For a road that is going nowhere, they are doing a nice job of getting you there. Lets hope they find the funds to finish it this year.

On my way back from Georgia I decided to make a detour to investigate the progress on Onion Mountain Road east of Franklin, NC. This is one of my “pet” roads, one I’ve been watching ever since they started paving it last year. The work completed prior to the winter shut down really got my hopes up that this ridge top two lane would eventually be completely paved once warmer weather returned. The good news is the crews are back at it.

The bad news though, puts a damper on the whole situation. I was excited to follow a dump truck up the winding road, though a little dismayed to see the weight of the passing trucks was already damaging what had been an excellent paving job. Proceeding out onto the gravel section (no change from where  it had begun last year), I soon ran into the work crew. They have no expectation to complete the paving all the way through this year, funding has been cut. Why they are bothering with what they are doing is a mystery to me, it will be just another road to nowhere.

I’ll keep watching. Once paved, Onion Mountain Road will link a number a great motorcycle roads and allow you to avoid pretty but heavily trafficked US 64. I went ahead and added more of the surrounding roads to my America Rides Maps motorcycle pocket map “The Best Roads South of Great Smoky Mountains National Park – WEST” and am considering adding a few more once I give them another look. We’ll see how things develop.

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Wayne Busch - Cartographer