Blue Ridge Parkway in a 36' motorhome

[Fin27]

I'm planning on driving the Parkway from Gatlinburg up until it hits 64... basically the entire length of it I believe. Looking at the website it shows that there are 3 tunnels that are only 11 or 12 feet high at the edge (which would be a problem for me) but at centerline they are 17-18 feet high. So I think I'm ok the whole way?? I don't want to be shutting tunnels down so I can get through.

Anyone have experience driving this route? I believe my Thor Hurricane is around 13' high, but I will definitely check for accuracy before I leave.

Thanks,

 

[Rene T]

I don’t know for sure but I believe it’s illegal to drive a truck on the parkway but don’t know about RV’s. You better check that out with the state.

 

[phil-t]

We've been contemplating that adventure.
Here's a good reference for traveling the parkway.

 

[John From Detroit]

I do not recall tunnels when I took the Blue Ridge. But I do recall hairpin turns and seriously overheated brakes. When I got down off the mountain I was more than ready to stop for lunch (Get out of the RV and sit in a restaurant with no steering wheel within 40 feet of me)

 

[strugglebus]

I need at least 12 feet 6inch clearance but prefer 13. Some of those clearances make me think motorhomes are not a great choice for the Parkway.

 

[phil-t]

There are ways around the few tunnel clearances that might be questionable.

 

[HappyWanderer]

You might fit, but you won’t enjoy the ride.

The only thing you’ll see is the narrow, twisting road just ahead of you.
Forget about looking around to enjoy the view.

Instead, find a nearby campground off the parkway and explore with your toad.

 

[Gary RV_Wizard]

Agree with Happy - it's do-able but you won't enjoy the ride. Lots of short grades and twisty turns throughout North Carolina and up into Virginia. I made the trip with a pickup towing a 25 ft trailer and spent a lot more time managing the driving than enjoying the views. And often the roadside pullouts for scenic viws are small and crowded, so you end up skipping them. Once you get to the Skyline Drive in VA, it's easier.

 

[CharlesinGA]

Having to start over, the cat deleted the entire post............. yes, the cat. (lots of cussing ensued)

The parkway south end is at Cherokee, no where near Gatlinburg, and runs to I-64 at Afton VA milepost zero, where the Skyline Drive continues for another 100 miles to Front Royal VA.

If you are thinking about crossing over to Cherokee from Gatlinburg on US441, its doable but it has some tight switch backs, one 360 degree spiral, about three tight 180's, and one tunnel, plus lots of bear and elk jams, and virtually no place to get off the road. I saw a Ranger with a semi stopped who was heading from Cherokee. He didn't get far past the Oconaluftee Visitor Center. We were headed to Smokemont campground. Not sure how he got turned around.

I answered a similar query about the BRP just a while back HERE. There are 17 tunnels between the south end at milepost 469.1 and Ashville alone, there are more north of there. The low ones are between US 19 and US 441 at the south end. I have driven this entire distance from Ashville to Cherokee (but not north of Ashville) and can easily say it is no place for a big rig. Period. Find a campground somewhere nearby and use the toad to drive the parkway.

The very few campgrounds on the parkway are only suited for smaller campers. Mt Pisgah has possibly a half dozen that handle a 30 ft something and some of them have so much slope that you put the wheels on blocks and the trailer tongue on the pavement to get level. I've camped at Mt Pisgah in a trailer and a 23 ft class C, I've camped at Mile High and Balsam Mtn Campground in the trailer.

I don't think any of the tunnels are straight, they all curve, some rather tightly. Most you cannot see from one end to the other. The road has a 20 ft roadbed, not the 24 ft you are used to seeing. This means 10 ft lanes. Many of the overlooks are small with not much room to park, some are large, but getting in and out can be tricky with any vehicle. Many of the overlooks are on the outside of curves and if you have to cross the road to get to them, you are doing so in a blind curve. Access on and off the parkway is limited and the roads leading up to the access points (in mountain gaps) are fairly steep and somewhat narrow and winding themselves. Been up and down some that i won't go back to again.

Its just no place for a big rig.

Charles

 

[CharlesinGA]

There are ways around the few tunnel clearances that might be questionable.

Those low tunnels are all between US 19 and Cherokee. You would have to get on/off the BRP at US19. I drove from Cherokee to US 19 pulling a trailer one time. It too is narrow and has guard rails right on the edge of the pavement. This is the section that is on tribal land and is not up to US highway standards at all. Last trip was to Balsam Mt Campground and I pulled up the parkway to avoid US 19.

Charles

 

[John From Detroit]

As I said I did iutl. 38' Motor home 12'6" high but my feelings were mixed.
I enjoyed the view and woudl not mind doing it again IN A JEEP"
But I did not enjoy the drive at all. and I did have one incident not that that was all that bad.

Oh and for the person who's cat deleted the post.... Try CTRL-Z.. Sometimes (not always) that restores what was deleted.

 

[JudyJB]

I drive a 32' Class C and just drove the Blue Ridge Parkway from the start to Ashville, SC, and I would NOT do it again in a motorhome! As someone said, you can do it, maybe, but it won't be fun. It was a beautiful drive but my arms and shoulders were tired from the constant back and forth turns, and I could not enjoy the scenery because of the lack of shoulders on the road and the overhanging branches.

It was very stressful because of the sharp turns and constant working to stay in my narrow lane. And if you make a mistake on a curve, there are no substantial guardrails to prevent you dropping several hundred feet or hitting a rock wall. I have driven a LOT of mountain roads, and this was a lot more difficult than anything in Colorado or some of the coastal roads in California. (Like the one through the redwoods near Fort Bragg.)

Here is my blog post on the last leg: 9/29 Blue Ridge Parkway - Price Campground to Mt. Pisgah Campground & Some Warnings! Campground sites were much smaller than they looked on the photos and had sharp curbs in many sites. Very old sites were really made for 1940s camping and camping equipment, not modern RVs.

Also, the last day I bumped into a couple who got sideswiped entering the parkway on Route 276, so I drove back from Mt Pisgah about 15 miles and took the much easier Route 191 that is shorter and more directly into Ashville.

Also, the couple from Technomadia.com just drove it and also did not recommend it, and they were in a 22" Class B. Check their blog out here Tips for RVing the Blue Ridge

 

[Bobtop46]

Don't do it in a rig. Besides the narrow lanes, tunnels, constant turns, and hills there is no gas to be found on the Parkway. Those stops would have to be carefully planned. Where to get off and where to get back on. Some of the roads to get off are much worse then the Parkway itself. ( i.e. near Wintergreen)

 

[Rob&Deryl]

But it sure is fun on a motorcycle

 

[JudyJB]

As an alternative, I would strongly recommend The Natchez Trace parkway that goes from Nashville to Natchez, Mississippi. Road is much more modern and wider, but goes through some beautiful country. It is 444 miles without a stoplight, but has two free campgrounds and tons of scenic and historic pullovers. The modern road follows the old Trace. https://www.nps.gov/natr/index.htm

The Trace was a path used originally by Native Americans and then later by late 1700 and early 1800 travelers who had rafted down the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers but then needed to get back home. In places, the old Trace is 10-15' deep with big trees growing in the middle. It stopped being used with the invention of steam-powered river boats.

 

[Old_Crow]

Love me some Natchez Trace. Haven't done the whole thing, but have done parts of it. Some on a motorcycle and some with the motor home.
I've got a good campfire story about camping on the Natchez Trace, but it's too long to type right now.

 

[jymbee]

As an alternative, I would strongly recommend The Natchez Trace parkway that goes from Nashville to Natchez, Mississippi. Road is much more modern and wider, but goes through some beautiful country. It is 444 miles without a stoplight, but has two free campgrounds and tons of scenic and historic pullovers. The modern road follows the old Trace. Natchez Trace Parkway (U.S. National Park Service)

The Trace was a path used originally by Native Americans and then later by late 1700 and early 1800 travelers who had rafted down the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers but then needed to get back home. In places, the old Trace is 10-15' deep with big trees growing in the middle. It stopped being used with the invention of steam-powered river boats.

DId the Trace coming back from the SW last winter. GREAT ride.

 

[Oldgator73]

I just passed the exit on I-81 for the Blue Ridge Parkway. Huge sign saying “NO RECOMMENDED FOR RV’s OR TRAILERS”.

 

[JudyJB]

Wish I had seen that sign. Why not such signs on the other entrances to the parkway???

 

[RVfixer]

I don't think that sign "Not recommended for RVs" had anything to do with the Parkway itself but the steep curvy road leading up to the parkway. I have seen those signs at other parkway approach roads but just some of them...the bad ones. That is why that type sign is not on all Parkway access roads. We have done the parkway 6 times. end to end. Once in a car staying in lodges, twice in a truck/camper staying in park campgrounds, once towing a 26 foot low profile travel trailer and twice towing a 30 foot high profile travel trailer. We love it and have hiked many of the trails along the way! Every time we have been on the Parkway we have met large RVs. As for "No trucks allowed" that is for commercial business vehicles not RVs. Two cautions; The campgrounds along the Parkway have no hookups, are old and have very small campsites. You can make a reservation for a pull-through on the Parkway campgrounds that looks plenty big but when you get there you find you can't get on the site due to the curve of the campsite and TREES! This is especially true with trailers. With our trailers we stayed just off the Parkway in private campgrounds but you have to be careful what roads you pick to get on or off the Parkway. Best to pick major highways that cross the Parkway to get on and off. Look up the tunnel heights online. The low ones that we did not attempt with the trailers are at the south end. We left the trailer at the campground and did the last section to the Smoky Mountain National Park with just the truck.

I have known people with RVs that won't go on any two lane road. I guess it comes down to how comfortable you are with driving/towing your RV. The Parkway is not a good pick for your first RV trip!