Driving Tour - Western NC

scotty54

Registered User
I realize not everyone is within driving distance of Eastern TN and Western NC but if you plan on visiting Gatlinburg or other tourist spots in the area, consider driving the Cherohola Skyway and Tail of the Dragon. I took my SC and drove both last week and they are awesome!

The Cherohola Skyway is more scenic, higher altitude and faster - fewer sharp turns but nice banked turns that allow you to maintain a decent speed (40-60 mph). Around 45 miles with several overlooks and trailheads. The NC side of the road is a little smoother than the TN side.

The Tail of the Dragon has 318 turns in 11 miles, many are hairpin. Speed is much slower as some of the turns are 15 mph (or so the sign says -haha). It descends or ascends (depending on which way you go) and more traffic. Lots of motorcycles, and I found several older riders who have trouble staying in their lane, or at least off the center line.

This was the first road trip for my low miles 94 SC and it performed flawlessly on both courses. I bought this car because I was always interested in the supercharged motor (which I found to be a little underpowered), but what it lacks there it makes up for in handling. It took the Dragon curves like a pro. I did the entire route in 2nd gear (auto trans) and could enter the curves and come out at speed with no body lean, maintaining traction, and comfort for driver and passenger. It is 100% stock except for Focal wheels and Goodyear Assurance tires.
 
There was a tour around TN back in 2018 which was named Epic Drive.... it started in Ashville NC and included the tail of the dragon and also included the motorcycle museum. It was very cool but would have been cooler if I brought my SuperCoupe instead of my daily driver Subaru :(
 
As others have indicated, several of us hit those roads back in 2018 and had a blast. We hit some different stretches of the Blue Ridge Parkway in 2019. I definitely want to get back there at some point. And this time, I won't be caught off guard when my fuel pump runs dry on a long hard right turn.
 
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