{{Short description|Scenic highway in Tennessee}} {{Use American English|date=May 2025}} {{Infobox road |state=TN |type=NFSB |route=Ocoee Scenic Byway |map= |map_notes= |maint=TDOT |length_mi=26 |length_round=0 |length_ref=<ref name=google>{{google maps|url=https://maps.google.com/maps?saddr=TN-40+E%2FUS-64+E%2FUS-74+E&daddr=TN-40+E%2FUS-64+E%2FUS-74+E&hl=en&ll=35.05951,-84.48555&spn=0.242247,0.445976&sll=35.036093,-84.423398&sspn=0.007572,0.013937&geocode=FUCQFwIdelP0-g%3BFTmZFgIdA833-g&mra=dme&mrsp=1&sz=17&t=p&z=12|title=Ocoee Scenic Byway|accessdate=November 26, 2014}}</ref><ref name=chilhowee>{{google maps|url=https://maps.google.com/maps?saddr=Oswald+Rd&daddr=35.123059,-84.61739+to:Oswald+Rd&hl=en&ll=35.12742,-84.609232&spn=0.060511,0.111494&sll=35.136335,-84.601593&sspn=0.060505,0.111494&geocode=FReVFwIdAv70-g%3BFXPvFwIdUtf0-imjQlHZbjVeiDGF8T2DCa8k4g%3BFWBkGAIdzuf0-g&mra=dme&mrsp=2&sz=14&via=1&t=p&z=14|title=Chilhowee Scenic Spur|accessdate=November 26, 2014}}</ref> |established={{start date|1988|07|22}}<ref name=Ocoee>{{cite web |publisher= Tennessee Department of Transportation |url= http://www.tdot.state.tn.us/byways/scenic-byway-ocoee.aspx |title= Ocoee National Forest Scenic Byway |accessdate= November 26, 2014 |archive-date= October 8, 2014 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20141008075115/http://www.tdot.state.tn.us/byways/scenic-byway-ocoee.aspx |url-status= dead }}</ref> |allocation={{Plainlist| *{{jct|state=TN|US|64|US|74}} <small>(Entire length)</small> }} |direction_a=West |terminus_a= |direction_b=East |terminus_b= |counties=Polk }}The '''Ocoee Scenic Byway''' is a {{convert|26|mi|km|adj=on}} National Forest Scenic Byway and Tennessee Scenic Byway that traverses through the Cherokee National Forest in East Tennessee. It is part of both U.S. Route 64 and U.S. Route 74 and features the Ocoee Whitewater Center and scenic bluffs along Ocoee River and Gorge.
==Route== The scenic byway traverses along {{convert|19|mi|km}} of US 64/US 74, as it routes along the north banks of the Ocoee River. At Oswald Road (Forest Road 77), the {{convert|7|mi|km|adj=on}} Chilhowee Scenic Spur climbs to the top of the Chilhowee Mountains. Various boating/fishing activities can be done at Parksville Lake; while canoeing, rafting and kayaking can be done at the Ocoee Whitewater Center, venue of the 1996 Olympic Canoe/Kayak Slalom Competition when the Summer Olympics were held in Atlanta. The majority of the route is two lanes, but a short segment east of the whitewater center is four lanes. Part of the four lane section was narrowed to two lanes before the Olympics to make room for stands, and the original eastbound lanes of that section are now used as parking for the Whitewater Center. The two lane sections are the only sections of US 64 in Tennessee that are still two lanes.
==History== {{Expand section|date=November 2014}} The route follows the Old Copper Road, originally a wagon trail dating back to the 1850s for transporting copper from the Copper Basin area to Cleveland and Chattanooga. The Ocoee Scenic Byway was the first National Forest Scenic Byway in the nation, designated on July 22, 1988, by the United States Forest Service.<ref name=Ocoee/><ref>{{Cite book |url=https://www.tn.gov/content/dam/tn/tdot/environmental/highway-beautification/scenic_byways/Scenic%20Handbook%207.25.21.pdf |title=Scenic Roadway Handbook: A Spotlight on Tennessee’s Scenic Routes |publisher=Tennessee Department of Transportation |year= |publication-date=July 2021 |pages=20}}</ref> The route is prone to rockslides. The worst rockslide in the route's history occurred on November 10, 2009, near Ocoee Dam No. 2, blocking the route for months.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bgs.ac.uk/discoveringGeology/hazards/landslides/world.html |title=Landslides around the world {{!}} Landslides {{!}} Discovering Geology {{!}} British Geological Survey (BGS) |website=www.bgs.ac.uk |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110705072526/http://bgs.ac.uk/discoveringGeology/hazards/landslides/world.html |archive-date=2011-07-05}} </ref>
Due to the increasing rate of commercial traffic, the Tennessee Department of Transportation plans to replace the route with a four-lane highway. Multiple methods are being considered, including a route on the south side over the river and existing route, a route over nearby Little Frog Mountain, and a tunnel.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.tn.gov/tdot/topic/us-64-corridor-k|title=US 64 Corridor K|last=|first=|date=2015|website=TN.gov|publisher=Tennessee Department of Transportation|access-date=2017-10-29|quote=|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171029173120/https://www.tn.gov/tdot/topic/us-64-corridor-k|archive-date=2017-10-29|url-status=dead}}</ref>
==Junctions== thumb|Ocoee Scenic Byway {{jcttop|state=TN|county=Polk|length_ref=<ref name=google/>}} {{TNint |location=none |mile=0.0 |road={{Jct|state=TN|Sec|314|dir1=north|name1=Parksville Road|city1=Benton}} |notes=Continuation as US 64/US 74; southern terminal of SR 314}} {{TNint |location=none |mile=3.0 |road=Oswald Road (Forest Road 77) |notes={{convert|7|mi|km|adj=on}} Chilhowee scenic spur}} {{TNint |location=none |mile=5.1 |road={{Jct|state=TN|Sec|30|dir1=west|location1=Reliance}} |notes=Eastern terminus of SR 30}} {{TNint |location=none |mile=13.8 |road=Little Gassaway Road (Forest Road 45) |notes=To Ocoee Dam No. 3}} {{TNint |location=none |mile=19.0 |road=Carrianne Hills Road |notes=Continuation as US 64/US 74}} {{Jctbtm}}
==See also== {{Portal|U.S. Roads|United States}} * Cherohala Skyway * Foothills Parkway * Natchez Trace Parkway {{-}}
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== * {{commons category-inline}} * [http://www.fs.usda.gov/r08/cherokee Cherokee National Forest]
Category:Transportation in Tennessee Category:National Forest Scenic Byways Category:Transportation in Polk County, Tennessee Category:Tourist attractions in Polk County, Tennessee Category:U.S. Route 64 Category:U.S. Route 74 Category:Appalachian Development Highway System Category:Historic trails and roads in Tennessee