I agree with these points. ?The obsession some have over starting at happy isles for example really misses the point of a long hike. ?I do think there is a middle approach, however. The JMT is often a gateway trail for novice backpackers. ?As such, a well trod footpath offers comfort and lessens the anxiety that new hikers may experience using alternates. ?Staying on “the highway” may be the only psychologically suitable option for those hikers. ?A suitable alternative approach can be found in flip flops, loop hikes or entrance/ exit trailhead combinations other than the traditional start to finish trailheads. ?
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On Feb 17, 2024, at 8:40?AM, Peter Hirst <peter.p.hirst@...> wrote:
?As many here already know, I think far too much is made of adhering to the present route of the JMT.? The orginal idea of the trail was a "High Mountain Route" along the Crest from Yosemite to the south, not necessarily even including Whitney.? The JMT was the iteration of that idea as undertaken in 1915, but assumed many forms before and since.? Walter A Starr adopted the Parker Pass route as? one of 4 "Alternative Routes" in the second or third edition of Starr's Guide, and Theodore Soomons explored and proposed Isberg Pass with Starr, Sr. as a candidate for the route in 1897.? In 1935, reviewing Starr's first edition, Joseph N Leconte identified Tuolumne Meadows as the start of the trail, as did Ranger Lewis Clark in 1953 in the first Yosemite Trail guide specifically endorsed by Park officials.?
