| NC 226 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Route information | ||||
| Maintained by NCDOT | ||||
| Length: | 100 mi (161 km) | |||
| Existed: | 1959 – present | |||
| Major junctions | ||||
| South end: | US 29 near Grover | |||
| US 74 in Shelby US 64 near Morganton I-40 near Marion US 19 in Spruce Pine |
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| North end: | TN 107 at the Tennessee state line | |||
| Location | ||||
| Counties: | Cleveland, Rutherford, McDowell, Mitchell | |||
| Highway system | ||||
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NC 226 is a nearly one-hundred-mile North Carolina State Highway. Just about running from the Tennessee border to the South Carolina border, NC 226 hooks most of central west NC with some of the bigger cities, such as Kings Mountain, Morganton and Marion. An alternate route of NC 226 known as NC 226A loops to the community of Little Switzerland before rejoining the parent route; it is the only alternate state route remaining in North Carolina.
NC 226 starts at the Tennessee-North Carolina state border in Mitchell County, where it becomes Tennessee State Route 107. This is near the Appalachian Trail and right at the Iron Mountain Gap.
In Mitchell County, NC 226 crosses under the Blue Ridge Parkway (milepost 330) and goes over the eastern Continental Divide. Through this section is NC 226A, an alternate route through more rugged mountain terrain.
In Rutherford County, NC 226 cuts through the South Mountains. In Marion, NC 226 overlaps U.S. Route 221.
From there, NC 226 goes through a various number of small towns. After getting through Dysartsville, NC 226 meets up with U.S. Route 64.
The road then finds its way through some foothill towns, the most major being Polkville. This is where NC 10 and NC 182 have termini with NC 226. After a nearly twenty-mile drive, NC 226 enters Shelby. It overlaps US 74 for nearly four miles before interchanging off near NC 18.
After leaving US 74, NC 226 slowly makes its way through southern North Carolina counties, ending at U.S. Route 29, approximately 1,000 feet (300 m) short of the South Carolina border. This is at the tiny border town of Grover