US-129 Santeetlah Lake - Robbinsville NC
From US-74/19/129 at Topton, US-129 turns west to lead folks to Robbinsville, Santeetlah Lake and Cheoah Lake in Tennessee. This has got to be about the most isolated area in the eastern United States. That in itself is a major attraction for the tourists who spend their summer vacations in resort communities like Fontana Village (see also: Fontana Lake).
The highway to Robbinsville is a good, two-lane with far too few scenic overlooks. Off to your right you can see the Cheoa Mountains and along that high ridge is the famous Appalachian Trail. Just before Robbinsville you'll cross the Tulula Creek which, together with the Sweetwater form the Cheoah River. In the early part of this century, the Aluminum Company of America ("Alcoa"), which was a major influence in the area south of Knoxville TN, built a dam across the Cheoah River about 16 miles downstream from Robbinsville. At the time it was the highest overflow dam in the world (and had the largest turbines in the world). All this was an attempt to supply the huge quantity of electric power required by the mining industry. (The TVA came along in the WW-II era to supplement this early effort to meet the nearly insatiable craving for electric power.)
Continuing from Robbinsville on US-129 you will get on-and-off sights of the Santeetlah Lake and, finally Santeetlah Dam, also on your left. After the dam the highway flirts with the Cheoah River as they both wind on their way to Tapoco (the name is an acronym for Tallassee Power Company. The workers building the Cheoah Dam were housed in Tapoco. Just west of Tapoco is the intersection of NC-28 which leads through Fontana Village, skirts Fontana Lake and joins US-74 between Wesser and Lauada (see also: Fontana Lake).
You can put this route together with the Fontana Lake route and the section of the Nantahala Gorge route which allows you to make a nice loop through some of the most scenic mountain land in the United States. Driving time for the entire loop (depending upon pauses to enjoy the scenery) is about 2 to 2½ hours.