I am in St. Louis and will be hiking across the united states starting april 14 and am looking for anyone who wants to hike to california i am going to be traveling light and have been wanting to do so for some time so it seems like this is the year anyone got any ideas on routes i was going to start at the onandaga trail near st. louis

Faxed in my permit this past Monday and had email confirmation by noon that day. Had the hard copy by Thursday. Now it's real!
I'm doing a solo hybrid JMT/High Sierra Trail hike.
The plan at this point is to leave from Tuolumne on Aug 30th. Resupply at MTR. Leave the JMT (Ive already done Whitney twice and will again in July) at the junction to Lake South America and spend the day and night there exploring the Upper Kern basin.
Head down the now defunct Lake South America Trail to the High Sierra Trail junction and spend 4 or 5 days on the High Sierra Trail. Exit at Wolverton Creek via Panther Gap in SNP on or about September 18th.
I'm keeping my intinerary pretty loose so I can shorten or extend days or stop at great campspots I find on the way. I'd love suggestions for favorite spots that are lesser known and have great views.
I'm thinking this route should be a bigger slice of the Sierra than I would get on a traditional JMT hike.
Can't wait!

Edited by bugsdad on 03/20/2010 18:12:45 MDT.

Brian, that sounds like a great trip. Have fun!

"I'd love suggestions for favorite spots that are lesser known and have great views."

If you have the time, Bryan, a side trip up into Milestone Basin would be very much worth your while. Good camping spots and awesome views of Milestone, Midway, and Table Mountains, and also delightful close up scenery along Milestone Creek. A signed secondary trail leaves the Lake South America/Kern Canyon Trail you mentioned just before it drops into Kern Canyon. Rock hop/slab hop the Kern River and hike up into Milestone Basin a couple of miles, then start looking for campsites. Who knows, you might even spend two nights; the place can really grow on you.

I'll be going south-bound and solo sometime this summer. I'm new to backpacking, but excited for the experience. I've reading as much as I can to prepare. I've been wanting to do the John Muir Tail since I first read about it. I'll probably be going late July or early August and hoping to make it in 13 days. Look for my gear questions soon :)

Thanks,
Bradly

Edited by bradly on 03/20/2010 22:04:55 MDT.

Milestone sounds great. This will be my first time on the JMT and I know I'm gonna suffer from "oooh look over there....wow I gotta explore over here" syndrome at every turn. It's great to know which of the "look over there" detours are proven winners.
Bryan

"It's great to know which of the "look over there" detours are proven winners."

If you're comfortable with easy off trail hiking where you basically can't get lost, here's a delightful alternative to following the old Lake South America trail down to Kern Canyon: From Lake South America traverse west along the King-Kern Divide, directly below Gregory's Monument and Mount Ericsson, over to the base of Mount Genevra. Along the way scramble up to either Lucy's Foot Pass or Milly's Foot Pass(or both) and treat yourself to spectacular views of Lake Reflection directlty below and on out over Kings Canyon to the north, peaks as far as the eye can see. From Milly's Foot Pass continue traversing over to the long unnamed lake below Mount Jordan. Follow the outlet stream down to the valley below, and head due south over a gentle ridge and on down to the large lake with 3 bays. There are a couple of good campsites there, one on the north side(a horse packer site) and a better one, IMO, on the east side of the lake that doesn't see much use. You will pick up a foot path that leads around the east side of the lake before it sort of peters out, but from there the route is obvious down over very gentle terrain to pick up the Lake South America Trail again at the S.E. corner of the next lake below. From there it is about 3/4 mile to the Milestone basin side trail. This is a far better way to enjoy the Upper Kern Basin than following the old Lake South America Trail, again with the caveat that you are comfortable with easy off trail hiking. I hope you have a great trip! You're going to be passing through some spectacular country. Oh, and don't forget to stop and enjoy the Kern Hot Springs, about 9 miles south of Junction Meadow. It is a sublime experience after a couple of hot dusty weeks on the move.

Edited by ouzel on 03/21/2010 17:45:00 MDT.

This sounds perfect! I was hoping to get off trail a bit. In fact I think the Sierra High Route will be next years trip. The next 5 months are going to be loooong.

"The next 5 months are going to be loooong."

They'll go faster than you think, once you get into planning(and fantasizing) mode. I hope you have the time of your life.

Hi! I am doing the same trip. I am leaveing on July 7- 22 days to Wolverton. Solo. Let me know if anyone is going my way. This is my second JMT trip. This is an awesome way to go! Super challenging exit! Where are you resupplying?
Fred

Hey, been planning this too with a resupply at Onion Valley. Apparently there's a pack station there which will hold a resupply. Hoping to just stick to VVR and then Onion Valley, so two resupplies for the entire trip, which probably take 20 days or so (taking it slow, I know!).

SOBO July 27 from Tuolumne...10 days to Whitney Portal. Love that trail!

couch

So glad to hear that others are doing this same trip. When I started planning it I figured it must be a popular option, but so far have heard of no one else doing it and no one else that had done it. I plan on resupplying at MTR only. I know I'll have a pretty heavy pack at the beginning and again after MTR, but I think it will be doable. I'd be very interested in hearing your plans...campspots, resupply plans etc.
More info on mine at trailjournals.com Trailname Chickenfoot
I'll very interested to hear how your trips went when your done (I won't start until after you finish) and hear about any challenges.
Bryan

You might want to consider if you are SOBO (north to south)....Happy Isles to Toulumne (no bear can---just eat what you bring and use the bear boxes at Sunrise), resupply for two or three days from Tuolumne store to get you to Reds Meadow Resort (use one canister for two people). Resupply at RMR (Reds) and pick up your second canister there (have it shipped pre-packed) with enough food to get you to MTR. Resupply at Muir Trail Ranch (having sent your bucket ahead of you) and out in say 5 days to Portal for pancakes!

Saves a BUNCH of weight/ carrying all that food when you can shop smart and move faster.....just my thoughts.

couch

Hey Couch...
I'm actually starting my trip in T Meadows, so should have about 10 days on food at the start and then 10 again at MTR. I guess I'm a bit of a masochist for not planning a resupply at other areas, but once I'm "out" I hate to go back "in" for anything other than an emergency. Course I'll probably be kicking myself half way up one of the passes for that strategy.

Hey All,
I'm planning a southbound hike, leaving sometime mid-july to early august. As of now it's a solo trip, but for anyone planning for a similar timeframe and looking for a hiking buddy, I'd like to hear from you.

A note on time: I originally wanted to do the thru in 2 weeks, but after talking to a Yosemite ranger who did the trail a few years ago, I'm convinced to take more like 3 weeks. Seems like anyone who's done it will agree that a 2 week pace or faster cuts out seeing much of anything besides the boy scouts, whereas an extra week or so allows for checking out side peaks and enjoying a couple of rest days. Still figuring out resupply logistics and other details; have yet to get a permit but I'm planning to do the walk-up route anyway...

Best of luck to everyone in planning, packing, and waiting out the weeks or months that are left until you get on the trail.

Oh, and I LOVE the idea of doing the first leg backwards: TM to HI; downhill. As someone who's done that beginning section out of the valley a number of times as a day hike, I can say I will not in any way feel like I'm "cheating" when I follow this BRILLIANT advice. I'm even thinking camp in the valley 2 nights, with that backwards day hike section in the middle; leave the pack and gear stashed at the site that day, and take the bus to TM the next morning.

This also means not starting the thru hike battling for trail space with the huge number of people doing the mist trail day hike: a portion where families with elderly members and small children, as well as school classes and tour groups are abundant.

Ok, apologies for the lengthy post, but I just spent last nght up in Yosemite and I'm more excited than ever for the trip!

Greg,

I am taking on the JMT May 28th. Doing a Half Dome night trip with 70 people and then plan to be on Whitney by June 18th where I have some buds meeting me there.
Let me know if these dates work with you as I am looking for someone to go with. The guy who is leading the Half Dome trip will join me for the first 4 days.

Jack

Jack, I just got back from Yosemite. While temps got up to the mid 70s there were several inches of snow still on the ground on the trail to Lower Yosemite Falls.

This, along with two other valley trails, the one to Vernal Falls, and Mirror Lake were the only ones open, and Half Dome was literally covered with snow. We just beat another winter storm Tuesday morning that was to dump additional snow above 4600 ft., don't know if it ever materialized, but it was raining on the way out.

Not sure about counting on a May 28 start date, especially including Half Dome.

But if you're prepared for winter conditions, it'll probably be spectacular, best of luck on your trip!

Jack, you should bring snowshoes....May 28th will not work. Sorry for the bummer tone...there is a ton of snow up there right now

I'm just hoping my July 27th start date will be okay! I'm not much of a trail covered by snow person. I expect the creek / river crossings will still be high and cold. In 2008 I never had to take off my boots for any crossing.

Edited by HikingDave on 05/03/2010 08:45:57 MDT.