Sequatchie Valley Scenic Byway
Sequatchie Valley Scenic Byway is a National Scenic Byway in Tennessee. Within Tennessee it covers roughly 70 miles. The map below shows its route. Use “Plan a drive” to open it in the Road Sorties route planner — already routing along Sequatchie Valley Scenic Byway with scenic roads turned on, ready to add your own stops.
Tennessee's Sequatchie Valley Scenic Byway runs more than 70 miles from South Pittsburg to the head of the Sequatchie River at Cumberland Trail State Park. It crosses Marion, Sequatchie, Bledsoe, and Cumberland Counties, where rocky bluffs hem in the narrow valley on both sides, framing one of the more undisturbed landscapes left in the eastern United States. During the Civil War, Union General William Rosecrans's Army of the Cumberland retreated to Chattanooga along this same valley, which served as the only available supply route to keep the army fed and equipped. Coal mining and railroad booms in the late 19th and early 20th centuries later shaped the valley's towns and left much of its historic built environment intact. Designated in 2021, it's Tennessee's fifth National Scenic Byway and one of 184 nationwide, recognizing a valley whose Native American, Civil War, and industrial history sits beneath some of the state's most dramatic bluff scenery.
- South Pittsburg
- Sequatchie Valley bluffs
- 70 miles
- Civil War supply route
- 2021 designation
- Cumberland Trail State Park
- coal mining history
Designated for its scenic qualities
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Places to stop along Sequatchie Valley Scenic Byway
Lodge Cast Iron Museum
South Pittsburg's museum and factory store for the cast-iron cookware maker, founded in town in 1896, which also hosts the National Cornbread Festival each spring.
WebsiteChildren's Holocaust Memorial
A rail car filled with millions of paper clips collected by Whitwell Middle School students, one for each victim. Visits by appointment.
Coke Ovens Museum
The remains of 268 beehive ovens in Dunlap that once turned mountain coal into coke for iron smelting, with a small museum.
WebsiteWooden's Apple House
A Pikeville orchard stand selling fried pies, apple cider, and fruit from the valley.
Head of Sequatchie
A spring-fed pool where the Sequatchie River begins, now part of Cumberland Trail State Park.
Where to Stay along Sequatchie Valley Scenic Byway
3 campgrounds and RV parks sit within about 5 miles of Sequatchie Valley Scenic Byway.
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What is a National Scenic Byway?
National Scenic Byways are roads recognized at the federal level for at least one outstanding quality — scenic, natural, historic, cultural, archaeological or recreational — that gives travelers a reason to seek them out rather than just pass through.