Great Smoky Mountains National Park seeks volunteers to help care for campgrounds and picnic areas after the July 4th, 2017 Holiday. The maintenance staff does a fantastic job providing clean and safe spaces for visitors to enjoy our amazing National Park; but increased visitation on holiday weekends can be overwhelming.

As the Trails and Facilities Volunteer Coordinator, Adam Monroe would like to lead a crew of 10 people to lend a hand with litter pick up in the Deep Creek and Smokemont areas of the Park. This is a great opportunity to make a difference in an easily accessible part of the Park.

Thursday, July 6th, 2017 all volunteers will meet at 9:00 a.m. in the Deep Creek Picnic area and begin the litter pick up. If time allows volunteers will move on to the Smokemont area to finish out the morning. The workday will end at 12:00 noon.

Adam will provide directions and safety equipment including litter grabbers and gloves. Please be prepared for changing weather conditions and dress appropriately for work. Youth Volunteers (under 18) must be accompanied by a responsible adult. Participants should be able to walk along uneven terrain and carry light loads.

Please contact Adam Monroe to sign up. [email protected] or call 828-497-1949.

Deep Creek is one of many popular recreation areas found in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Camping and picnicking are in abundance, as well as plenty of waterways for fishing and tubing. The assorted hiking trails also make it a fun destination for you and me. This hike, a combination of two different small loop trails affords the opportunity to visit the three famous Deep Creek waterfalls, to explore the nearby forest, and to follow the refreshing streams that flow through the area. Ken and I visited Deep Creek on Tuesday, February 28, 2017 beginning at 8:30AM and ending about 12:15PM. Our plan was to take the Deep Creek Trail to its meeting with the Loop Trail, hike over the mountain to the Indian Creek Trail, then join the Deep Creek Horse Trail for its journey past Juney Whank Falls and the return to the start.

Deep Creek Campground at the entrance to the national park was the home of the Civilian Conservation Corps from 1933 to 1936. While there, they constructed several trails in the vicinity including this one, Noland Divide, and Thomas Divide, all of which are more than 12 miles in length.

Parking for this trailhead is located just across the creek from the campground, at the end of Deep Creek Road. The trailhead is right alongside Deep Creek. It is then a short 0.2 mile stroll on wide gravel road to the first feature, picturesque Tom Branch Falls.

This 80-foot waterfall is on the hillside across Deep Creek, at the point where Tom Branch plunges into the creek. The waterfall is broken into several separate shelves, creating a wealth of splashy cascades. Interestingly, when the water flow is low like it was on this day, it switches from side to side as it crosses the ledges. The Park Service has placed several benches for anyone to just sit and enjoy the view. Tom Branch Falls is especially lovely when the surrounding forest is alive with color in Autumn.

As you continue along Deep Creek Trail you’ll cross on scenic foot bridges enabling the opportunity to peer up and down stream. During late summer, early fall this trail is lined with hearts-a-poppin’-with-love wildflowers, sometimes known as strawberry bush. It’s about a half mile of easy, level strolling alongside the creek to the junction with Indian Creek Trail, what will later be the end of your first loop. For now, continue straight ahead on Deep Creek Trail.

Not far beyond the junction you will cross another foot bridge, this time over Indian Creek, then come to another junction. You will take a right turn up the hill to continue on Deep Creek Trail, but this is also where you will eventually return to take the left fork to begin the second loop of this hike.

After topping a short rise, the forest road stays alongside Deep Creek, now a series of mostly still pools interspersed with occasional shoals. Deep Creek is also filled with the very common Smokies moss covered rocks. This is a nice wet playground for kids to cool off on a hot summer day.

This long straight stretch of Deep Creek is characterized by shoals interspersed with still pools and the occasional log jam..

At the end of the long straightaway on Deep Creek Trail you will make one more crossing of the creek on a foot bridge and come to the junction with what is simply called Loop Trail. Deep Creek Trail itself continues many, many miles farther into the Smokies backcountry. However, for this hike take Loop Trail to its meeting with Indian Creek Trail one mile away.

We were surprised to see blooming forsythia along the trail. Surprised, one, because forsythia is obviously not a native flower to the Smokies, and two, because it must have been brought here by a settler. We looked around for a foundation or remnants of a homestead, but could not pick one out. The blooms in late February were a nice treat.

Loop Trail begins a steep climb almost immediately, gaining 440 feet over the next half mile. Between your huffs and puffs, enjoy a forest of white pine, sugar maple, eastern hemlock, and in late April-early May, flowering dogwood. Trails crew work is in evidence along the way, with water bars and stairways strategically placed to prevent erosion.

At the top of the ridge, at the halfway point, Loop Trail meets Sunkota Ridge Trail, another of the many that head deep into the Smokies backcountry. Ah, another hike for another day. Just as steeply as you climbed, you will now drop down the other side to the Indian Creek drainage. This area is a delight in spring, with an understory of dogwood and mountain laurel.

The forest is beautiful (the picture up at the top of this post was taken here), with nice viewing of the surrounding mountains when the leaves are down in winter. Soon you will come to a spring on your right side that will become a small creek carved through a narrow ravine as it trickles down the steep hillside. As you near the junction with Indian Creek, you will hear the sounds of cascading water before you see it.

For this loop, turn right on Indian Creek Trail. For future consideration, if you were to turn left, you can go to the Deeplow Gap Trail, and eventually on to Martins Gap Trail to undertake a very large loop that meets the far end of Deep Creek Trail.

For its entire length Indian Creek Trail is an old roadbed that is now used by hikers, horses, and perhaps surprisingly, by mountain bikers. Deep Creek and Indian Creek are two of the very few trails in the Smokies to accommodate mountain bike riders. Soon, you will reach a junction with Stonepile Gap Trail, a means of accessing Thomas Divide. But continue on just a short way, crossing a bridge over Indian Creek, then you will hear the rushing sound of Indian Creek Falls.

This angle of Indian Creek Falls, from above, belies the picturesque nature of its cascade. Especially during times of high water flow, this one is perhaps the most attractive of the major waterfalls in Deep Creek. Look for another photo of Indian Creek Falls in the gallery below.

A mere 200 feet after passing Indian Creek Falls you will return to Deep Creek Trail for the end of the first loop. Take a right, cross over Indian Creek, then reach the beginning of the second loop, this time a left turn onto Deep Creek Horse Trail. We passed by another stand of forsythia, then crossed a footlog over a small branch.

You now have a decision to make. Turn left to take the Horse Trail, or go straight ahead on an unnamed manway that climbs up, up, up to eventually meet the Noland Divide Trail. Ken and I thought we would explore this manway for a bit since we still had plenty of time. We went up 360 feet in little more than a quarter mile, gasping for air most of the way. Instead of leveling out, this pathway just kept getting steeper and steeper. We decided enough was enough and turned around.

The Deep Creek Horse Trail was up too, but at least on a more modest grade, climbing only 260 feet to the top of the ridge. The forest along the horse trail is another beauty, filled with beech and maple, among the many hardwoods. After topping the ridge you begin descending to a meeting with the Juney Whank Trail.

This Cherokee phrase roughly translates to “place where the bear passes.” Juney Whank Falls is an 80 foot cascade with a foot bridge crossing about half way up. From the bridge you look up for the top half of the falls and down for the bottom. It seems a little whanky, shall we say, to put the bridge right in the middle rather than at the bottom. Oh well, that’s my photographer’s brain working. The good news is the bridge puts you close enough to touch the water.

There is a very comfy bench on the foot bridge that made a great place for Ken and I to enjoy lunch and the splashing cascade of the waterfall. As we were almost finished with this hike, it was a fine end to what had been a glorious morning. After nourishing ourselves we continued down Juney Whank Trail the final 0.4 mile back to the trailhead parking area.

In summary, this is a great double loop hike with a little something for everyone. If you’re out for a stroll with the family, there is plenty to do along the creeks, and waterfalls to enjoy. If fitness is your cue, then the climbs on Loop Trail and Horse Trail will fill your bill. These loops offer the best of the Smokies that includes stunning forest, ubiquitous waterways, even grand views of the majestic Great Smoky Mountains. What’s not to like?

This post was created by Jeff Clark. Please feel free to use the sharing icons below, or add your thoughts to the comments. Pack it in, pack it out. Preserve the past. Respect other hikers. Let nature prevail. Leave no trace.

The Deep Creek area in the Smokies, just north of Bryson City, NC, is a water wonderland. Creeks and branches descend through every nook down the surrounding mountains. The documentarian Ken Burns describes Deep Creek as one of his favorite places to visit in the national park. Three picturesque waterfalls are in close proximity to the campground, and hiking trails abound. The area is also home to Lakeview Drive, aka the infamous “Road to Nowhere,” and the numerous trails that start there. You can circle Fontana Lake, or follow the drainages that feed it. We enjoyed Deep Creek Trail on Wednesday, September 10, 2014 beginning at 10:30AM and ending about 12:00PM. Our plan was to find and photograph the three waterfalls in the area, then explore the Road to Nowhere, scouting out future hiking opportunities.

The Deep Creek Campground is about three miles north of Bryson City, NC on Deep Creek Road. Hiker parking is at the north end of the campground on the left. The Juney Whank trailhead and the Deep Creek trailhead are right there at the parking lot. Convenient. We chose to tackle Juney Whank Falls first simply to get the short climb out of the way while it was still cool. The trailhead is on the left at the north end of the parking.

It’s 0.8 mile roundtrip to Juney Whank Falls and about 180 feet of climbing. The falls is an 80 foot cascade with a footbridge crossing about half way up. From the bridge you look up for the top half of the falls and down for the bottom. It seems a little whanky, shall we say, to put the bridge right in the middle rather than at the bottom. Oh well, that’s my photographer’s brain working. The good news is the bridge puts you close enough to touch the water.

You can either return the way you came, back to the parking for the Deep Creek trailhead, or you can continue on the Juney Whank Trail. It eventually comes out on the Deep Creek Trail just north of the trailhead. Deep Creek Trail itself is an old forest road, so it is plenty wide and is shared with horses.

The first highlight along Deep Creek Trail about a quarter mile in is Tom Branch Falls. Also an 80-footer this one is on the hillside across Deep Creek, at the point where Tom Branch plunges into the creek. The waterfall is broken into several separate shelves, creating a wealth of splashy cascades. Interestingly, when the water flow is low like it was on this day, it switches from side to side as it crosses the ledges. The Park Service has placed several benches for anyone to just sit and enjoy the view. Tom Branch Falls is especially lovely when the surrounding forest is alive with color in Autumn.

As you continue along Deep Creek Trail you’ll cross on scenic foot bridges enabling the opportunity to peer up and down stream. During late summer, early fall this trail is lined with hearts-a-poppin’-with-love wildflowers, sometimes known as strawberry bush. It’s about a half mile of easy, level strolling alongside the creek to the junction with Indian Creek Trail. Be sure to take a look here at the narrow slot that Indian Creek shoots through on its way to join Deep Creek.

Just a couple hundred feet up Indian Creek Trail is Indian Creek Falls, a 45-foot split waterfall that slides into a wide pool. There is a spur trail off the left of the main trail. I thought this one was the most picturesque of the three major falls in the area. There are two good viewing points and photo spots, one on the way down the spur, and the other at the bottom, alongside Indian Creek.

If you’re here for hiking, the Indian Creek Trail continues onward in a loop until it eventually comes back to Deep Creek after a couple miles. There is about a 350 foot climb over Sunkota Ridge through a rhododendron and laurel forest that is alive with color in late spring. On the Deep Creek side of the ridge the trail is a festive wildflower display throughout spring, including such beauties as trillium, violets and dogwood.

But we were on a different mission today and skipped the loop hike. Primarily interested in the waterfalls, we turned around after having seen each of the three. Now we wanted to go check out the infamous “Road to Nowhere” and scout out the trails found there for future adventures. Look for Lakeview Drive on your way back toward Bryson City.

In the 1930s and 1940s, Swain County gave up the majority of its private land to the Federal government for the creation of Fontana Lake and Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Hundreds of people were forced to leave the small Smoky Mountain communities that had been their homes for generations. With the creation of the Park, their homes were gone, and so was the road to those communities. Old Highway 288 was buried beneath the deep waters of Fontana Lake.

The Federal government promised to replace Highway 288 with a new road. Lakeview Drive was to have stretched along the north shore of Fontana Lake, from Bryson City to Fontana, 30 miles to the west. And, of special importance to those displaced residents, it was to have provided access to the old family cemeteries where generations of ancestors remained behind.

But Lakeview Drive fell victim to an environmental issue and construction was stopped, with the road ending at a tunnel about six miles into the Park. The environmental issue was eventually resolved, but the roadwork was never resumed, and Swain County’s citizens gave the unfinished Lakeview Drive its popular, albeit unofficial name “The Road To Nowhere.” — Cite.

There are several pullouts along Lakeview Drive with wide vistas of the fingers of Fontana Lake and the Great Smoky Mountains that surround the region. Several creeks and streams plummet through the dense forest to the lake, and there are hiking trails that follow these drainages.

At the end of Lakeview Drive, as promised, is the tunnel. It’s probably 200 yards long, a straight shot, and we happened to arrive just as a half dozen horses were clip-clopping through. The echoes in the tunnel confused some horses who became a touch skittish. Once they popped back out into the light at the other end, all was well. We sat on the guardrail beside the road, enjoying a sandwich, and watched the parade as it passed by.

There are several hiking and equestrian trails on the far side of the tunnel, including the Goldmine Loop Trail, and the Lakeshore Trail that is a multi-day excursion.

On our way back on Lakeview Drive, we stopped at the Noland Creek trailhead for the mile hike to Fontana Lake. At first, the trail dropped about a hundred feet to the creek level, then criss-crossed the stream at least a half dozen times on sturdy wooden foot bridges. Noland Creek is quite scenic, surrounded by rhododendron and mixed hardwoods that hang out above the stream.

My companion for the day told me that if you head the opposite direction, away from Fontana Lake, it is an excellent hike that follows Noland Creek for miles. It passes through Solala Valley, past several backcountry campsites, and eventually ends up at Upper Sassafrass Gap where it meets the Noland Divide Trail. Noland Creek Trail is also part of the acclaimed Benton MacKaye Trail that traverses the breadth of the Smokies. This one will definitely be a plan for another day.

When we reached the end of Noland Creek where it feeds Fontana Lake we found both beauty and ugliness. There is a splendid cascade there, dropping 5-6 feet off a shelf of rock. However, looking toward the lake I was taken aback by all the backwash. The banks of the creek are littered with driftwood and logs, and yes, rubbish. It looks like a trash dump; quite appalling actually, especially for a national park. I’m told the boaters on Fontana Lake simply dump their trash overboard, and it ends up in these backwash channels. So sad.

We finished the day at a local Bryson City Mexican eatery, then drove the two hours back home.

To summarize, this was my first trip to the Bryson City region of the Smokies park. As with most places you go in late summer, it was not the best time. I enjoyed the Deep Creek waterfalls, but I was able to envision the scenery as being considerably more attractive in both spring and fall. Even in winter, with a slight snow cover, the waterfalls would be quite lovely. Horace Kephart’s granddaughter tells me he used Deep Creek as the setting for his novel “Smoky Mountain Magic.” Deep Creek was one of Kephart’s favorite places in the Smokies. Our exploration of Lakeview Drive was useful, as I learned of more trails to enjoy in the future. Noland Creek, in particular, is now on my radar.

Update February 24, 2017

Deep Creek is not entirely different in winter, just no leaves on the trees. There is still water everywhere. The trails are just as popular as ever. And on a 70° day in late February it seemed like spring. See for yourself.

This post was created by Jeff Clark. Please feel free to use the sharing icons below, or add your thoughts to the comments. Pack it in, pack it out. Preserve the past. Respect other hikers. Let nature prevail. Leave no trace.