Overall Route Rating
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4.08 out of 5 Rider Rating 4.08
26 Reviews

Wayah road

Motorcycle Route Author

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By Ridden (22 McR Points) on Oct 05, 2011

Rider Reviews

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Papi&Nene
4 McR Points
July 10, 2015
We went from 64 to 74, I would recommend heading…
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reidk55
2 McR Points
October 10, 2018
First time on this road. Lots of twists. Some…
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Written Directions

Wayah Road from US19/74 to US64, or the reverse route.

Scenery

Hard to keep your eyes on the road at times! The west end starts you going up a gorge tracing the stream with some waterfalls mixed in. Once you reach the peak (the AP trail crosses around here) there is a large lake at the top. Nice winding road around it then the fun begins; lots of tight curves and more elevation changes. Keep your eyes on the road: not much in guard rails protecting you from some rather large drop-offs! Eventually you "wind down" on some less technical roads and at a little gas station/convenience shop. IIRC, this station has REAL gas (no ethanol).

Drive Enjoyment

I'm rating this as a three. Some sections are real nice; some are dirty. The west side of the road is hard for me to read where it looks like there's loose gravel, but it's really not.

Tourism Opportunities

Not a whole lot between the two main roads. Take this drive for the scenery and the curves.
 

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Shiftless
January 16, 2012
2 McR Points
Motorcycle Type : Cruiser
This is one of my favorite rides. About halfway through, look for Winding Stairs Rd. on your left. You can take it a few miles up a winding road to a nice lake. If you're really adventurous and have a suitable ride, keep on past the lake and the road becomes a seep, rocky and primitive forest road that really lives up to the "Winding Stairs" name and goes down all the way to US74, joining a couple miles north of the Wayah Road turnoff
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3 riders found this road review useful
ThomSS
July 17, 2019
3643 McR Points
Motorcycle Type : Other
We started at 74 and rode west to east. First couple miles is a beautiful ride along the Nantahala River with places to pull off. Road twists and winds and takes you past Nantahala Lake, it ends at Loafer's Glory General Store where you can purchase Wayah Road t-shirts and decals.
Not a road you want to be too aggressive on. For the most part road is in decent shape, there are plenty of twists, you do have to watch for loose gravel in the curves from time to time especially once you get east of the lake. Nice scenery, hardly any traffic until you get to the far east end. If your in the area be sure to find this road, a true hidden gem! If road was a little better I would give it 5 stars.
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2 riders found this road review useful
Lumberjack
September 13, 2018
8 McR Points
Motorcycle Type : Other
Went down in today and a good portion of road has been patched and has lots of asphalt debris still. The patch work makes it difficult to navigate too. They are still doing road work and have equipment working. I have ridden this road before and was very disappointed. Was probably the worst road I have been on in area.
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2 riders found this road review useful