TRAVEL ADVISORY
A rockslide on October 27, 2009, in western North Carolina near the Tennessee state line closed Interstate 40, and officials say it could take several months to clear the debris. The state Department of Transportation on Sunday issued an emergency declaration. Initial estimates from engineers are that it could take several months to clean up the entire slide and restore traffic.

The rockslide occurred shortly after 2 a.m. on October 25 near mile marker 3 in Haywood County. The last exit open on I-40 westbound is Exit 20 at U.S. 276 to Maggie Valley. 

A detour has been set up. Motorists traveling west to Tennessee should take I-40 West to I-240 West in Asheville to I-26 West. Follow I-26 West from Asheville to I-81 South in Tennessee, back to I-40. Eastbound motorists will follow the reverse directions. This adds about 50 miles or 45 minutes driving time to your trip between Knoxville and Asheville.

Our wonderful mountain towns in Western North Carolina are still easily accessible from Interstate 40. And travelers going through to Tennessee will get to experience a beautiful and largely undiscovered section of North Carolina as they travel on the new Interstate 26 through Madison County.

November 13, 2009 Update: Weather halted work on the rock slide on Tuesday, but the rain helped bring down some of the smaller debris from the slope. Yesterday, contractors used explosives on a rock mass in the middle of the slide that is about the size of a small apartment building. The blast produced enough material to start building a ramp on the west side of the slope for heavy equipment. Challenging terrain where the slide occurred, with steep mountain on one side and river on the other, makes the work difficult. NCDOT along with rock stabilization specialist Janod Contractors of Champion, NY and contractor Phillips & Jordan Inc. of Knoxville, Tenn. and Robbinsville, are blasting large boulders, removing rocks and other debris, and chiseling off rock to stabilize the area. Once all debris is cleared, temporary asphalt will be laid on the highway so traffic can be restored until permanent asphalt can be laid in the spring.

Download the Travel Advisory with map and directions for the detour.

Alternate Routes to Cherokee/Bryson City from Tennessee
Travelers to the Cherokee area from the Asheville area will be unaffected by the slide; however, travelers heading to Cherokee from the west and eastern Tennessee may use one of the following alternate routes:

• From Sevierville, Tenn., take exit 407 off I-40 West. Turn right off the exit ramp onto Highway 66 (Winfield Dunn Parkway) toward Sevierville. Continue straight through the intersection with Main Street in Sevierville, where the road becomes U.S. Hwy. 441/71. Stay straight on U.S. 441, which becomes 441/321/73/71, through Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg. Follow U.S. 441 through the Great Smoky Mountains National Park to Cherokee.

• From Newport, Tenn., take exit 435 off I-40 West, turning left on Highway 321/32 (Cosby Highway) toward Newport. Turn right onto Highway 25/70 (East Broadway Street) toward Hot Springs, N.C. In Hot Springs, make a right onto N.C. 209. Bear left at Ferguson Supply Store to stay on N.C. 209. Continue on N.C. 209 through the Crabtree and Iron Duff communities. N.C. 209 soon intersects with I-40 at Exit 24. Continue on N.C. 209 to Lake Junaluska. From here, take the Great Smoky Mountains Expressway (U.S. 19/23/74) west toward Sylva. Pick up Hwy. 441/74 in Dillsboro just past Sylva, and follow Hwy. 441 into Cherokee.

• From Knoxville, take US 129 south through Maryville. Continue south on US 129 through Deals Gap and into North Carolina. Just past the Deals Gap Motorcycle Resort , turn left on to NC 28 and continue east (passing Fontana Dam) to US 74. Turn left (east) and follow US 74 to Bryson City (exit 67) and Cherokee (exit 74) Note: US 129 through Deal's Gap is extremely curvy (318 continuous curves in 11 miles). It's one of the nations most popular motorcycle and sports cars roads. Others may find it too curvy.