Imagine you’re leaving the nearby city to visit Fontana Lake, following the winding roads and turns, enjoying the ride. It’s morning, and although it’s a little chilly, you roll the window down slightly to take in nature as you pass through. The trees are enormous and tall. They stand as if they were nature’s pillars on both sides of the road. You keep going, but slow down as you notice a peculiar sign in the distance reading: Welcome to the Road to Nowhere—a Broken Promise- 1943.
Ah, perhaps you should have done more research on the place. If you continued, you would encounter a barrier requiring you to park your car, exit, and hike until you reach a tunnel. And chances are you wouldn’t be alone if you did! Many visitors and urban explorers alike enjoy coming here. The inside of the tunnel is graffitied, so scratch that – three kinds of people enjoy coming here. How could I forget? The artists.
Despite the light at the end of the tunnel looking quite promising, if you didn’t pay attention until this point, you’d be shocked to find the other side leading to a complete dead end! The road stops, and nature begins. So what happened here? Where is the rest of the road?
Lakeview Drive fell victim to an environmental issue, and construction was halted, with the road ending at a tunnel approximately six miles into the park. The ecological issue was eventually deemed too expensive, and the roadwork was never resumed. And Swain County’s citizens gave the unfinished Lakeview Drive its popular, albeit unofficial name,e ‘The Road To Nowhere.
The federal government had promised Lakeview Drive as a replacement for Highway 288, which was eventually flooded due to the construction of the Fontana Dam in 1941. Fontana Lake began spilling over into the streets, eventually flooding nearby communities.
So, if you haven’t been to the Great Smoky Mountains, you have to visit. It’s a beautiful sight to witness in person, and the Road to Nowhere is just one of many locations waiting for you in North Carolina.
Written By: Israel Petty
