Skip to main content

Another NC Roadtrip - The Foothills

Last weekend, I was back in Gaston County visiting friends and on Saturday did a photo trip into the NC Foothills.

The entire flickr set (67 photos) is here.

Route: Local roads in Gaston and Lincoln Counties to NC 27, NC 27, NC 150, US 74, US 74 Business, US 74A, NC 9, Mill Creek Road, US 70, Old NC 10 into Marion, US 70, NC 126, NC 181, NC 18, NC 27 local roads to Mt. Holly, NC.

The first stop was the old Marisopa Road bridge just across the Gaston/Lincoln county line. I would love to have taken more photos here, but the last shower of about a day and a half worth of rain came through the area. I did get the shot below though.

Along, NC 27 in Lincoln County is the tiny community of Iron Station. They have a parade in Iron Station once a year, when the line painting crew goes through town. In Iron Station, the former elementary school still stands but now abandoned.



US 74 Business runs through three Rutherford County towns, Forest City, Spindale, and Rutherfordton. I stopped in Forest City to walk around. Here are some highlights:




We continued along the former mainline of US 74 (now US 74A) to Lake Lure. Lake Lure is a resort area at the base of the Blue Ridge.

At the intersection of US 74A and NC 9, there is what appears to be an old gas station and general store with this interesting gas sign affixed to a tree.

The next town after Lake Lure is Chimney Rock. I've been there a few times but never realized that there is an old one lane bridge over the French Broad that is still in use!

From there we headed north up NC 9 to Black Mountain where we followed Old US 70 up to Ridgecrest. We continued to where the old highway splits off towards Point Lookout. I noticed that there was a new gate and that the old road had a frest layer of asphalt. I didn't realize it, but that weekend I would receive e-mails that the old road is now part of the Point Lookout Trail, a 3.6 mile greeway.

We stayed on Mill Creek Road which is now the only way (with the exception of I-40) to get to Old Fort from Black Mountain. It's a twisty unpaved road, but it's not lost to civilization. there are a few homes and even a bed and breakfast. On the Old Fort side of the mountain, Mill Creek Road goes past Andrew's Geyser before meeting back up with Old US 70.




The Geyser was built in 1885 as a tribute to Col. Alexander Boyd Andrews who built the Western North Carolina Railroad into Asheville. Water is pumped from a source two miles away and natural forces lift the geyser nearly 100 feet into the air. The geyser was rebuilt in 1911. Passenger trains would have a scheduled stop at the geyser for riders to stop and look at.

There's an old segment of the Central Highway between Old Fort and Marion. The NC Gazetter calls it Old NC 10 but from US 70 it's known as Old Greenlee Road. Surprisingly, there is a brief two mile dirt/gravel section. In Marion, Old NC 10 appears to have gone along Tate St and Court St.

Finally, if you ever have an extra 45 minutes o so...and you are in the area...take NC 126. It is a very scenic drive espescially around Lake James, and there is even a one lane bridge of decent length to cross too!

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Former US Route 50 and the Pioneer Route Lincoln Highway on Johnson's Pass Road

Johnson's Pass Road is one of the oldest highway corridors in California.  Johnson's Pass was part of the Lake Tahoe Wagon Road as it was completed during 1856 over the Sierra Nevada.  The pass would later be incorporated into the Pioneer Branch of the Lincoln Highway in 1913 and US Route 50 in 1926.  Johnson's Pass Road would be bypassed by a new alignment of US Route 50 over Echo Summit in 1938.  A replacement of the Meyers Grade east of Johnson's Pass would be opened to traffic in 1947.   Johnson's Pass Road remains accessible to traffic and is still signed by the Lincoln Highway Association.  Pictured as the blog cover is the view from the top of Johnson's Pass Road overlooking modern US Route 50 and Lake Tahoe.   Part 1; the history of Johnson's Pass Much of the history of what become the Lake Tahoe Wagon Road is discussed in the  September 1950 California Highways & Public Works  during its Centennial Edition.  The or...

Former US Route 50 and the South Lincoln Highway from Folsom east to Placerville

The corridor of Folsom of Sacramento County east to Placerville of El Dorado County has been a long established corridor of overland travel dating back to the California Gold Rush.  The Folsom-Placerville corridor was once part of the path of the Lake Tahoe Wagon Road which became the first California State Highway and later the South Lincoln Highway.  In time the South Lincoln Highway's surface alignment was inherited by US Route 50.  The Folsom-Placerville corridor also includes the communities of; Clarksville, Shingle Springs and El Dorado. Part 1; the history of the Lake Tahoe Wagon Road, South Lincoln Highway and US Route 50 through Folsom-Placerville Folsom is located on the American River/Lake Natoma of eastern Sacramento County.  That lands now occupied by the City of Folsom were part of Rancho Rio de los Americanos prior to the finding of gold at Sutter's Mill during 1848.  During the California Gold Rush the lands of Rancho Rio de los Americanos were p...

Old NC 10 - The Central Highway: Old Fort to Black Mountain through the Royal Gorge

A unique way of tracing the remnants of the Central Highway is through the mountainous terrain of Eastern Buncombe and Western McDowell Counties.  From the east on US 70, you reach the base of Blue Ridge Mountains at the town of Old Fort.  Old Fort is a tiny rail town that the old Central Highway and now US 70 goes through.  The Central Highway can be followed via a right onto Mill Creek Road from US 70.  Follow the highway as it takes you closer to the mountains.  When Mill Creek Road bears right to head towards Andrews Geyser stay straight until the road ends at a gate.  The nearby Piney Grove Church can be used for parking.  At this point, the old Central Highway began a 3.5 mile climb of the mountain to Swannanoa Gap.  NC 10 and later US 70 travelers followed this road for over 30 years until a new and modern four lane US 70 was built to the south.  This same four lane road would eventually become Interstate 40.    The Centra...