Take the Blue Ridge Parkway to Balsam Mountain Campground close to milepost 458, then take Heintooga Ridge Road for 8 miles. Watch for the sign – it is easy to miss. Don’t miss the restrooms 1 mile later – there are no others, and these close in early fall. Balsam Mountain Road is 18 miles of one-way gravel road to Cherokee. It takes almost an hor from the restroom to Cherokee. We got on the Parkway at Waynesville, and many of the pictures are from that part of the trip.

http://www.nps.gov/grsm/planyourvisit/offbeatenpath.htm