Cherohala Skyway: Tellico Plains to Robbinsville
A 43-mile National Scenic Byway between Tellico Plains, Tennessee, and Robbinsville, North Carolina, climbing to 5,390 ft. Long, sweeping mountain curves rather than tight hairpins — a different character from the Dragon it connects to at the Robbinsville end.
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Closes unpredictably above about 4,000 ft in icy or snowy conditions, typically November through March, sometimes with little notice. North Carolina plows its side; Tennessee's side does not get plowed the same way. Check current status before a winter or early-spring trip. Check current access ↗ · Reviewed 2026-09-16
Planning the drive
The Skyway is built for a completely different rhythm than the Dragon it connects to: 149 bends and 34 switchbacks sound similar until you spread them over 41.6 miles instead of 11 — a density of 3.6 per mile against the Dragon's 10.5. These are long, high-speed sweepers with real sightlines, not blind hairpins, climbing steadily to 5,382 ft. It rewards a smooth, sustained rhythm rather than the Dragon's braking-and-recovery demands. National Scenic Byway Foundation: Cherohala Skyway ↗
The road closes without much warning above roughly 4,000 ft when ice or snow hits, typically November through March. North Carolina plows its side; Tennessee's side doesn't get the same treatment, so a closed gate at the Robbinsville end can mean the upper sections are out even when the Tennessee approach looks clear. Check current status before a winter or early-spring run. Cherohala.org: winter conditions ↗
Roads to connect
- Tail of the Dragon · US 129Meets US 129 at the Robbinsville end — a totally different, tighter road.
Driving notes updated .
Road shape
- Length
- 41.6 mi
- Bends
- 149
- Switchbacks
- 34
- Bends per mile
- 3.6
- Turning per mile
- 372°
- Curviest rank
- 81of 141
Measured from the OpenStreetMap centreline at a 20 m sampling step — road shape only, not a safety or speed judgement. How bends are counted.
Elevation
- Total climb
- 10,149ft
- Climb per mile
- 244ft
- Highest point
- 5,382ft
- Steepest grade
- 8.5%
Sampled every 100 m from USGS 10 m elevation data, a public-domain federal dataset. Total climb counts vertical change in both directions, so it does not depend on which way you drive. How elevation is measured.
Speed limits
Varies
Unverified
Check posted signs along the road.
OpenStreetMap tags parts of the North Carolina side at 45 mph, but this project does not treat OSM tags alone as a verified source. Follow posted signs.
Posted signs always govern. How speed evidence is handled.
Sources
Difficulty 2/3 (Winding) is our editorial rating of width, bends and sightlines; “Medium speed” describes character, not a target speed. Full method. Identified from:
- National Scenic Byway Foundation: Cherohala Skyway ↗
- Wikipedia: Cherohala Skyway ↗
- OpenStreetMap road data ↗ (14 ways in this trace)
Reviewed 2026-09-16. The trace shows selected road sections, not a navigation route.
Roads nearby
Distances are approximate straight lines between road centers, not driving distances or direct connections.