Use the red Print/Save Page link in the right-hand column to print this itinerary. Click here for a copy of the related Michelin Map.

- Take Main St. north to E. North St. Turn right onto E. North St. and proceed to the intersection of Church St. Continue east past the BI-LO Center until E. North St. becomes 1-385.

- Continue on 1-385. After the Roper Mountain Rd. Exit, get in the far right lane. Take the 1-85 North Exit (toward GSP airport and Spartanburg).

After 2mi, watch for the North American headquarters building of Michelin (left side), a fixture on this stretch of the interstate since 1989. After 4mi, you'll see BMW's only North American manufacturing plant, just before Exit 60. If you can spare the time, take the exit and visit BMW Zentrum.

- Take Ext 63 from I-85, and turn right (southeast) on Rte. 290 towards Moore. Continue southeast on Rt. 290 through Poplar Springs Fire District. After 4mi, turn left on US-221.

- In 1mi, watch for the Walnut Grove Plantation sign on your right as you approach I-26. Take the next right, Stillwater Rd., and follow the signs to Otts Shoals Rd. Turn right.

Walnut Grove Plantation will be less than a mile on the right.

- After your visit of the plantation, backtrack to US-221. Turn right. Proceed 9mi to downtown Spartanburg.

Watch for two Krispy Kreme doughnut shops (one on either side of the street). Extra points if you can continue without stopping for a hot doughnut! Notice the entrance to Wofford College (right side), which opened in 1854. This liberal arts school was a men's college until 1975, when it formally began admitting women. Five of the six original buildings still stand on the campus, seeing daily use.

- Continue on US-221, which bears right toward Chesnee (15mi ahead) and bears right again after Spartanburg Regional Medical Center. In 6mi, cross over the Pacolet River and go through the town of Mayo. Continue 3mi to Chesnee. Pass through downtown and turn right onto Hwy.11.

After 2mi, look for signs marking the entrance to Cowpens National Battlefield.

- After your visit of the Battlefield, backtrack on Hwy. 11 to downtown Chesnee, but continue west on Hwy. 11 toward Campobello (20mi).

- After 7mi on Hwy. 11, watch for peach orchards on both sides of the road.

Soon you will see Cooley Springs Peach Barn and Strawberry Hill USA, where you should definitely stop. With peach or strawberry ice-cream cone firmly in hand, proceed out of Strawberry Hill.

- Head west on Hwy. 11. In 6mi, cross Rte. 9 and continue on Hwy. 11. After 3mi, approach I-26.

On a clear day, the picturesque Blue Ridge Mountain range hugs the horizon to the northeast. Pull off Hwy. 11 for a quick photo opportunity.

- Proceed 4mi to Campobello; turn right on US-176 toward Landrum (4mi).

Once in Landrum, watch for the Landrum Train Station (right side).

- Proceed on US-176 and cross the state line. In 3mi, enter the town of Tryon, NC. Once past the downtown shopping district, watch for signs to follow US-176. Bear left, then continue to Saluda.

Between Tryon and Saluda, look for signs for Pearson's Falls, which lied 1mi off Rte. 176 (left side). Managed by the Tryon Garden Club, Pearson's Falls draws 25,000 visitors a year with its 200 species of fern and flowering plants, 90-foot waterfall and wildlife preserve (March - October, Tuesday - Sunday, 10am-6pm; November - February, Wednesday - Sunday, 10am-5pm; $3)

- Backtrack to US-176, turn left and drive 3mi into Saluda (elevation 2,200 ft.). Park at the main stopping area, across from the train station.

Saluda's tiny downtown holds several restaurants. For lunch try The Purple Onion or Saluda Grade Café. At the café, you'll find daily specials and gourmet desserts like orange chess pie. After lunch, browse the shops along the main drag.

- Continue on US-176 toward Hendersonville. After 6mi, turn left onto southbound US-25. In 1mi, take the Rte. 225 exit (Exit 5) and head north on Rte. 225 toward the town of Flat Rock. Watch for the signs for Carl Sandburg Home National Historic Site. Turn left at the stoplight and proceed to the Carl Sandburg NHS parking lot. The visitor center is located at the Sandburg house atop the hill, accessible by a footpath (1/3 of a mile).

Connemara, Carl Sandburg's home for more than 22 years, was the place where the "People's Poet" complete a third of his life's work. The grounds, dotted with a large barn and other out-buildings, also served as pastures for Mrs. Sandburg's champion dairy goats. Tour the house in which the Pulitzer prize-winning author's works are chronicled and displayed, then take a stroll along the lakeside walking trail. 828-693-4178. www.nps.gov/carl. Open daily 9 am-5 pm. House tour $5.

- Backtrack to US-25, and go south towards Greenville. After 12mi, turn left onto Old Hwy. 25.

Drop in at La Bastide (right side), a 14-suite inn, restaurant and vineyard transported straight from the French countryside, for a glass of wine in the comfortably designed stone-and-timber interior.

- Return to Old Hwy. 25 and turn right. Follow Old Hwy. 25 and cross the Saluda River. After 4mi, bear right onto Old Callahan Rd. In 2mi, watch for Poinsett Bridge (left side) and pull off into the parking area on the right.

Designed and built in the early 1800s, Poinsett Bridge is the oldest intact bridge in the state. Notice the detailed stonework and 14-foot Gothic arch that spans the bubbling Little Gap Creek. The bridge's namesake, Joel Poinsett, designed the bridge on this road that once served as the only route between Greenville and Asheville.

- Backtrack to US-25; turn left and proceed towards Greenville (19mi). After 4mi, notice that Rte. 414 leads east to Campbell's Covered Bridge.

- After 7 mi, watch for the Cider House (left side); stop in for a snack.

- In 4mi, bear left onto US-276 to return to Greenville, 7mi south. After 1mi, notice Furman University (right side). Continue on US-276 past Cherrydale Point shopping center and into Downtown Greenville.

Related Images

Photo Credit: Photos Courtesy of the Greenville Convention & Visitors Bureau.