Road To Nowhere (Bryson City, NC)

The Road To Nowhere is just that, a road to nowhere. Actually, it's more like a tunnel to nowhere.



According to Bryson City's Chamber Of Commerce, in the '30s and '40s, the federal government received a huge tract of land from Swain County for the creation of Fontana Lake and the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Many residents of the area were forced to leave before the area was flooded.



One of the stipulations of the agreement between Swain County and the federal government was that the government would replace the road that was flooded with a new road. Lakeview Drive was created, and plans were in place were in place for it to connect Bryson City and Fontana, 30 miles away.



Construction of Lakeview Drive ended abruptly ended in the early '70s, leaving Bryson City residents with a Road To Nowhere. After driving 6 miles from Bryson City, you'll come to a 1/4 mile tunnel through the mountains. And then... nothing. The road stops.



Why? According to the federal government, they found environmental issues with rocks leaking acid that made them permanently halt construction of the 30-mile road with only 1/5 of it completed. In 2010, the federal government agreed to pay Swain County $52 million for the failure of completing the road.



Today, you can drive up Lakeview Drive, park your car right before the tunnel, and walk through the tunnel to the other side.

What To Know Before You Go

GPS Coordinates: (35.459063, -83.538034)
Location: Lakeview Drive, Bryson City, NC

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