Benton MacKaye Trail

The Benton MacKaye Trail or BMT is a footpath nearly 300 miles (480 km) in length in the Appalachian Mountains in the southeastern United States and is blazed by a white diamond, 5″ across by 7″ tall.

It also crosses Eagle, Hazel, Forney, Noland and Big creeks in the Smokies, along with Fontana Dam and the Oconaluftee River.

Driving the effort was a desire to see opened for hiking Benton MacKaye's chosen route for his Appalachian mountain trail.

MacKaye, Massachusetts forester and co-founder of The Wilderness Society, was the man whose vision inspired what is today the Appalachian Trail.

In the south, he had selected a more westerly route, along the western crest of the Blue Ridge, roughly that followed today by the BMT.