Drive Lakeview Drive

Drive Lakeview Drive.

NPS

Overview

Lakeview Drive is an 11.4-mile (18.3 km) roundtrip paved road that climbs out of Bryson City, North Carolina, and offers scenic views of Fontana Lake and the surrounding mountains. The drive includes four overlooks and several hiking trails such as Noland Creek Trail, Benton McKaye Trail, Goldmine Loop, and Lakeshore Trail and is ideal for visitors seeking a road less traveled for leaf-peeping, wildlife viewing, and picnicking. Lakeview Drive ends at the mouth of Lakeview Drive Tunnel, a 1,200-foot unlit, pedestrian-only tunnel and the trailhead for Lakeshore Trail to Fontana Dam. Lakeview Drive highlights Swain County’s early mountaineer and logging history. Hikers may see evidence of displaced communities[SS1] and the remnants of the area’s many historic churches, homesteads, farms, orchards, and sawmills.

History

Lakeview Drive is located in Swain County, North Carolina. Like residents of all counties bordering the park, Swain County families experienced emotional loss in the 1930s when they had to leave their homes and farms to make way for the creation of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Hardly a decade later, in 1942 Fontana Dam’s construction by Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) began and forced some Swain County families who had relocated outside of the park boundaries to relocate yet again. TVA purchased some tracts of land and forced residents of others out by eminent domain. TVA constructed Fontana Dam by wartime necessity to generate electricity for Oak Ridge, TN and the top-secret Manhattan Project. Construction of the hydroelectric dam was completed in 1945. With the dam in place, the Little Tennessee River was flooded, and Fontana Lake was formed over an area previously inhabited by over 1,000 residents in the towns of Proctor, Judson, Fontana and surrounding areas.

In 1943, the 44,170 acres of land acquired by TVA for the construction of Fontana Dam and the subsequent formation of Fontana Lake was transferred to the Department of the Interior and incorporated into Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The same agreement that facilitated this land transfer also included a provision to construct Lakeview Drive along the north shore of the newly formed lake. This road was intended to reconnect displaced residents with cemeteries and other important community sites that were now located across the 17-mile-long Fontana Lake.Construction of Lakeview Drive, then known as North Shore Road, began in the 1960s. However, due to slope instability, high costs, and significant environmental challenges, the project was halted in 1972 and never completed. In 2007, the National Park Service agreed to a $52 million cash settlement with Swain County to honor the original 1943 agreement regarding the road’s completion. The federal government fulfilled the settlement payments in full by 2017.

The road now serves as a scenic getaway that showcases footprints of homesteads still honored by descendants and highlights the sacrifice of these communities to the formation of Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the construction of Fontana Dam.

Detailed Directions 

From the Swain County Visitor Center and Heritage Museum in downtown Bryson City, follow Everett Street north and continue on Fontana Road for about 2.5 miles until you reach Lakeview Drive entrance.
Mile 3.2: Fontana Lake Overlook has 8 parking spaces, 1 picnic table, and 1 trash can.
Mile 5.0: Access to Noland Creek Trail and Benton McKaye Trail with 21 parking spaces.
Mile 5.4: No trail access, 6 parking spaces.
Mile 5.7: Access to Lakeview Drive Tunnel, Tunnel Bypass Trail, Goldmine Loop Trail, and Lakeshore Trail with 12 parking spaces.

Length 

11.4 miles (18.3 km) roundtrip

Parking 

Parking availability varies by overlook. Don’t forget your parking tag.

Nearest Restroom 

Deep Creek Picnic Area (open seasonally)

Similar Routes

Foothills Parkway (Cosby to I-40)
Foothills Parkway (Chilhowee to Walland)
Foothills Parkway (Walland to Wears Valley)
 

Details

Activity

Scenic Driving

Pets Allowed

Yes

The Gatlinburg Trail and Oconaluftee River Trail are the only two park trails where pets are permitted. Pets are also allowed in picnic areas, in campgrounds, and on roads.

Activity Fee

Yes

A parking tag is required to park in the Smokies for more than 15 minutes.

Reservations

No

Accessibility Information

Accessible parking spaces are available at each overlook and parking area. The entirety of Lakeview Drive is paved but adjacent trails are on gravel or soil with occasional rocks and roots.