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By Lynn Hotaling
Better look quick or you might miss this year's autumn color show.
Leaves should be at their peak this week, according to Jackson
County's longtime leaf color forecaster Dan Pittillo, professor
of biology at Western Carolina University.
Pittillo recommends the Blue Ridge Parkway's Waynesville Overlook
for a range of color because of the area's large number of maples
and sugar maples.
Trees at higher elevations in Jackson County are turning fast,
and several less-traveled local roads offer good looks at nature's
handiwork.
Jackson County residents hoping to see mountainsides decked
out in autumn's bright reds and golds should plan on a leaf-looking
expedition soon, said Western Carolina University biology professor
Dan Pittillo. "This week will probably be the peak,"
Pittillo said Monday. Good color is visible along the Blue Ridge
Parkway near Balsam Gap, and Pittillo also recommends the Waynesville
Overlook as a good fall-foliage vantage point due to the presence
of a large number of both red and sugar maples. - Herald photo
by Nick Breedlove
To view fall foliage while staying close to home,
try these loops that pair familiar roads with others less known.
The first begins in Cullowhee, continues south across Cullowhee
Mountain and provides views of both Glenville Lake and the Tuckaseigee
River's West Fork.
From N.C. 107 in Cullowhee, turn right on Cullowhee Mountain Road
just past Cullowhee Valley School.
Continue on Cullowhee Mountain (S.R. 1157) past its intersection
with Tilley Creek Road (left fork). Turn left again when Cullowhee
Mountain Road runs into Pine Creek Road (still S.R. 1157).
Pine Creek skirts the shore of Lake Glenville, crosses the spillway
and offers good views of both the lake and surrounding mountains
before ending at N.C. 107 near Glenville.
Take a left on Highway 107 for the return trip to Cullowhee. In
addition to fall foliage, the descent provides travelers with
an opportunity to view the 6-foot-wide steel penstock that carries
water from the lake to Duke Power/Nantahala Area's Thorpe generating
plant.
A second loop drive takes travelers from Sylva through Canada
community and back to town along the Blue Ridge Parkway.
From Sylva, take N.C. 107 south to its junction with N.C. 281
in Tuckasegee. Turn left onto Canada Road (N.C. 281) and continue
for about 7 miles to Charleys Creek Road (S.R. 1756). This section
of N.C. 281 offers views of two more Duke Power/Nantahala Area
lakes - Cedar Cliff and Bear - as the highway follows the Tuckaseigee's
East Fork.
Make another left onto Charleys Creek Road and follow it until
it ends at N.C. 215 near the Jackson/Transylvania county line.
A few miles before it ends, Charleys Creek passes the U.S. Forest
Service recreation area at Balsam Lake (still known to many as
the old Mead Lodge from the days when Mead Corp. owned the property,
and company executives used it as a fishing retreat).
Turn left onto N.C. 215 and continue for 2 or 3 miles until intersecting
the Blue Ridge Parkway at Beech Gap.
The return trip along the Parkway toward Cherokee straddles the
Jackson/Haywood county line, provides breathtaking views of Canada
and Caney Fork communities, and passes 6,410-foot Richland Balsam,
the highest point along the Parkway.
At Balsam Gap, exit the scenic highway to U.S. 74 to return to
Sylva.
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