Lake View Drive, more commonly known as the “Road to Nowhere”, begins just outside Bryson City and runs approximately 6.5 miles inside the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Its construction is like that of the Blue Ridge Parkway with many gentle curves and some beautiful vistas. Its destination is, literally, nowhere. The road was never completed after the construction of Fontana Dam, and it ends at the entrance to a tunnel. It’s a fun, short motorcycle ride that leads to some beautiful hiking trails. One set of trails is reached by walking approximately 1200 ft. through the tunnel. Another trail, Noland Creek, begins at a trailhead just before the end of the road. There is ample parking at the trailhead and at the tunnel.
With over 60 cabins and vacation rentals near Bryson City, Sylva, Cullowhee, Bear Lake, and Tuckasegee, NC — Sundog Vacation Rentals is one of the largest rental companies in Western North Carolina and the surrounding areas. The Great Smoky Mountains have so much to offer. Browse our vacation properties, book online today, and rest easy knowing your mountain vacation is on the horizon. Interested in a mountain resort vacation? Several resort destinations are conveniently located to all the outdoor activities and excursions you expect to find in the Blue Ridge mountains. Not ready to book online? Kick start your mountain vacation by speaking to a knowledgeable reservationist today.
The essence of the perfect North Carolina family mountain vacation, this smoky mountain cabin sets the standard for family lodging. Situated in the heart of the Snowbird Mountains on Snowbird Creek the outdoor enthusiast will be as close to paradise as they can get on this earth. You can catch your limit of Rainbow or Brown trout without starting your car. Hike to waterfalls or a stretch of the Appalachian Trail. Tranquility and seclusion on a private road affords long quiet walks and a safe place for the kids to act like kids. Our lakes and creeks will give you memories your family will cherish for a lifetime.
In The Great Smoky Mountains Near Robbinsville, North Carolina
The Inn, our dream, is a true log home bed and breakfast. Sitting on top of a knoll overlooking the Stecoah Gap. The 360 degree views are breathtaking. Less than a mile from the Appalachian Trail. Rooms are filled with primitive antique furniture along with several pieces faithfully hand-crafted by the innkeepers themselves. The pavilion is a great spot to host weddings.
Since 1954, McDonald’s has been dedicated to serving quality food and quick service at an affordable price for our customers. Visit your nearby McDonald’s and choose from a full menu of favorites, including McCafé® coffee, All Day Breakfast, juicy burgers like our Quarter Pounder®* with Cheese and more!
Restaurants nationwide offer numerous amenities to ensure every customer has an enjoyable experience. Find out if your local nearby McDonald’s is open 24 hours, offers drive thru or McDelivery®**, has a PlayPlace and more from our restaurant locator. Plus, order ahead in the App and get your food when you arrive at the restauraunt with Mobile Order and Pay†, available exclusively on the McDonald’s App!
Next time you’re looking for a tasty treat, head to a McDonald’s nearby. For information on deals, download the McDonald’s App today!
*Weight before cooking 4 oz.
**At participating McDonald’s. Value menu and promotional pricing not valid for delivery. Delivery prices may be higher than at restaurants. Uber Eats delivery fee, service fee and small order fee apply. See Uber Eats app for details.
† McD App download and registration required. Mobile Order & Pay available at participating McDonald’s.
Discover really good food at Snowbird Mountain Lodge.
Innovative menus and enticing surroundings await you on the mountain.
Embrace The Nostalgia of Simpler Times
with a crackling fire in a historic lodge, walls lined with books, and a Mountain View beyond measure. Add in really good food with ingredients from farms and growers close by, sitting in classic rockers on the deck, or sipping your favorite cocktail while sharing laughter, and you have found Snowbird. A place where connection, intention, and nature are abundant and welcome you with open arms.
Perched on the banks of a peaceful, mountain creek, Creekside Paradise is the perfect basecamp to all your adventures. Whether you’re a hiker, biker, or casual explorer, we look forward to welcoming you to our corner of the mountains here in Western North Carolina. Come relax in the hot tub, nap by the creek, hike the many scenic trails, or simply cozy up with a cup of complimentary coffee by the campfire. However you define adventure, we welcome it!
Fine Dining Italian Cuisine:
Dinner Menu
Pasta Dishes: All Come with Soup or Salad and Bread Basket
Soup: Pasta E. Fagioli, 2 soup of the day
Salad Dressing: House Balsamic Italian, Ranch, or Caesar. We also have Bleu Cheese, Thousand Island, and Honey Mustard.
-Spaghetti (marinara, alfredo, meatsauce, meatballs, or italian sausage 9.95-10.95
-Tortellini: 1) Baked with Meatsauce and Alfredo
2) Alfini: alfredo tortellini with mushrooms and green & red peppers 13.50
-Vegtable and Meat Lasagna* 12.95
-Blackened Pasta: Alfredo sauce, peppers and tomatoes 1) Cajun Style Chicken with Penne Noodles* 2) Cajun Shrimp with Fettucini Noodles 14.95
-Artichoke Fettucini Pasta with Mushrooms and Tomatoes with a Garlic and Olive Oil Pasta 13.50
-Pasta Primavera: Alfredo Penne with carrrots, mushrooms and peppers
ENTREES:
Sterling Silver Steaks:
12-14oz 18.95 Ribeye, NY Strip, Prime Rib*(Friday/Saturday Only)
10-12oz 23.95 Filet Mignon
Chicken Dishes: 14.95
Hand-Breaded Chicken Parmigiana*, Pasqualino’s Famous Chicken, Chicken Cacciatore, Chicken Puttanesca, Chicken Marsala, and Chicken Cordon Bleu.
Veal Marsala 18.95
Our Marsala’s come made with a strong Marsala Wine. Taste doesn’t suit ALL.
All Entrees come with your choice of Soup or Salad as well as Spaghetti with Marinara or Spaghetti with Alfredo. Choice of Baked Potato to substitute Spaghetti on Friday/Saturdays Only.
DESSERTS: New York Cheesecake, French Silk Pie, Tiramisu, and Cannoli
We Do not Make our Desserts but they are the BEST quality.
FULL SERVICE BAR INLCUDE:
Mixed Drinks, Wine, Fresh Made Sangria, and Beer
Beer: 3-3.50
Budweiser, Bud Light, Michelob Ultra, Michelob Light, Bavaria, Odoyls, and Bass.
Ask about our Drink Specials.
OUR TEAM:
We are dedicated to our Customers and their Satisfaction. We as a TEAM will do our best to ensure that your visit to our restaurant will be not only be the BEST, but Definitely not your Last. If you are in need of service, let Any of our Servers Know. As a Team, we can ensure Better Service than an individual. As for the Owners, Nancy and/or Pascual are there for you at All times to ensure that your Dinner will be what you deserve.
The highest and longest continuous route in the Appalachians, the Blue Ridge Parkway runs for 469 miles through North Carolina and Virginia. It has 26 tunnels, 168 bridges, and 6 viaducts. The Southern end of the Parkway is just 10 miles from Bryson City at Milepost 469. The 90 miles between there and Asheville is thought by many to be the most scenic. There are many overlooks where you can stop and enjoy the amazing vistas, and the Parkway has a 45 MPH speed limit which makes this ride very relaxing.
Our unique tiny house style cabins are perfect for family vacations, motorcycle tours, romantic getaways, and camping adventures. Cabin rates start at $38 per night. You can also choose to stay in our campground. We welcome tents, RVs, and campers. Escape to the mountains and enjoy our general store, concrete driveway, covered bike parking, WiFi, firewood, ice, and a clean, warm bathhouse. We are honored to offer a 15% military discount (ID required @ check-In).
The Perfect Mountain Cabin Getaway
Dreaming of a romantic getaway in a picture-perfect Smoky Mountain log cabin? That dream comes true at Cherokee Mountain Cabins — hand-crafted one, two and three-bedroom luxury cabin rentals near Nantahala Lake. Mountainside cabins. Creekside cabins. Rustic, romantic and elegant with no shortage of creature comforts —
- Romantic Gift Packages
- Concierge
- Massage
- Hot Tub
- Pool Table
- Outdoor Fireplace
- Gourmet Kitchen
When you stay in our cabins, you’re in the middle of Western North Carolina’s great outdoor playground with whitewater rafting, zip lining, horseback riding, hiking, boating, fishing, golfing, mountain biking and scenic drives all at your doorstep.
Just above Cherokee Mountain Cabins, the beautiful Nantahala Lake is the second highest lake east of the Mississippi. And below our cabins, the Nantahala River offers world-class trout fishing and one of the south’s most popular whitewater sports venues.
Hello, My named is Chef Shea Blalock Anderson. I was raised in Western North Carolina and attended collage at Johnson and Wales University in Charleston, South Carolina where I earned a Bachelor’s in Hotel and Restaurant Management, Associate of Science in Culinary Arts. That’s were I developed my true passion for southern comfort foods.
My distinctive brand of cooking is a brilliant juxtaposition of rustic flavors with refined, classically inspired preparations. Willow Tree Catering and Baking reflex’s childhood food memories and traditions growing up in the North Carolina Mountains.
My Refreshing approach to Southern Cuisine, with its blend of gourmet flare to create dishes like White Cheddar Grit Puppies, Pan-Seared Local Rainbow Mountain Trout with Tomato Jalapeno Jam and my mama’s Cornbread Salad.
At its heart, Willow Tree Catering and Baking combined with the celebration of local ingredients and vibrant food culture and Southern upbringing. Brimming with flavorful dishes and memorable stories to showcase the very best that Robbinsville, North Carolina has to offer.
Long-running restaurant serving steak, American fare, beer & wine in a casual, old-fashioned space.
Casual counter-serve chain for build-your-own sandwiches & salads, with health-conscious options.
Joyce Kilmer Memorial Forest is part of the Nantahala National Forest, approximately 3,800 acre tract of publicly owned virgin forest in Graham County, NC, near Robbinsville as a living memorial to the writer/poet Joyce Kilmer. Veterans of the Foreign Wars asked the government to set aside a fitting stand of trees to serve as a living memorial to Joyce Kilmer, who was killed in action during World War I. Although Kilmer was both a soldier and a poet, he is most remembered for his poetry about common, beautiful things in nature
One of the largest contiguous tracts of old growth forest in the Eastern United States, the area is administered by the U. S. Forest Service. The memorial is a rare example of old growth cove hardwood forest, a diverse type unique to the Appalachian Mountains. In 1975 the memorial forest was joined with a much larger tract of the Nantahala National Forest to become part of the Joyce Kilmer-Slickrock Wilderness.
Due to a devastating disease of the American chestnut tree that caused a rapid, widespread die-off of the once plentiful tree from its historic range in the Eastern United States, the American chestnut, once the dominant tree of the forest, was affected by the chestnut blight. Although the last of the Kilmer chestnuts had probably died by the late 1930s, their wood is so rot-resistant that remnants of the massive logs and stumps are still visible.
Another more recent loss is that of the giant hemlocks due to an infestation of an exotic insect, the hemlock woolly adelgid. For safety of visitors from a falling limb or tree, Forest Service managers decided to bring down dead trees near the memorial trail in a way they believed would mimic natural blowdown. In November 2010, the Forest Service blew up the trees with explosives, making the lower loop trail much lighter and drier.
The best way to enjoy the impressive memorial forest is by doing the easy 2-mile hike to see the majestic Trees such as Sycamore, Beech, Basswood, Red and White Oaks and Hemlock. Some of the trees are over 400 years old and the oldest Yellow-Poplars are more than 20 ft (6.1 m) in circumference and stand 100 ft (30 m) tall. Aside from the trees there are also other variety of shrubs, vines, ferns, mosses and other plants to see. This popular family hiking destination features an easy two-mile, figure-eight trail and has two loops: the 1-1/4 miles lower loop passes the Joyce Kilmer Memorial plaque, and the upper ¾ mile loop swings through Poplar Cove, a grove of the largest trees.
The trailhead parking area has a flush toilet and picnic tables. No camping or overnight parking is allowed.
The only way to see the impressive memorial forest is on foot. The figure-eight Joyce Kilmer National Recreation Trail covers two miles and has two loops: the 1.25-mile lower loop passes the Joyce Kilmer Memorial plaque, and the upper 0.75-mile loop swings though Popular Cove – a grove of the forest’s largest trees. The trailhead parking area has a flush toilet and picnic tables. No camping or overnight parking is allowed.
Located about 15 miles from Robbinsville. Take Highway 129 North for 1½ miles to the junction with Highway 143 West (Massey Branch Road). Turn left on Highway 143 and travel approx 4 miles to a stop sign/T intersection. Turn right and drive for approx 7.3 miles and bear to the right at the junction of Santeetlah Gap and the Cherohala Skyway. Continue for another 2½ miles to the entrance of the Joyce Kilmer Memorial Forest on your left.
From adding more balanced options to our Happy Meal®, to serving up fresh beef Quarter Pounder® burgers that are cooked when you order, we’re always finding ways to show our commitment to our customers and our food.
If you want to ride the same roads as the Prohibition Era moonshiners, put the “Moonshiner 28” run on your touring calendar. This 103-mile route begins at US 129 at the “Tail of the Dragon,” and meanders southeastward through North Carolina and into upstate South Carolina. In contrast to The Dragon’s non-stop twists and turns, Moonshiner 28 offers a 55-mph speed limit for the majority of your ride.
As you cruise along, you’ll encounter a nice mix of twists and turns, sweeping arcs, and memorable scenery. Shortly after you begin the trip, for example, you’ll arrive at the massive Fontana Dam. Here, you’ll enjoy a bird’s eye view of beautiful Fontana Lake and Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
Heading toward Highlands in southern North Carolina, you’ll see the notable Cullasaja Falls that cascades downward in a 250-foot drop. Further along, you’ll encounter Dry Falls, a popular destination for travelers of all ages. Enjoy an easy hike from the parking lot, and wind your way downward to the impressive 75-foot waterfall. For an experience you won’t forget, stand under the roaring falls and take in the sights and sounds.
Finally, Moonshiner 28 takes you on a leisurely trek through Georgia and South Carolina, with the quiet town of Walhalla marking the end of your trip. Throughout your ride, you’ll find basic to super-nice accommodations and an enticing assortment of antique and craft shops. If you’re looking for a hearty meal to fuel your travels, you’ll find plenty of options to suite your tastes.
Our philosophy is to “Eat with Integrity – Live with Gratitude.” Our intention is to carefully and continuously craft a menu that allows you to have as close of a relationship with your food as possible. We start by selecting responsibly sourced ingredients with a focus on organic, local, sustainable & seasonal fare. Our chefs artfully blend this fresh concept with a twist on traditional southern influences. Indulge yourself with our savory & sweet signature dishes that are simply and respectfully presented to engage your senses.
With a charming rustic atmosphere, attentive service and contemporary American cuisine we hope that you enjoy an exceptional dining experience. Cheers Y’all.
Inside the Main Lodge, The Mountview Bistro at Fontana Village Resort boasts both great food and amazing views of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Enjoy a great meal in an elegant, relaxing, atmosphere while sharing stories of the day’s catch, wildlife seen on your hike, and the many other highlights of your Smoky Mountain vacation.
The Mountview Bistro offers a savory menu featuring the freshest local vegetables and meats, baked goods, and desserts plated to perfection. No matter your taste, the Mountview Bistro is the front row seat for every meal
Tourist attraction in Swain County, North Carolina
Ok so this wasn’t on MY bucket list .. but was on my husband’s so it was on our anniversary trip to-do list! And it really didn’t disappoint ether! 318 turns in 11 miles with steep drops and no guard rails! This road is not for inexperienced drivers… But if you drive slow and take the turns carefully it is a pretty amazing experience. There are some cool shops just before you drive into TN that mark the beginning of your drive, and they have memorabilia and stuff. Look for the dragon statue to your left– he is all made of metal! Just beware.. it isn’t for people who don’t like heights or who can’t navigate turns well.
318 turns in 11 miles, one of if not the best drive I’ve ever been on! If you love curvy, challenging mountain roads and amazing views, this is the route for you! I drove through completely by accident on my way to the Foothills Parkway but I’ve always wanted to drive the tail of the dragon and I got to its something you must do if in the area!
The Dragon is popular and internationally famous destination for motorcycle and sports car enthusiasts since 1981. Known as America’s number 1 motorcycle and sports car road, famous for its 318 curves in 11 miles (18 km). The road earned its name from its curves being said to resemble a dragons tail. The stretch bears the street name Tapoco Road in North Carolina and Calderwood Highway in Tennessee and is signed entirely by US 129 (hidden SR 115).
Deals Gap, also known as Tail of the Dragon, is a portion of U.S. Route 129 in Blount County, Tennessee, situated in a gap in Swain County, North Carolina, United States. It was publicized as one of the most scenic drives in USA. This road is appealing to those who are looking for adrenaline rush and excitement. With hundreds of blind curves, long blind crests, and high degrees of camber, this road presents plenty of opportunities to leave the pavement both laterally, and longitudinally, and will provide a challenge even for the most seasoned drivers/bikers.
The Great Smoky Mountains and Cherokee National Forest border the Dragon, there is no development along the 11-mile stretch, this adds to safety as well as natural beauty. The Dragon stretch of US 129 is double-lined as no passing (there are pull offs you can use to allow tailgaters to get ahead of you.) There are also pull-off points along the route for scenic overlooks. The road is certainly breathtaking, but has a fearsome reputation, speed limit was posted at 30 mph in 2002 and still in effect today. Trucks are also prohibited to enter the road due to previous accidents and incidents involving trucks and semi-tractor.
The best time to drive this road is between March and November. Winter months can be hard to predict. The weather on this zone is harsh and highly unpredictable and it does not take much time for the bright sun shine to change over to moderate to heavy snow fall. This road had a reputation for being extremely dangerous because of unpredictable snowstorms and blizzards, and driving under these conditions, can be challenging. This road is not for the faint hearted, but if you are looking for a little excitement and adrenaline pumping journey, dont miss this one.
Enjoy a complimentary award winning country breakfast served in your own private room. Four decks with creek views for your enjoyment. Gas grill, campfire area, hot tub, hiking trails just to name a few of the amenities right out the front door. Private entrance, fridge and microwave and tv in each room. Jetted bathtub and outdoor hot tub.