Deep Creek Loop Trail Hike

It is always a great winter hike when a gray morning start to the day and cold temperature climbs from below freezing into the upper 40's-50's and sunshine. Even better when it is on Deep Creek, a special part of the Smoky Mt. National Park which never fails to dazzle. In spite of the frigid plunges of Old Jack Frost, the steady green of ferns, moss, pine, holly and mistletoe against the dull browns and grays of the season provided vivid reminders of the craftiness of plant evolution in finding ways to harvest the sun and find some fun, which reminds me of the Hardy Hikers, equally crafty by the way. 

Click any photo to enlarge pictures.


The art of winter ice added its special embellishment to being out in deep December. 

It's enough to make you jump for joy; well, at least one of us could still get airborne. (The rumor that we spent a long time figuring out how to hang her from a wire since she couldn’t really jump, and that my photo timing was really bad as some had just landed leaving them bent over and her suspended in the air... that is such an egregious conspiracy theory. I mean, just ignore that little lift on her backpack. Really, talk about imaginations working overtime….)


Here's the stream feeding Deep Creek where we turned to take the Indian Creek Trail.

This was the turnoff from Indian Creek Trail to loop back to Deep Creek, and where the sunshine had arrived to warm us while the rest of the group caught up.


If you look closely at the enlarged version of the 3D terrain map, you should be able to find the ridge-climb cut-over where the last two photos above were taken, where we got from Indian Creek to Hazel Creek and the return back downstream.
3D Mapping of Bryson City Area

It is possible to have hot food in seconds any time on a winter trail. Just stop by Black Balsam Outdoors on Main Street in Sylva and pick up a MSR WindBurner Stove System. It weighs about 15 oz. Don't forget matches and a can of fuel.

The big buzz of this trip however was about trading around the amazing and much-appreciated rechargeable hand warmers that some of the group were sporting. The numerous brands come in single-sided and double sided versions.


There was a grand contrast between the racing waters shooting beneath them and the immobile rock-anchored "icebergs" scattered along the creek which were heavily fringed by icicles.






 As the day warmed, the shelf ice along the creek was constantly calving off, sending floating rafts of snow-covered ice caroming and banking off the stream rocks in some random game of rushing bumper cars. A great spectacle to watch.




However, iceberg day was clearly not the best day for Bill and I to find any actively feeding trout.


Friends, thanks for the comradeship. See you next time.

Bob






















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