The overall driving experience is similar to the Blue Ridge Parkway; it has the same maximum speed of 45 mph (72 km/h), and during winter the road is not maintained against snow and ice.

[citation needed] At Snowbird Road, NC 143 Business begins going at a southerly route, through Milltown, into Robbinsville, as the mainline goes north.

The next eleven miles (18 km) of highway is completely different, as NC 143 goes along the southern banks of Lake Santeetlah, which has a lot of twist and turns, though not much on elevation changes.

The highway goes north along the eastern side of the Cheoah Mountains, reaching NC 28 at Johnson Gap (elevation 2,523 feet (769 m)).

[6][7] The Cherohala Skyway segment dates earlier than NC 143 (1962), but was not completed until 1996 with a total cost of $100 million over the whole 34 years of construction.

[9] As a part of 'corridor K' improvements the NCDOT plans to construct road alignments, increase the shoulder width, add passing and climbing lanes on NC143.