Deep Creek 3.9n & 3.6n, 4.3pd, & 1.0n, 0.7pd, + Juney Whank Falls & Deep Creek Horse Trail parts pd

Picked up John Kennerly and Duane Simmons at 7:00 at Lakeside Market; we proceeded to Food Lion and picked up Janetta Baker at 7:15. At 8:00 we arrived at SVC and John suggested that we see if those doing other trails to Deep Creek Campground were there; to my surprise Lowell Reid and his passengers Mike Miller, Tom Wainner, Richard Ryburn and Manfred Grotewere were there. (Pam Reddoch and Ellie Doughty were taking Sunkota Ridge to Deep Creek and had left at least an hour earlier because their hike was a long one.)

We proceeded to our trailhead and started our hike at 8:15. We completed the 3.9 mi. to Campsite 53 at 10:35 and talked to three campers. (Somewhere along here I wondered if I had turned off my lights but assumed that I must have.) We arrived at Campsite 55 at 11:15 having completed the two upper sections of Deep Creek Trail that I had not done (3.9 & 3.6 mi. sections); we then had a leisurely lunch (see 1st pic). Shortly after we resumed hiking on the portion of Deep Creek that I had previously done, John went back to retrieve his glasses. Duane took Martins Gap at Campsite 57; Janetta and I waited there and proceeded with John's arrival. The entire Deep Creek trail follows quite close to the creek (2nd pic). At 1:49 we reached the Loop Trail junction with Deep Creek; the next 1-mi. section of Deep Creek was all that I needed to complete its entire length of 14.2 miles. John took a picture of Janetta and me after we completed it at 2:10. We were very close to the Deep Creek Pavilion at this point; Janetta and I proceeded while John went on the Deep Creek Horse Trail. Because Janetta had not done the Juney Whank Falls trail we did it. We met John John and we did the last section of the Deep Creek Horse Trail with him.

The three of us arrived at the Deep Creek Pavilion at about 2:30; that was 2 hrs before our bus pickup. Pam and Ellie arrived shortly, then Duane. Lowell, Tom, and Mike arrived, followed shortly by Richard and Manfred. All of us then had about a 60 min. wait for the bus. We were picked up at 4:30 and proceeded through Bryson City and Cherokee to the GSMNP. We first passed Lowell’s and Pam’s vehicles and the driver turned around shortly after passing mine and dropped the four of us off. My fears were confirmed; my lights had not been turned off. We flagged down Lowell and sure enough he had jumper cables; my goof resulted in no more than a 10-15 min. departure delay. (We were extremely lucky in my screw-ups timing; tomorrow I will purchase an auxiliary starting battery.) We proceeded back to Maryville and I dropped off my passengers and arrived home at ~7:00 p.m.

Despite the battery problem, this was a great day; I completed 8.5 new miles out of the ~15 miles hiked. All of the 14.2 miles of Deep Creek Trail hiked were new ones for Janetta; they were also new ones for John on his second map.