NC 105 follows the general route of the old East Tennessee and Western North Carolina Railroad (ET&WNC), also known as the "Tweetsie," connecting Linville to Boone before a major flood washed away many sections of the railbed in 1940.

[1][2] The first four miles (6.4 km) of the highway are two-lane and go by the gated communities Grandfather Golf & Country Club and Linville Ridge.

At the Tynecastle intersection in Linville Gap, it crosses the Eastern Continental Divide and begins to descend into a valley area.

Established in 1956 as a new primary route between Linville and Boone, it converted the ET&WNC "Tweetsie" railroad that had discontinued service since a major flood in 1940.

The rugged highway with views of the Linville Gorge Wilderness is a part of the Pisgah Loop Scenic Byway.

[15][16] Identified by local and state officials as a critical highway in the High Country, that is choked by high truck volumes and seasonal tourist traffic, NCDOT plans to widen 4.5 miles (7.2 km) of NC 105 into a divided four-lane highway from Clarks Creek Road east of Foscoe to NC 105 Bypass in Boone.