From the Cherohala Skyway, Lake Santeetlah looks like a handful of blue-green fingers pushed into dark forest, with a crumpled skyline of mountains beyond. The overlook gives you a long view down over the water and the hills that surround it, in a corner of North Carolina that still feels remote. The lake was created in the 1920s by a dam on Santeetlah Creek, built to generate power for the aluminium industry, and it is ringed by the Nantahala National Forest, which keeps the shoreline largely undeveloped. The name is said to come from a Cherokee phrase, though translations differ.
This is Graham County, one of the least populated parts of the state, and the history is as quiet as the geography. The Cherokee lived in these mountains for centuries before the forced removal of the 1830s, and a few families hid in the hills and remained. Joyce Kilmer Memorial Forest, a short drive away, protects one of the largest stands of old-growth trees in the eastern United States, a place where tulip poplars grow to enormous girth, and it is named for the poet of Trees. It is worth the detour if you are riding the Skyway, though the access road is narrow.
The riding is the real show. The Skyway is as close as any road in the southern Appalachians comes to a perfect motorcycle road, with smooth tarmac, steady gradients, a gentle camber and nothing in your way but scenery. The weather can change in minutes, and cloud often sits on the crest while the valley is clear. Summer weekends bring clusters of bikes, and autumn brings a procession of sightseers. Wildlife includes deer and black bears, and the occasional wild turkey stepping into the road.
Robbinsville, about twelve kilometres away, is the nearest town, small and friendly, with petrol, cafes and a few motels. Andrews, a bit farther, has more. Bring a rain jacket, a warm layer and some water, and park in the designated pull-out. The evening light over the lake is gorgeous, but remember that dusk is when the deer wake up.