The
Bent Arm manway was one of my early SMHC off trail trips on a route that would
become one of my favorites. I have notes from the trip, mostly on the route, but
no digital images. For this report I’m combining this first trip with my second
trip, which also included an off trail climb up Blanket Mountain. My next two
trips up Bent Arm used forks of Newt Prong as the descent route, so I will also
combine those two trips into a single report. There is an additional blog from
my 2022 SMHC trip at: (2022 Bent Arm). I have both GPS
tracks and digital pictures from later trips on Bent Arm, and use images from my
2014 and 2015 trips to accompany this text.
Jenny Bennett on Bent Arm in 2015.
The
1998 hike was a SMHC trip with 19 people. I noted no names, but remember that
Guy Griffith was along. We started at Elkmont and the Cucumber Gap Trail. The
start of the Bent Arm manway begins just a hundred yards or so beyond Cucumber
Gap where an old railroad grade forks to the right. The railroad grade turns
into an old CCC trail where it bends right to travel above Huskey Branch. We
stayed on the left side of the ridge for about 45 minutes until we reached a
small cove. Then at about 1:15 we reached the crest of the ridge where we began
the long rhodo tunnel. There was a long CCC wall where the trail was briefly on
the right side of the ridge. The trail was open and there had been some
clipping done. We saw some old pink, and newer yellow flags, as markers.
At
about two hours we gained the main ridge in a small saddle. There was a short,
steep climb ahead, and we could now see orange and yellow flags in the open
woods on the top of Bent Arm Ridge.
At
about 2:25 we took our lunch break. It would take us another 45 minutes to
traverse the open top of Bent Arm Ridge. The trail was less easy to follow on
the ridgetop, but stayed either on the crest, or just below the crest on the
left side. The manway joined the Miry Ridge Trail in an unmarked spot about 5
minutes above the then new location of Campsite 26 at the head of Newt Prong. I
was impressed with the navigating ability of our leaders (Probably Paul
Threlkeld and Anna Marie Stefanick, who are listed in the 98 handbook). I
thought it might be possible to repeat the route from the bottom, but following
the hazy manway along the crest of Bent Arm from the top would have been
trouble.
Soggy hikers, 2015.
On
the return hike I noted the good overlook above Thunderhead on the Miry Ridge
Trail. I thought the descent of Jakes Creek Trail was easy, but that neither the
Miry Ridge nor Jakes Creek trail was especially attractive. We ended with 11
miles. I took pictures of both the Thunderhead Sandstone and the Anakeesta
Formation, but nothing good enough to have scanned.
11-13-99, Blanket Mountain and Bent Arm
This
10 mile SMHC trip went up Blanket Mountain cross country, and then returned to
Elkmont via the Bent Arm manway. The trip also included Jean, Ray Payne, Paul
Treldkeld, Chris Johnson, and Chris Hamilton.
To
access Blanket Mountain, we hiked just a few minutes past Campsite 20 on the
Meigs Mountain Trail, then turned south up the left (east) side of Blanket
Creek. We went about 45 minutes in relatively clear, gently sloping woods. We
saw one old chimney which was likely the Andy Brackett chimney that Jean and I
would struggle to find in 2015. 
Fringed phacelia on Bent Arm Ridge.
Where
the drainage narrowed we cut to the right and confronted some moderate rhodo
and a steeper grade. My altimeter read 3600’ when we cut hard right and went up
a much steeper grade to Bearpen Gap. Bearpen Gap is the connection between
Meigs Mountain to the west and Blanket Mountain to the south. There had been
some old timbering between the ridgetop and the bottom of the first rock band.
Trout lily on Bent Arm Ridge.
We
followed the north ridge of Blanket Mountain through three rock bands to the
former fire tower site on the summit, which we reached in 2:30. The 1931 park
map shows a trail up Blanket Creek to Bearpen Gap, but we saw no trace of a
trail.
From
the tower site we then followed the abandoned Blanket Mountain Trail to Jakes
Gap. Apparently, our group hadn’t been going as fast as anticipated by the
leaders and it took some convincing (though Jean calls it a rebellion) to
persuade the leaders to let the entire group continue down Bent Arm. It
was an hour long hike over to the start of the manway, and then a slow walk on
the faint ridge crest section. But Matthew and Pat knew how to find the place
where the trail leaves the ridge for the long rhodo tunnel.
The rhodo tunnel.
The
tunnel was still well maintained and obvious. I estimated the last half mile
was old railroad grade coming in from Cucumber Gap and the Little River. I also
noticed chunk of white quartz stuck in the hollow of a tree marking the start
of the old RR on the Cucumber Gap Trail. We would be seeing it many times in
the future.
The lower end of the Bent Arm manway.
