Benton MacKaye Trail

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Map showing location of trails in Georgia

The Benton MacKaye Trail or BMT is a footpath nearly 300 miles in length in the Appalachian Mountains in the southeastern United States and is blazed by a white diamond, 5" across by 7" tall. The hiking trail was created and is maintained by the Benton MacKaye Trail Association and is named for Benton MacKaye, the Massachusetts forester and regional planner who first had the idea for the Appalachian Trail in 1921.

The BMT runs from Springer Mountain in Georgia (sharing the southern terminus of the Appalachian Trail) to Davenport Gap in Tennessee. The trail passes through several United States Wilderness Areas, including the Cohutta Wilderness and Big Frog Wilderness in Georgia, while traversing three states (Georgia, Tennessee and North Carolina). The lowest elevation (765 feet) on the BMT occurs at the crossing of the Hiwassee River in Tennessee. The highest elevation is the 5,843 foot summit of Mt. Sterling.