this is a four lane road that go’s thru the blue ridge mountains. The balsam gap area is about 5,000 feet in height and this are is great for leaf lookers from late September until the midweek of November. The state highway patrol knows this also as speed traps are set up on the bottom of this mountain as the speed drops from 60 mph to 55 mph and going downhill, one picks up some extra speed. 70 in a 55 mph zone is a fine of 30.00 plus court costs of 188.00 = 218.00. your first court appearance is to let you pay the fine or plead not guilty. If you plead not guilty, then you have to come back for a trial date to face the judge and officer that pulled you over. It is a real zoo to say the least about all of this. But it is how the little town of Sylva gets it revenue for the year. My advice, avoid this area and turn this into a ghost town.