U.S. Route 129 is a spur of U.S. Route 29. It currently runs for 582 miles (937 km) from Knoxville, Tennessee to Chiefland, Florida at U.S. Route 19 and U.S. Route 98. It passes through the states of Tennessee, North Carolina, Georgia and Florida. It goes through the cities of Knoxville, Tennessee, Gainesville, Georgia, Athens, Georgia, and Macon, Georgia. Eleven miles of US 129 located on the Tennessee/North Carolina border is known as the Tail of the Dragon, a popular motorcycle and sports car destination. The name is apparently derived from the roadway's resemblance to a dragon's back. The segment runs from Tab Cat Creek to Deals Gap and has 318 curves.
Route description
"Tail of the Dragon" on U.S. 129
Florida
A US 129 shield used in Florida prior to 1993
U.S. 129 begins at US 19-Alternate US 27-US 98 in Chiefland, Florida along hidden SR 47 until it reaches Florida State Road 26 in Trenton. From there, the road is signed along Hidden SR 49. It then moves west, briefly overlapping U.S. Route 27(Hidden SR 20) and heads north again in Branford, before that road intersects Florida State Road 349, which used to double as U.S. Route 129 Alternate. From here it intersects with U.S. Route 90 and Florida State Road 51 in Live Oak, taking SR 51 as the new hidden State Road, then meets Interstate 10 at Exit 283, and later Interstate 75 at Exit 451. During a concurrency with U.S. Route 41 in Jasper, U.S. 129 loses SR 51 as a hidden route then after the concurrency ends runs noorthwest along hidden SR 100 into Georgia.
Georgia
U.S. 129 provides the primary route between Middle Georgia and Athens. It approaches Athens from the south where it joins the Ga. 10 Loop, a mostly interstate-grade bypass that rings Athens-Clarke County. Here U.S. 129 turns right, toward the northeast, where it runs concurrently with U.S. 78, 29, and 441 along the bypass. US 129 interchanges with U.S. 29 northeast of Athens and continues along the Ga. 10 Loop westward before exiting at Jefferson Road where it winds northwesterly towards Gainesville as one of several routes to Interstate 85 from Athens.
North Carolina
The proposed route of Interstate 3 would go through the stretch of U.S. 129 known as the "Tail of the Dragon".
Tennessee
The northern terminus of US Highway 129 is Knoxville, Tennessee. It runs south from the southwestern border of Knoxville and through Alcoa, Tennessee as Alcoa Highway, then into Deals Gap. From here, it is also known as as the Tail of the Dragon and continues into North Carolina. In the eleven mile stretch that ends just past the Tennessee-North Carolina state line, drivers will encounter 318 curves. These curves make this stretch of highway a well known motorcycle/sports car destination for locals and tourists. On weekends, through Spring to the Fall months, visitors are likely to see countless riders and drivers here to experience the thrill and scenery.
External links
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