 North Carolina Highway 197 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Route information | ||||
| Maintained byNCDOT | ||||
| Length | 57.7 mi[1] (92.9 km) | |||
| Existed | By 1924[2]–present | |||
| Major junctions | ||||
| South end |     Future I-26 /US 19 /US 23 nearFlat Creek | |||
| Major intersections | ||||
| North end |  SR 395 at theTennessee line nearPoplar | |||
| Location | ||||
| Country | United States | |||
| State | North Carolina | |||
| Counties | Buncombe,Yancey,Mitchell | |||
| Highway system | ||||
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North Carolina Highway 197 (NC 197) is a South-to-Northstate highway inWesternNorth Carolina. The route is approximately 58 miles (93 km) in length and with its continuation intoTennessee asSR 395 connectsErwin, Tennessee toFlat Creek, North Carolina.[3] Portions of this highway lie within thePisgah National Forest and is one of the few highways in the state with an unpaved portion.
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Beginning at the state line with Tennessee, NC 197 enters the Pisgah National Forest and winds south down theUnaka escarpment toPoplar. South of Poplar, NC 197 begins the first of three segments where it follows theNorth Toe River and the formerClinchfield Railroad. It intersects and overlapsNC 226 for a short distance nearRed Hill.
The final segment of NC 197 that follows the Toe River does so in the reverse direction as the previous two times this occurred. This segment comes after a railroad crossing and a new concrete arch bridge that carries the highway across the Toe River intoYancey County.
After leaving the river area, NC 197 continues through mountains and grassy knolls until it arrives atU.S. Route 19E (US 19E) just east ofBurnsville.
Following a shortoverlap with US 19E, NC 197 leaves US 19E in Burnsville as Pensacola Road and goes through theCane River valley toPensacola. From Pensacola, NC 197 turns right and proceeds over Cane River Gap intoBuncombe County after passing throughMurchison.
As it enters Buncombe County, NC 197 (now North Fork Road) turns to gravel as it crosses the Cane River Gap for a short distance and reenters the Pisgah National Forest for a short distance. As it winds its way down to the Barnardsville valley it crosses over the headwaters ofIvy Creek four times before it continues onto the pavement nearBarnardsville.
From Barnardsville, NC 197 (as the Barnardsville Highway) becomes a relatively straight road that partially follows Ivy Creek until its junction withFuture Interstate 26/US 19/US 23 at exit 15 near Flat Creek. Proceeding forward from the end of NC 197 is Jupiter Road (SR 1756).
A right turn before the overpass allows access to west I-26/north US 19/US 23 toJohnson City, Tennessee. A left turn after the I-26 underpass allows access to east I-26/south US 19/US 23 toAsheville.
From the 1920s-1940s, NC 197 was formed, running from Cane Creek Post Office (near Burnsville) toBakersville. Portions of that alignment are nowNC 226.[2] Between 1924 and 1948 the highway's route had been changed to run from the former NC 26 at Red Hill southward to Flat Creek along a route similar to that in use today.[4] In the 1980s, NC 197 is extended from Red Hill to the Tennessee state line where it enters Tennessee asTN 395.[5]
In late September 2024, parts of NC 197 were washed out by theeffects of Hurricane Helene in North Carolina. In March 2025, theNorth Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) stated two sections of the highway and immediate secondary roads, nearPensacola and other nearGreen Mountain, would cost around $650 million, with construction running through 2027.[6]
 North Carolina Highway 695 | |
|---|---|
| Location | Stocksville–Burnsville, NC |
| Existed | 1932–1941 |
![[icon]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aWiki_letter_w_cropped.svg) | This section is empty. You can help byadding to it.(January 2019) |
| County | Location | mi[1] | km | Destinations | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buncombe | Flat Creek | 0.0– 0.1 | 0.0– 0.16 | Future I-26 /US 19 /US 23 / Jupiter Road –Asheville,Johnson City | Exit 15 (Future I-26) |
| Yancey | Burnsville | 30.8 | 49.6 |   US 19E south / Pensacola Road –Burnsville | Southern end of US 19E concurrency |
| | 31.5 | 50.7 |  US 19E north –Spruce Pine | Northern end of US 19E concurrency | |
| Mitchell | Red Hill | 42.6 | 68.6 |  NC 226 south –Bakersville,Spruce Pine | Southern end of NC 226 concurrency |
| 42.8 | 68.9 | NC 226 north | Northern end of NC 226 concurrency | ||
| | 57.7 | 92.9 |  SR 395 west (Rock Creek Road) –Erwin | Tennessee state line | |
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi
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Media related toNorth Carolina Highway 197 at Wikimedia Commons
