Foothills Parkway Scenic Drive Through the Smokies

At the 2,650-foot-high Look Rock, an observation tower allows a 360-degree view of some of the highest peaks in the Smokies. Thunderhead Mountain, Gregory Bald, the Unicoi Mountains, Clingmans Dome, Mount Le Conte and the Cumberland Plateau are a few of the sites.

The Drive

High ridge crests offer wide views of mountains and valleys as the parkway traverses the western flank of Chilhowee Mountain and the Chilhowee Lake impoundment of the Little Tennessee River. Another section stretches along Green Mountain to the Pigeon River Valley.

Future Plans

Of seven Congressionally Mandated Parkways, Foothills is the only one unfinished, with 38.6 miles completed. The finished Parkway will run 72 miles along the western and northern edges of the park, from Interstate 40 east of Cosby, TN, to Chilhowee, TN.

Traverse the Foothills of the Smokies

A project that lasted around 75 years, with more to come over the next 20, select portions of Foothill Parkway are now open to the public and offer beautiful, scenic views with several pull-offs for nature watchers.

A national parkway, it traverses the foothills of the northern Smokies and passes through parts of Blount, Sevier, and Cocke counties. Sections cross a series of high ridges running roughly parallel to the Tennessee boundary of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Travelers can see unobstructed views of the Smokies to the south and the Tennessee Valley to the north.

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