Best driving roads in the Southern Appalachians

Our first region outside California: 10 roads across Tennessee, North Carolina, Virginia and Georgia, anchored by Tail of the Dragon on US 129. Built with the same sourced, measured method as every other road on this site.

10
Roads: 249
Miles: 1,071
Counted bends: 7
Areas

The roads

Tail of the Dragon · US 129Great Smoky Mountains · 11 mi318 curves in 11 miles of US 129 between Deals Gap, on the North Carolina–Tennessee line, and Chilhowee Lake in Tennessee. No intersections, driveways or side roads along the way, and no guardrail for much of it.
Cherohala SkywayCherokee & Nantahala National Forests · 41.6 miA 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.
Back of the Dragon · VA 16Clinch Mountain, Southwest Virginia · 32.7 mi32 miles of Virginia Route 16 between Marion and Tazewell, Virginia, crossing Clinch Mountain with more than 400 curves — Virginia's officially designated motorcycle route, and the Dragon's sister road in the Southern Appalachians touge circuit.
Devil's Whip · NC 80Blue Ridge Parkway corridor, North Carolina · 12.1 mi12 miles of North Carolina Highway 80 between Buck Creek Gap on the Blue Ridge Parkway and Marion, NC, with around 160 curves and roughly 2,000 ft of elevation change along Buck Creek.
Wolf Pen Gap Road · GA 180North Georgia Mountains · 11.2 miThe 11-mile western section of Georgia Highway 180 between Suches and the US 19/129 concurrency, a favorite of the North Georgia riding community. The road continues east as a separate named section (Bald Mountain Road) after the concurrency, not mapped here.
Richard B. Russell Scenic Highway · GA 348North Georgia Mountains · 14 mi14 miles of Georgia Highway 348 through the Chattahoochee National Forest between Helen and Blairsville, on the eastern side of the Russell–Brasstown Scenic Byway. Rolling mountain curves rather than tight switchbacks.
Moonshiner 28 · NC 28Great Smoky Mountains · 55.5 mi55 miles of North Carolina Highway 28 south from Deals Gap to Franklin, nearly continuous curves the whole way and named for the bootleggers who used it to cross state lines during Prohibition. Picks up right where the Tail of the Dragon ends.
Cullasaja Gorge · US 64Nantahala National Forest · 13.6 miUS 64 from Highlands toward Franklin, dropping through the Cullasaja River Gorge past multiple waterfalls in the first several miles. Part of the Mountain Waters Scenic Byway, with real, recent closure history from storm damage.
Foothills ParkwayGreat Smoky Mountains · 31.6 miThe western section of this National Park Service parkway, about 33 miles between US 129 at Chilhowee (the Tail of the Dragon's own northern end) and US 321 at Wears Valley. Wide lanes and sweeping curves rather than tight technical corners, with sustained ridge views of the Smokies.
Roan Mountain · NC 261 & TN 143Roan Highlands · 25.4 miNC 261 and TN 143 combine into one continuous 25-mile route over Roan Mountain, meeting at Carvers Gap (5,500 ft) where the state line and the Appalachian Trail cross the road. Very curvy on both sides of the gap, through Cherokee National Forest and Roan Mountain State Park.