Blanket Mountain Trail

Planning a GSMNP loop hike in the near future that will take me by the Panther Creek/Miry Ridge/Jakes Creek/Blanket Mtn intersection.

I'm wondering if the old Blanket Mountain Manway is easy enough to be worth climbing?

The day will already be an 11 to 12 mile hike with more than a 2,000' elevation gain. Blanket Mtn would add more than 1.5 miles (round trip) and add >500' in elevation gain. By itself, that doesn't sound too bad. But the only description of the trail I could find was from a blog 5 years old that described having to practically crawl on hands and knees at times to get thru some of the growth that has occurred over the years since the Park quit maintaining it as an official trail.

yeah........

its easy...........

its been years since ive been up that way though.......

the trail is easy to find at the intersection and looking at ground and you can follow it....

sometimes the brush does get in the way though...............

i know when i did it years ago (and ive been up there at least twice)----i didnt have to get on my hands and knees and crawl...

i just pushed the brush outta the way and followed the trail........


there is not much to see up there though.............just remants of the old foundation...............and i dont think there was a view at all.........

if you are real adventurous----the manway kinda continues pass the foundation and goes down the other side of the mountain....

i have done it that way and then met up with jakes creek trail further down the way.....

FWIW, I went up there last year and all is still as you describe and maybe better ( if I'm recalling correctly someone had worked it and there were relatively fresh cuts) I liked it and thought it was worth doing just to see something different and for fun.

I knew the only thing on top of the mountain was just the old foundation.
Had hoped that since it is winter, there might have a little something of a view through the trees.

Plus I'm sort of interested in checking out some of these old trails.

hey fascinating about the manway continuing past the foundation TNhiker, I remember the path kinda petering out/ dissolving in the heath and beech trees maybe 1/5 of a mile off the summit. I recall thinking that day was not the correct one to try it anyway . lol

I thought read where someone had connected that Blanket summit to Marks creek manway....

HooKoo,
I've had a blast with such trails and routes, some are very fun but also pretty challenging. Have you finished your 900? If not, what's left on the list?

Me & my wife hiked up there 3 or 4 years ago. My memories of the trail match what TNhiker & PatmanTN say. Only the old foundation was of interest since it was summer and there was no view. It is definitely not a well traveled trail but it might be fun in winter with the opportunity for a view that isn't frequently seen.

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Plus I'm sort of interested in checking out some of these old trails.

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yeah...........thats how i am....

might as well do it since you'll be in that area......

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hey fascinating about the manway continuing past the foundation TNhiker, I remember the path kinda petering out/ dissolving in the heath and beech trees maybe 1/5 of a mile off the summit. I recall thinking that day was not the correct one to try it anyway . lol

I thought read where someone had connected that Blanket summit to Marks creek manway....

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yeah....

after a short bit, it really turns into a bushwhack with a faint trail if that...

and for some reason, i was thinking it went around to the jakes creek side somewhere in there....

i think thats how i ended up bushwhacking it outta there-----just went down hill to jakes...

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Originally Posted by PatmanTN

Have you finished your 900? If not, what's left on the list?

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It just so happens that yesterday, I added up the milage of all the sections I haven't done and I've got just under 150 miles of unhiked trail.
Trips planned:
2 night loop: Lumber Ridge & Jakes Creek
2 night loop: Indian Grave & Beard Cane
2 night convoluted path to finish Deep Creek area.
2 night loop: Hazel Creek & Welch Ridge.
3-4 night Lake Shore loop.
2 night figure 8 of Anthony Creek & Finley Cane.

Haven't decided how to get the Boundary Trails from School House Gap to Laurel Falls. Some of it can be done as over night loops that included some long mileage and a little road walking, or might get some of them as day hikes next time the family vacations up that way and my wife can shuttle me.

After that, there's just various short segments scattered throughout the park I've got to pick up.

congrats and well done on that! those are worthwhile miles for sure

In one sense, the drive time I had in hiking them all was a significant part of the effort ...and I live in Knoxville. It's really impressive when folks from out of state get them all done.

Mentioning the convoluted paths to get all of Deep Creek area make me chuckle at memories of staring as if confused at the map while passerby's stopped to offer assistance, thinking I was lost :)

I was able to hike to the top of Blanket Mountain this weekend.

The most difficult part was finding the start of the trail. From the Jakes' Creek intersection, looking towards Blanket Mtn, I initially went to the right where there a lot of open space where apparently many hikers go for a rest stop at this intersection. But as I tried to follow what looked like man-ways toward the base of the mountain, I was soon simply walking through brambles. I was about to give up and turn around when I suddenly came across the trail a little before the base of the mountain. To find the trail from the intersection, you need to look to the right of all the open space on the left.

The trail was easy to follow, only a hand full of blowdowns that were easy to duck under. But it rained the night before and I got pretty wet from all of the foliage growing right up against the trail.

At the top, found some knocked over stones in one clearing, and the 4 foundation pillars of the fire tower in the other clearing. It wasn't a surprize to see a fire ring... evidence that some illegal camping has been going on up there. But what I couldn't understand was about 15 feet away from the fire ring, there was a small depression in the ground that someone has used as a second spot to built a fire.

Even though it was winter, there didn't appear to be any view from the top. There's lots of Mountain Laurel and Rhododendron growing on the mountain, and it seems to encircle the mountain top such that you can't see over it. Couldn't say 100% that there is no view, as I ran into a cloud bank about 3/4 the way up the mountain.