“Do, then Go.”
~Marilyn White, teacher
It has been one whirlwind of a year with many new and scary chapters starting in my life.
School is ending this week and my summer hiking begins with the Theodore Solomons Trail. I am more than excited to be hiking this little traveled trail with Arrow, my hiking buddy. This year we are celebrating 15 years of hiking together.
The Theodore Solomons Trail (TST) is a long-distance trail in the Sierra Nevada mountain range of California, passing through Yosemite, Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Parks, and the Sierra National Forest. From the northern terminus at Glacier Point in Yosemite and the southern terminus located at Horseshoe Meadow, the trail’s length is about 250 miles long. For almost all of its length, the trail is in the Middle Sierra backcountry and wilderness areas. Much of this trail I have not hiked on.
The trail was developed by Dennis R. Gagnon in 1974 as a lower elevation alternative to the popular John Muir Trail which it runs largely parallel to. The trail is named after Theodore Solomons, an early Sierra mountaineer who created The John Muir Trail route. Gasp! I bet most think John Muir created the famous JMT..
Arrow and I are hiking the trail northbound starting at Horseshoe Meadow and ending at Glacier Point over about 16 days. We will be taking a few recommended alternates along the way for beauty and views. This is an early season trip with a few challenges: large sections of unmaintained trail with many downed trees, snow on the high passes and a more than likely dangerous crossing of the Middle Fork of the Kings Canyon River (bridge is no longer at this location). If this crossing is too high and swift, we have a nice reroute planned. The trip will include 3 resupplies, lots of paper maps, 2 guidebooks, and a phone app map set created by Mario Caceres.
I cannot wait.
- View all my gear with links HERE
How lucky for you to have had a hiking partner for so long! I normally hike with my partner of 25 years, but he enjoys day hiking more than backpacking, so I’m starting to think it would be great to find a backpacking friend. How did you and Arrow meet up and start hiking together?
Rockin and I met through a mutual friend on a backpacking trip. We hiked on part of Ropers Sierra High Route. We didn’t know each other at all and showed up at the trail head and ended up sharing a tent( back when gear was heavier) and we laughed our heads off at the end of each beautiful and delirious day!
Hello,
Ditto to what Arrow said. I will add that if you have an opportunity to go on a backpacking trip with a group, go. That is a good way to meet other backpackers and to see if styles and personalities mesh. Finding a hiking partner that really fits and is safe and fun is gold. Hope you find that person.
Do you have suggestions for groups that sponsor trips? I’m approaching 50, and would love to find a backpacking partner.
I completely get the adventure aspect of this trip. This route is essentially unknown, and my impression of these lower-elevation trails is that they don’t get much use, maintenance, or foot traffic.
But I don’t necessarily understand the appeal of this route otherwise. What do you find at these lower elevations? Is it mostly woods walking (with occasional sequoias), or is there some unique topography or scenery that doesn’t jump out on the map?
Andrew, I hope you are following along Christy and Arrow’s trek (so far, they have posted their first 3 days). If you do, you will see that the TST is more than a “Green Tunnel”….. it offers a wide variety of scenery. Yes, there are some areas where deep dense Forrest exists, mostly in the Sierra National Forrest, but even that section has very nice areas, like Dinkey Lakes Wilderness, Kaiser Wilderness and Woodchuck Country.
Lots of elevation gain and loss on this trip, Andrew. I’m not always a huge fan of forest walking but there is a lot of variety on this route so far and it’s been beautiful!
Hello Andrew,
Thank you for your questions. Originally when this route was designed there were a couple of bridges (now no longer there) that made this trip an alternative to staying high in the Sierras for an early season trip. I thought that perhaps with the low snow year, we possibly could ford the 2 main rivers. This route goes high often, but also goes way down in elevation making it a real butt kicker. I am getting ready to hike the Great Divide Trail in Canada in July, so this seemed like a remote trip in areas I have not explored that would really challenge me physically.
So excited about following along vicariously, especially since I’ve never heard of this route!
Thank you Nancy for following along.
Your friend Arrow would probably be offended by my asking if Arrow was a dog. I guess you probably had a good laugh. I just didn’t know. I will look forward to seeing your photos and following you on this new trail. Be safe!!
I’m not offended at all, Marilyn. No worries!
Thank you Marilyn for all your comments and support. Yes Arrow and I had a great laugh, but I can see how you thought she was a dog. I am lucky to have a friend that puts up with my shenanigans and is a great hiking partner.
Christy, I’ve never heard of this trail, and can’t wait to hear all about your adventure. I didn’t notice a bear canister in your photo. Be careful out there and have fun!
Janet,
Arrow had one and I carried an URSack. For entering Yosemite, I had a bear canister sent to Huntington Lake.
Thanks for posting and letting me tag along. I’m hoping the Middle Fork won’t be that bad for you because this is a relatively dry year.
We are too! It would be nice if the bridge was still there, but no. We have a nice little reroute if it it too deep and swift.
Sounds that this one will be a challenge; but it is also right up your alley!
Very cool that Mario chimed in.
Mario’s maps are amazing. As always thanks for following along.
Are there shapefiles for this trail?
The resources I have found are the books, track on Caltopo and Mario’s maps.
I have that old yellow guidebook. Will enjoy following along. Safe travels.
We are looking forward to reading the old version at night aloud. Some fun ideas about hiking in those days.
Best of Luck Christy. For anybody interested in my maps, mentioned in Christy’s post, you can find them on Avenza Maps app which is available for IOS and Android devices. My maps are free and so is the Avenza Maps app needed to view them. Please be aware that this is NOT a trail for beginners. There are a few areas where the trail thread has gotten very thin or has disappeared. Being comfortable with basic cross-country travel is a must and having a GPS enabled device is highly advisable. If you are on Facebook, there is a Theodore Solomons Trail group you are welcome to join.
Thank you Mario for posting this information. Thanks again for your work on the maps.
Thank you for making your maps available for free on Avenza. What a great resource!
Thank you. Anybody planning to use my maps on avenza should download them again prior to heading out to make sure they are using the latest version. I’m already planning a small revision, sometime before July 1st, in which I will incorporate some beta / input from Christy and Sally.
They really are beautiful, accurate, and fast.
Looking forward to your photos on your trail. Is Arrow a dog?
Hello Marilyn, I just love your questions. Arrow is a girlfriend that I have hiked with for years. Arrow is her name on trail.
Am not aware of this trail. How cool. Looking forward to pictures, etc.
I wasn’t either. I found it on the Internet while looking for new routes in the Sierras. ?
It is going to be fun scouting out new places early season. Thanks for following along.
Am not aware of this trail. How cool. Looking forward to pictures, etc.
Sounds like a great trail to begin your summer!! Anxious for your posts!! Good luck.
Thanks Lucy!!!!