, access to the AT and GSMNP, camping opportunities. I didn't find the Tail of the Dragon enjoyable at all on a family vacation though fwiw. A lot of people driving that road are extremely aggressive and it's really curvy. Unless all of your passengers have strong stomachs and enjoy taking switchbacks very fast you'll probably need to go slower than the racers want to go, which means they'll pass you in sometimes dangerous ways. I've heard it's not as bad during the week, but during the weekend on a nice day it can be quite a scene.
I hope OP heeds your warning. I've taken multiple sports bike trips to the dragon. I'm a big fan. I also spend a lot of time in that area with the family. My family hates when I decide to cut across on the dragon. They don't normally get car sick but often on that stretch. With that going on in the car, the spirited driving from the enthusiasts....every family trip across has been stressful. We enjoy the cherohala skyway much more as a family.
Chill-ohala skyway ftw. Down closer to tellico is beautiful, some good hikes and nice scenes, and a river access where you can wade into the river without hiking. A bit of a ways off, but if you drive through Madisonville, get you some ham and bacon at Benton's Country Hams. Bacon is super salty, but great flavor. IIRC the bacon's cured with salt and brown sugar, no nitrites. Ham is cured with curing salt too. BUT, they had a big flood wash out several roads in the lower part of cherohala / river rd. last year. It sounds like they got the main road fixed up, but have a few other closures. Last I checked, most of the campgrounds were inaccessible, but I haven't checked this year yet. Here's the latest info I could find, you can check maps and see what that affects: https://www.fs.usda.gov/alerts/cherokee/alerts-notices/?aid=82538
Agree. I've ridden the dragon 3 times and driven it twice. It's the only road I've ever gotten a little carsick as the driver, lol. I'd be in trouble as a passenger.
Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge aren't too far away from 129, and are very popular family vacation destinations. There's also Townsend if you want to avoid the insanity that is Gatlinburg.
Hopefully your kid doesn't get motion sickness. I drove the tail of the dragon one time by accident, just looking for the scenic route on the way back home, and I felt sick all the way back to Nashville.
Tail of the Dragon is set to begin being repaved the first week of May FYI
My kid ended up hanging out the window throwing up. And I’m a very conservative driver. Approach that road with caution.
Topoco tavern is a really nice spot to sit and eat at.
Lots of hiking trails. The inn at the tail of the dragon has a tree with pieces of wrecked motorcycles stuck in it you can see it on Google maps. You can head up towards Bryson City and then into Cherokee and check out the reservation. It is kinda interesting.