[4] Upon reaching 3,300 feet (1,000 m) in elevation, a large building at the top of Whiteface Mountain called the Castle becomes visible, and Union Falls Pond can be seen more clearly below.

[5] The scenic drive continues up Whiteface Mountain to its summit, which NY 431 ascends toward by way of a pair of hairpin turns just north of the peak.

[6] At the first of the turns, the highway reaches an overlook 3,700 feet (1,100 m) in elevation that provides views of parts of Lake Placid and the Olympic Village.

[5] The road and the NY 431 designation both terminate at a parking lot about 300 feet (91 m) below the summit of Whiteface Mountain,[1][6] where the Castle is located.

[5] The idea of constructing a road up Whiteface Mountain was first conceived in the late 19th and early 20th centuries by Marcellus Leonard, an entrepreneur from Saranac Lake.

[7][8] The plans for the highway began to take shape in the 1920s when the land for the road was given by its owner to the state of New York on the condition that it would be named after America's Great War veterans.

The American Legion supported the new tower, which was to be 130 feet (40 m) high and feature a light visible for over 75 miles (121 km).

The height of the tower was later reduced to 80 feet (24 m), but the project still faced opposition from the Association for Protection of the Adirondacks and the New York Fish Game and Forest League.

[2] The road was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in October 2008 as the "Whiteface Veterans Memorial Highway Complex".