Benton MacKaye Trail (Big Stamp Gap to Three Forks)
Chattahoochee-Oconee National Forests
1755 Cleveland Highway
Gainesville, GA 30501
770 297-3000
The Benton MacKaye Trail is a work in progress, and it currently runs nearly 100 miles from the southern terminus at Springer Mountain, Georgia, to US Hwy 64 & 74 near the Ocoee River in Tennessee. The trail is named for Benton MacKaye, who first published a proposal for the creation of the Appalachian Trail in the early 1900’s while hiking in Vermont.
The current plan is for the Benton MacKaye Trail to continue through the Cherokee National Forest in Tennessee and eventually reach the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in North Carolina and rejoin with the Appalachian Trail. (For more information, you can visit the Benton MacKaye Trail Association website. Its members volunteer for trail development, construction, maintenance and repair.)
This section of the Benton MacKaye Trail (BMT) is a short one that runs about four miles from Big Stamp Gap to Three Forks, where it joins up again with the Appalachian Trail. Three Forks is a nice flat area accessible by USFS 58 where Stover, Chester, and Long Creeks converge. The area is very pleasant and it is often crowded with overnight campers, especially on weekends.
We hiked a loop in this section that started at Three Forks and followed the Appalachian Trail back to USFS 42. From here we returned back to Three Forks via the Benton MacKaye Trail (BMT). It’s either a short day hike or an extremely easy backpacking trip, depending on your preference.
- click to see a photo from our hike on the Benton MacKaye Trail: September 19, 1998
- click to view a Daytimer report of this day hike starting at Three Forks: September 19, 1998 (password required)
- click for a Trails Illustrated map of this area in the Chattahoochee National Forest
- click for a topographical map of section one of the Benton MacKaye Trail (password required)
- click to view a map of the entire Benton MacKaye Trail (password required)
- click for another map of the entire Benton MacKaye Trail (password required)
- click for a profile map of section one of the Benton MacKaye Trail (password required)
- click to view trail notes from section one of the Benton MacKaye Trail (password required)
- click for more hikes in this area from Big Stamp Gap
- click for more information on the Benton MacKaye Trail
- click for Benton MacKaye Trail hiking and backpacking books
- click to access the guidebook Best Hikes With Dogs Georgia And South Carolina which has details on this destination
- click for other Georgia hiking and backpacking books
- click for other hikes on the Appalachian Trail in Georgia