Anyone hiked Theodore Solomons Trail (the JMT Alternate Trail)?

[Roleigh Martin]

Has anyone in the group done the Theodore Solomons Trail (a 271 mile alternate to the JMT)?

http://www.amazon.com/Guide-Theodore-Solomons-Dennis-Gagnon/dp/0934136343/
Link

This is a 271 mile trail that averages a lower elevation than the JMT but starts at Glacier Point and ends up just south of Whitney at Cottonwood Meadows.

I want to learn as much about this trail as possible. This may be the JMT 2 trail we've been talking about on the forum.

I'm curious how well one could follow the trail using the USGS maps he suggests. There was a posting (see link below) that asserts that some of the USGS maps indicated in the book are wrong:

http://www.highsierratopix.com/community/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=10246
Link

And a reply to the person who made this assertion advises where to turn to.
If you have done this trail or parts of it, what year did you do it in? I've also read that some of the trail is so unmaintained that it is now a bushwhack in part.

Has anyone taken an enlarged map of the JMT and sharpied the route of the TST (the acronym for this trail) to compare it's path with the JMT. I'd love to see the two routes compared.

Thanks!
Roleigh Martin
Lead Moderator (JohnMuirTrail Yahoo Group–2600 members now)

[Roleigh Martin]

So nobody on the forum have hiked the TST trail? Bummer.

[Andrew F]

I hadn't even heard of it until your post. It's an interesting idea, though. It certainly is easy to trace a route from Yosemite to Whitney without touching the JMT and I think would be a really cool trip. Do you have any info on where exactly it goes?

[Roleigh Martin]

Fair use copyright law probably allows me to post this one summary image of the trail from the book. The trail starts at Glacier Point above Yosemite Valley and ends at Cottonwood Meadows (the TH just south of Whitney Portal).

[Andrew F]

Interesting. That's definitely further to the west in some spots than what I had laid out. I think you could probably substitute a few significant sections to include more alpine scenery without duplicating the JMT. For instance I'd rather go over Goodale Pass than go all the way west near Balloon Dome. Or go through Goddard Canyon instead of Blackcap Basin. Also one could easily start in northern Yosemite (e.g. Sonora Pass or Crabtree in Emigrant Wilderness) and link through Vogelsang to Merced Lake if you wanted to add even more alpine goodness to it. There are many fantastic trails in the Sierra other than the JMT, and it's good that there are people out there who are interested in exploring them. It seems I am not the first person to want to piece together an alternative to the JMT of equal length and quality.

[Bob Bankhead]

"Guide to the Theodore Solomons Trail" by Dennis Gagnon, Western Tanager Press, 1987, ISBN: 0-934136-34-3.

The TST is a lower elevation alternate to the JMT which stays within the bounds of the timberbelt of the Middle Sierra.

An older forum post said: "Going south from Clover Meadow just outside the Ansel Adams Wilderness, the trail has been abandoned for 10 years. Dropping into and climbing out of the San Joaquin River Canyon is an exercise in route-finding. The best part is the solid bridge over the river. The trail south of the river is almost as bad."

Parts of the "trail" could exist only on a map these days.

[Jeffrey Cannon]

Roleigh:

I was floored to learn about the TST today! I have been mapping and planning to do what I had called the Alt Route for several years after my JMT through hike in 2015.

Tried to hike it SOBO in 2016 until I got a first hand dose of what neglected trails are like at 5000-8000 feet! I spent my hiking time this summer working through the difficulties in the Ansel Adams Wilderness.

I am currently planning a through hike attempt for 2018. Thinking about doing it in two parts. First trip – Yosemite Valley to VVR.  Second trip – VVR to Horseshoe Meadow.

Are you interested in helping build a small team to reestablish the route?

Jeff Cannon

Morro Bay, CA

[Ken Thompson]

Bailed on it in ‘05. Still nagging at me. Look forward to your report.

[Matthew / BPL]

I don’t know if this will be helpful or not but there is a TST Group on Facebook.

[Ken Thompson]

The OP’s group. Thanks.

[Matthew / BPL]

Yep. I was sharing the TST FB Group for Jeff’s benefit :)

[Jeffrey Cannon]

Thanks! Waiting for the secret handshake. Looking forward to seeing if others have done it.

[Paul Schuyler]

Dead thread resurrection?  Has anyone made any progress on this trail?  I’m on pins and needles!

[Jeffrey Cannon]

Paul:

Join the Theodore Solomons Trail group on Facebook  A guy named Drew just hiked it.  He had to skip the Middle fork crossing of the Kings River because of the high water this year. That is a life threatening crossing except late in the year.  Old bridge washed out in the early ’80s??.  He links to his blog which has a pretty complete report.

Jeff

 

[Karl W]

The trails still exist– just lots of downed trees and faint sections.  Not too bad if you are a keen observer.

[Author]

Posts