Introduction : a new trip along a beloved road -- Roads, parks, and tourism : a southern scenic parkway in a national context -- The scenic is political : the parkway and Asheville's tourist industry -- We ain't picked none on the scenic : parkway ideals and local realities -- By the grace of God and a Mitchell County jury : Little Switzerland, regional tourism, and the parkway -- The crowning touch of interest : parkway development, cultural landscaping, and the Eastern Band of Cherokees -- Remembering the Peaks of Otter : telling history on the parkway landscape -- From stump town to Carolina's top scenic attraction : private interests and the public good at Grandfather Mountain -- Epilogue : the parkway's past, its present, and the ongoing search for the public good.