IT’S THE MOUNTAIN AIR WE BREATHE

Christy and I spent the first weekend of our spring vacation in Wilmington for the Azalea Festival. We didn’t see any actual azaleas while we were there. Our motive was two concerts by one of our favorite bands, Widespread Panic. In addition, part of the appeal was the chance to stay in my favorite North Carolina city east of the mountains. Downtown Wilmington is pretty vibrant, and the festival weekend was even better since many of the streets were closed off. Our hotel was only a few blocks from the concert venue, so we could easily walk everywhere all weekend.

Unfortunately Christy came down with the flu a couple of days before the trip. The worst of it passed on Thursday night, but she was still in pretty rough shape Friday. We’re stubborn though, so we decided to go anyway.

We drove straight to the Hilton in downtown Wilmington. We were pressed for time, since we weren’t able to leave Charlotte until 2:30, and the concert was scheduled to start at 8. We checked in, and I dropped Christy off before parking the car. I was carrying two bags and a cooler into the hotel when I saw the elevator doors closing. Luckily, somebody saw me coming, and the doors popped back open.

I hustled into an elevator packed with beauty pageant contestants. Apparently the Azalea Festival includes a beauty pageant. Judging from the quality of the contestants in the elevator, it’s definitely a notch above Wilmington’s other beauty pageant, Miss Watermelon NC (http://www.ncmelons.com/queen.php). I felt like one of the lead characters from “Dumb and Dumber” when we stopped at a floor that had a distinct smell of fish. The conversation went something like this:

Contestant #1: “Whoo, what’s that smell?”

Contestant #2: “It smells like fish.”

Contestant #3: “I’ll bet he has fish in his cooler.”

Me: “Oh no, there’s nothing in there but beer. Would any of you ladies like a beer?”

What a smooth operator! They all politely declined. No doubt they didn’t want to risk getting bloated before the big event. I must be getting old, because I was actually relieved. I really didn’t want to share my beer.

We ended up at the Front Street Brewery for dinner. It was packed, and there was a 45 minute wait, but somehow we managed to find 2 seats at the bar. The food was good and the beer was better – particularly the Scottish Ale. Christy had some whiskey and ginger ale, which left her feeling a little better.

The concert that night was fantastic. The highlight was a guest appearance by Nicky Sanders, who plays fiddle for the Steep Canyon Rangers. He has played with Widespread Panic four times, and we saw two of those shows. The first time was last fall in Asheville, where they played Driving Song > Maggot Brain (a parliament cover, and quite possibly the saddest song ever written) > Driving Song. That was the most incredible musical performance I’d ever witnessed. The performance in Wilmington was nearly as good. They started out with “Surprise Valley”, which is my favorite Widespread Panic song. It’s a great song in its own right, but it was even better with the fiddle added to the mix.

While the weekend started out great, it went downhill a bit afterwards. Christy felt worse on Saturday, and didn’t make it to the concert Saturday night. We went to the beach on Sunday, but she wasn’t in any condition to enjoy it.

Other highlights from the weekend included a great breakfast at “The Basics”, a wonderful dinner at the “Black Sea Grill”, and the traditional visit to “Flaming Amy’s”.

Monday and Tuesday were rainy, so I took it easy at home. On Wednesday I headed to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park for a 3-day backpacking trip. As usual, I considered a number of different routes. I wanted to do a trip that would get me in shape, so I settled on a loop combining the Noland Divide, Deep Creek, and Fork Ridge Trails. My original plan was to start at the top, on Clingman’s Dome Road. That would have meant a long first day, descending the entire 12-mile length of the Noland Divide Trail, and then hiking back up Deep Creek a couple of miles to camp. I’d then spend the last 2 days ascending back up Deep Creek and Fork Ridge to Clingman’s Dome Road. I preferred going this direction for aesthetics. The Noland Divide and Fork Ridge trailheads are both on Clingman’s Dome Road, but they are a couple of miles apart. The Appalachian Trail parallels the road, but it isn’t really accessible from the Noland Divide Trailhead. I’d have to walk the road to close the loop, and I preferred to do that at the beginning or the end of the hike. Doing it in the middle would be an interruption to the wilderness experience.

Unfortunately the weather forecast for Tuesday evening called for rain, snow, ice, and subfreezing temperatures at the higher elevations. A blurb on the park service website mentioned that the high elevation roads in the park could be closed if conditions were hazardous. It would be inconvenient if I couldn’t get to the trailhead. So I flipped the route. I would start out at the Deep Creek Campground, with plans to ascend the Noland Divide Trail on the first day. I would spend the first night at campsite 61 on Noland Creek, which would be out of the way. Unfortunately there are no campsites along Noland Divide itself, so that was my only real option.

On day 2 I’d hike back up to Noland Divide and resume the ascent. Once at Clingman’s Dome Road I’d have a decision to make. The shorter, easier option would be to walk the road directly to the Fork Ridge Trail. But if I really wanted to go big, I could head the other way, following the road to the summit of Clingman’s Dome. Clingman’s Dome would be a worthy destination, since it is the highest point the Smokies, the highest point in Tennessee, and the highest point along the entire Appalachian Trail. From there, I could follow the A.T. down to the Fork Ridge Trail, which would take me down to Deep Creek. Including Clingman’s Dome would add a few miles and 800-900’ of additional elevation gain to a long, challenging day.

After a long drive from Charlotte, I reached Bryson City around mid-morning on Wednesday. From there I drove out to the end of the road at the Deep Creek Campground. The Noland Divide Trail actually starts about a half mile back down the road, but I wanted to leave my car where I would finish the hike on Friday afternoon. I started my hike on a sunny but cool day a bit before 11am. First off, I wanted to visit Juney Whank Falls. For some reason I had never been to it, even though it is only a ¼ mile or so from the parking area.

I hiked up a footpath, before joining a horse trail. The horse trail took me directly to the falls. The trail crosses the creek on a bridge right at the base. The cascade isn’t particularly remarkable, but it was still a nice way to start my hike. From there, I backtracked down the horse trail. Instead of returning to the parking area, I continued on the horse trail until I reached a junction with the Noland Divide Trail. Following the horse trail enabled me to avoid walking along the road.

The climb up the Noland Divide Trail was steady but not steep. Early on I passed near a road just outside of the park, but after that I was deep in the wilderness. In fact, I saw two people at Juney Whank Falls, but nobody else during the entire first day. The trail stayed in the woods for the most part, but broke out of the trees shortly before Coeburn Knob. I followed a narrow ridgeline with nice views along here. I stopped at one of them for lunch. Just beyond I found an official side trail out to Lone Pine Point. This spot offers the best vista along the Noland Divide Trail. The view encompasses an impressive stretch of the Nantahala mountains, with Bryson City far below.

Afterwards I returned to the woods. More climbing followed, and I passed a nice spring and a relatively flat area that would’ve made a nice campsite. A long gentle descent followed, all the way to Sassafras Gap. The Noland Creek and Pole Road Creek Trails meet there. I followed the Noland Creek Trail downhill, on a recently re-routed stretch of trail. It’s no longer as steep as it once was, but I still had to descend 600’, which I would have to go back up the next morning.

I had campsite 61 all to myself. It’s a decent spot, right next to Noland Creek. After setting up camp, I walked down the Noland Creek Trail a short distance looking for flowers. I hadn’t seen anything more than a few violets along the Noland Divide, but there wasn’t anything blooming here, either. I gave up quickly and retreated to camp. Since I got in early, I decided to gather firewood. It was plentiful, and the fire helped ward off the evening’s chill. It got down well below freezing that night, but I went to bed long before that!

Unfortunately I had to get up early the next morning. Getting out of the tent in those conditions took some motivation. Hot coffee got me moving, and I was back on the trail by 9am. I hiked back up to Sassafras Gap, and resumed the climb on the Noland Divide. It was a pleasant hike through a lovely forest, but the trees managed to obscure the views. I finally ran into other people late that morning. It was three guys on horses, clearing the trail of fallen trees. I thanked them for their service before finishing the climb up to Clingman’s Dome Road.

At that point I had climbed almost 5,000’ since starting the hike. I was feeling good though, and I didn’t hesitate before turning towards Clingman’s Dome. Over the next 30 minutes, I was startled at how much traffic there was. It was a sunny but chilly Thursday, and I wasn’t expecting it to be that busy. On the other hand, the road features a number of great views. Oddly, I actually like the views from the road more than the 360 degree vista from Clingman’s Dome itself.

The parking lot at the end of the road was packed. In fact, there were 3 busses there. The whole area was overrun with tourists, and they were even louder out of their cars than they were in them. At least they provided some entertainment. While I was in line for the bathroom, I overheard a conversation between two teenage girls. Apparently they were looking at some sort of tour guide pamphlet. One said, “Ooh, it would be cool to see a river otter”! Her friend responded, “I think we would need to be near water for that”. Obviously she was the bright one!

More disturbing was a conversation between a heavy set woman and her chubby young son. They were on their way back down from the ½ mile walk to the summit. As they passed by, the woman said, “Wow, that was hard! When we get home we’re going to get 10 cheeseburgers from McDonalds and spend all afternoon eating them”! I cringed. There’s nothing like celebrating you accomplishment with an overindulgence of McPoison.

Near the summit, a boisterous man was bellowing at his friends. “HEY, LOOK AT ME! I’M ON THE APP-UH-LAY-SHUN TRAIL! I DID IT! I HIKED THE TRAIL!” I cringed again. I wanted to tell him that he wasn’t anywhere close to the APP-uh-LAY-shun Trail. That trail starts over a thousand miles farther north, at the Mason Dixon Line. Even worse, he wasn’t even on the App-a-LATCH-in Trail – he was actually on a connecting path that joins the A.T. just below the summit.

I braved the hordes long enough to climb to the top of the tower. I took in the views, but it was way too crowded up there to eat lunch. I found a sunny spot near the base of the tower for that. I ate quickly though, as I was more than ready to get back into the wilderness.

I’d started this trip with two primary goals. First, I hoped to find lots of wildflowers blooming. Second, I needed to get in shape. Since I’d climbed over a mile in elevation on the ascent from Deep Creek, I’d made a lot of progress towards the second goal. Now it was time to work on the wildflowers. I hadn’t seen much thus far, but I had high hopes for the Deep Creek portion of the hike.

I hiked down to the A.T., which I followed through a deep, dark forest of spruce and fir. Long stretches of the trail were icy, so I didn’t make very good time on my descent from Clingman’s Dome. At least it was quiet though. I’d seen quite a few thru-hikers on Clingman’s Dome, but I didn’t run into anyone on the A.T. until just before reaching the Fork Ridge Trail junction. There I met a whole herd of seniors on a nature walk. Luckily, they were the last people I saw all day.

GARDEN > DEEP

I turned onto the Fork Ridge Trail and hiked a short distance to Clingman’s Dome Road. I crossed it and left the madness behind. After a short distance I passed a couple of small springs and seeps. I was out of water, but these water sources would’ve been very tedious to filter from. I continued on, hopeful that I would find a better option. I hiked another mile through a lovely forest of large trees, but didn’t see anything. I was beginning to think I’d made a big mistake when I reached another series of springs. These were bigger, and I didn’t hesitate. I took a well-deserved break while filtering enough water to get me to my campsite on Deep Creek.

The Fork Ridge Trail follows a dramatic ridgeline that is quite narrow in places. However, there is just enough tree cover to obscure the views. Despite this, it has a couple of really nice stretches. The first was less than 2 miles down. I was descending switchbacks when the forest opened up to reveal a thick carpet of spring beauties in bloom. The flowers covered the entire hillside. There were quite a few trout lilies as well.

That was a just a warm up though. At the lower end of the trail, just before I reached Deep Creek, I wandered into a cove that was absolutely blanketed by white-fringed phacelia in bloom. The flowers were so thick, they looked like snow. I’d only seen a display like that in two other places – both in the Roan Highlands. This cove featured lots of other flowers as well, including white trillium, trout lilies, hepatica, and dutchman’s breeches. It was easily the biggest highlight of the trip.

The last challenge of the day was at Deep Creek itself. The Fork Ridge Trail used to cross it on a bridge, but it washed away years ago. I would have to ford the creek. Deep Creek is a large stream – at its lower end, it would qualify as a river. Even 10 miles upstream from the park boundary, it’s a big stream. The water was up, too, thanks to a wet spring and heavy rains on Tuesday.

Fortunately I didn’t have any trouble crossing, but it sure was cold! It took a good 60 seconds or so to get all the way across, and I was hollering when I finally got out. Unfortunately it was late in the evening, and another cold night was in the forecast. I didn’t really get a chance to warm up, and I didn’t even have time to look for firewood. In fact, there was just enough daylight left to set up camp, do my chores, and cook dinner. I was pretty worn out after eating, so I went to bed early. I slept well that night, soothed by the sound of the creek and the occasional cries from a nearby owl.

The next morning was a bit warmer. I got up early and made oatmeal and coffee. Campsite 53 is ok if you’re lucky enough to have it all to yourself like I did. It is situated in small clearing near the creek, and the trail runs right through it. The site doesn’t offer any privacy, but that didn’t matter on my visit since there wasn’t anybody else around. There were quite a few flowers blooming around camp, including white trillium and phlox. In fact, there were even some ferns and white violets growing right out of a tree stump. The campsite also featured a fair bit of trash, including the wrapper from a Jack Links Beef Stick. I took it with me since I was on my way out.

I wasn’t feeling well that morning, as my stomach was a bit unsettled. Fortunately it calmed down a bit once I got on the trail. The first few miles featured some fantastic creek side scenery. The trail stays very close to the creek, which is wild and spectacular. There were occasional wildflowers, too. Overall they were hit or miss, as there were long stretches without any. However, the areas that had them were quite nice. I saw three types of trillium (white, red, and painted), wild geranium, phlox, hepatica, dwarf iris, dutchman’s breeches, and several other varieties.

This stretch of trail also featured some challenges. There were a couple of large trees across the trail. One in particular presented a significant obstacle. Two tributaries, Cherry Creek and Nettle Creek, required wading. The difficulties were pretty trivial though. This stretch of Deep Creek provided exactly what I’d been looking for – a beautiful mountain stream deep in the wilderness.

I made it down to campsite 54, which is pretty blah. The area has a lot of fallen trees, and the site just isn’t very attractive. The firepit also featured another wrapper from a Jack Links Beef Stick. No doubt both of them were left behind by the same douche bag. I hope a Sasquatch throws him in the river.

The nice scenery continued down to campsite 55 (a nice one, but a horse camp) and a junction with the Pole Creek Road Trail. This trail climbs up to Sassafras Gap on Noland Divide, where I’d been the previous morning. From there I continued on to campsite 56, and then up to campsite 57, Bryson Place. Bryson Place was Horace Kephart’s last residence in the Smokies. It’s a horse camp now, and not one of the nicer sites along the Deep Creek Trail. Unlike the others, it’s up on a hill away from Deep Creek.

The next several miles featured lots of ups and downs as the trail wandered away from the creek to traverse a series of spur ridges. It was along here that I began to realize just how tired I was. Clearly I was running out of gas. Fortunately I only had a few more miles to go.

I returned to the creek at campsite 60, which is the nicest one on the Deep Creek Trail. After one more hill, I joined an old road that followed the creek (now pretty much a river) the rest of the way. Although I was exhausted, I did take a quick side trip up to see Indian Creek Falls. It was only a short distance out of the way, and it is one of the nicest waterfalls in the park. From there, I continued on downstream to Tom’s Branch Falls, which is on a small tributary. It’s a nice waterfall too, as it spills directly into Deep Creek.

From there, another five minutes of walking brought me to my car. I made it back around 4:30, which meant that even with a long drive, I’d get home by a reasonable hour. First though, I stopped at the Nantahala Brewing Company in Bryson City and picked up 2 growlers of Appalachian Trail Extra Pale Ale. It’s one of my new favorites, and was a great reward for a tough but spectacular hike!

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