This was the scouting hike for the SMHC trip that Jean and I were scheduled to lead in April. Bent Arm remains one of our favorite off trail hiking routes in the Smokies. The route was a CCC-era built trail, that likely was never added back to the park map after WWII. It is shown on the 1946 map as a manway, and seems to see enough hikers to keep it open. We first hiked it on a pair of SMHC trips in the late 90’s, before we had started exploring off trail seriously. Next we paired the manway with bushwhack route routes both successful (Newt Prong) and unsuccessful (Wrong Prong). Those early trips were in the fall, and it wasn’t until 2014 that we went in spring, and discovered the magnificent wildflower display along the upper ridge. Jenny Bennett led the route in spring 2015 on one of her last hikes with the club. Jean and I led another spring hike club hike in 2019.
This
write-up contains my notes from the 2022 scouting hike and from the Smoky
Mountains Hiking Club trip a month later. We asked Ed and Mike to join us for
the scouting hike, both had done the manway several times previously. I’d seen
a report from the 1-15-22 SMHC Cucumber Gap history hike that the start of the
manway was briery, so I was prepared that the hike could be more difficult vs
previous years.
We
left home ~7:30AM, met at 9:15 at Jakes Cr TH, and started hiking about 9:30. It
was about 1.7 miles on trail to the start of the manway. The Bent Arm manway starts just past the crest
of the gap and at the start of an old railroad grade. The first large RR cut is
just beyond. Heading southeast a few of the cuts are overgrown, but otherwise
the manway is fairly open. Early spring flowers were just starting to bud, with
some large patches of trout lily foliage. The end of old RR is at a turnaround,
and a quartz rock set in base of tree is still obvious (1:30). Footway is clear
beyond.
Start of the CCC Built section.
Jean led essentially all the off trail portion of the hike. Not far into the foot trail portion the manway was well clipped with some very recent (that week?) cutting with a hand saw(?) We would continue to break branches and do minor clipping, but any saw work was already done, and much of the rhodo had been trimmed open. What a lucky break for both our scout trip and the club hike to come! The valleys of tributaries of Huskey Branch were open and sunny, but few flowers were in loom. Some minor brier infested these valleys.
Once
up near the crest of Bent Arm Ridge the manway is mostly in the rhodo tunnel. There
was lots of recent cutting here. We took one break by tributary lower down, and
ate lunch at top of highest rock wall along the rhodo tunnel. We should wait
until we hit the ridge, and an open sunny area, before we stop for lunch for
the club trip.
Fringed phacelia from the club hike.
Once
out of the rhodo tunnel (3:45) the manway mostly follows the ridge crest. I
suspect there was little need for a dug trail here, so little remains from the
old CCC route. We went right around first two knobs, and then made a long bypass
on left around “Bent” knob. We went over top of the next two knobs and then held
elevation to go left around the large “junction” knob. Jean and I started to go
downhill here, but Mike found the correct route above us. We found a pink flag
here, one at the exit of the rhodo tunnel, and one other on the ridge. The ridge
was wide open, and flowers should be great come April. This is still a gorgeous
spot! We reached Miry Ridge Trail at 5 hours, and Jakes Gap at 6:20, with short
breaks at both.
Scouting party at the end of the manway.
We saw one tent at Jakes Creek Campsite, but we saw no hikers until near the trailhead. The Jakes Creek ford was tricky, Jean waded barefoot. We reached the bridge at Newt Prong ~7:15. We needed to start club hike earlier maybe 8:15AM. 12.2 mi., 2800’, 8 hrs
4-23-22
Club Trip
The SMHC Group Hike.
We had strong, experienced crew of SMHC vets for this trip. Again, we found the roughest part of manway at the start on the old RR grade section with some briars and blowdowns. The manway was much clearer by the end of the RR grade, which is marked by quartz grown into tree. Perfect weather, warm, sunny, and calm. We took one break at small tributary. Lots of flowers out on the trail section and lower “forest” section. No understory in rhodo tunnel. Manway seemed even more open vs. our scout trip. Jean led thru rhodo tunnel and kept strong pace throughout.
We
ate lunch on the ridge at the top of the first small knob after the rhodo
tunnel. The informal Sands-led off-trail group was planning to follow us up the
manway and then go down Hostility Branch (presumably from the saddle at the top
of the rhodo tunnel), but we never saw them.
Lunchtime on Bent Arm Ridge.
The
lunch spot marked the start of wildflower heaven. The spring beauty, trout
lily, and fringed phacelia were in a deep, solid blanket, almost like a
continuous bed of moss. The flowers were so thick they seemed to be fighting
among themselves for light. I led this section and barely could follow the old
manway. I tried to keep to the path to stomp the fewest flowers, but often I
had no choice but to step in their midst. This carpet went on for a full half
mile about to the highpoint on the ridge. It was probably the largest densest,
and most beautiful wildflower display I’ve ever seen. We had a lot of
experienced flower watchers (Ed, Claudia) in the group, but none of us had seen
anything quite like this before.
Walking through the wonderland.
Apparently
trout lily typically has only a small number of plants bloom each year. The
large number of bloomless flowers we typically see has often led us to believe
that we were too early or too late for their peak bloom.
Trout Lily.
We’d see some smaller areas of this dense flowering on the rest of the hike, but nothing else to match the ridge top. On the return we took breaks at the junction with Miry Ridge trail, and then the Blanket Mtn. junction. We saw two backpackers on upper Miry Ridge, and our first day hikers on the Newt Prong Bridge. It’s a long 6 miles back by trail, but we were all fresh and still running on some of our euphoria from the flower fest. It was an easy rock hop over Jakes Creek, but some of the group waded with or without removing their shoes.
Summary
of previous Bent Arm Manway Hikes:
11-21-98, SMHC Trip, Up Bent Arm and down Miry Ridge Tr
11-13-99,
SMHC w/ Jean, Up Blanket Mountain off trail and down Bent Arm
11-4-07,
w/ Jean and Ed, Up Bent Arm and down Newt Prong, first pix, first GPS
1-11-09,
w/ Jean, Ed, and Claudia, Up Bent Arm and down Wrong Prong, GPS
4-27-14,
w/ Jean, Up Bent Arm and down Miry Ridge Tr.,
discovered flowers
4-26-15,
SMHC w/Jean, Up Miry Ridge and Down Bent Arm, Jenny Bennett leader
2-9-19,
Scout for SMHC trip w/ Jean, Up Bent Arm and down Miry Ridge Tr, saw boar
4-27-19,
led SMHC Trip w/
Jean, Up Bent Arm and down Miry Ridge Tr
No comments:
New comments are not allowed.