Uintas Highline Trail

[JoeJoeMeek]

Hello Gang,

Glad to be part of this really cool site.

So, I had a question I wanted to throw out there. I have been wanting to do the 80 mile Highline trail in the Uintas for years now. It just so happens I have nothing but time this summer. I would ideally like to go with another person, but was thinking about even doing it solo. When I told my friends and family this, they were not into it. I would consider myself a fairly experience backpacker. I would be smart about it. I would give a ranger and several other people my itinerary, take a GPS and what not.

So, is the 80 mile Highline Trail a dumb idea to do solo? Please let me know your thoughts.

Thanks!

 

[DAA]

I can't think of a single reason why being solo would make any difference? Other than, you could go as fast/slow, stop as often/little for as long/short as you want, without worrying about companions.

Don't ge me wrong, I'm not against going on something like this with friends. Having others along adds dimensions that are a lot of fun in their own right. But... Given a choice, I'd personally prefer to do something like this solo.

- DAA

 

[Nick]

Agreed. Not dumb at all. I usually prefer company, but for something like the Highline I think I might actually prefer solo. I would definitely have something like a Spot or Inreach though.

Welcome to backcountrypost.

 

[TannerT]

Not dumb. Not leaving a general itinerary, when you expect to exit the backcountry, and not having a back-up emergency exit on the other hand is. I haven't done much solo but I would absolutely love to, so let me know when we can go...!!! I joke. If it were me I would go in the end of August through the middle of September, that way you wont even have mosquitos to keep you company. Maybe the occasional Moose or Elk though.

Enjoy!

 

[John Mckean]

I wanna do this hike in one push but don't want to do it alone. Anyone up for this??

 

[rundrumkc]

HIGHLINE IN AUGUST.........SOLO IS A MUST.......I've been planning a solo hike of the HT since March of last year and it's the whole going solo thing that excites me the most. One of my co-workers tried to invite himself but I had to say no (he's never hiked).. I explained to him that I have to make the hike by myself and that I am so very much wanting and needing the solitude. The only people that have disagreed with my decision to go solo are all NON-hikers and to them an 80 mile hike sounds like something very dangerous but I don't see it that way at all, instead, I see it as 7 or 8 day-hikes all crammed together. If I'm not too worn out I have a couple of side trips that I would like to make but if I had other people with me they might not care to put in the extra miles to explore....So in regard to the whole solo thing, it isn't for everyone and that's fine. Definitely let people know your plans and plan your easiest exit routes if you need to bail.

 

[John Mckean]

I do most of my trips solo but the HT is another beast. Most people seem to get somewhat lost at some point esp. on the Eastern part of the trail. I have only hiked bits of the trail and I could be wrong about the route finding difficulty.

 

[DAA]

Well... Assuming the route finding is difficult - I'm confident enough in my route finding ability that I doubt having anyone else along would help. But, worst case, I make a wrong turn, oh well, just adds a a few miles and some extra adventure spice, nothing to worry about.

- DAA

 

[John Mckean]

Cool, hope to see some Highline TR's soon.

 

[Artemus]

Joe & John, there are already mulitple Highline TR's here I believe. I've walked much of the trail solo and did the whole enchilada two years ago. I was planning solo but a close friend opted in at the last moment. As soon as I finished I restocked and flew in on a helicopter into Lambert meadows and spent two more days solo in the navigation-crux area of the trail looking for the missing Aussie hiker. Navigation problems could have been part of his problem. We don't know.

There are some navigation problems on the trail mostly related to how badly degraded and poorly maintained the trail and its signage have become. The USFS has been underfunded since Bush 1 and their maintenance backlog is measured in $B and not $M.

That said, navigation in our Utah mountains is not terribly difficult and I claim this for backcountry people that have some experience and have done some preparation. A good map, some familiarity with the landmarks, and proper navigation-savvy travel techniques contribute to having confidence and capability in walking this trail, any trail and even off-piste. As long as you have a good map and can see and identify the peaks you can triangulate your location and a gps with map cements that position location. Our mostly clear skies and long views make this process straightforward in our good weather prone mountains unless there is a storm, whiteout conditions or heavy forest. Most of the Highline is not heavy forest.

The Uintas Highline is also a comfortable first long distance hike from the standpoint of escape or contingency planning. Zoom out and look at the range. Dozens of major rivers/streams drain the high country to the north and to the south from where the trail travels. Virtually every one of these has a trailhead and people at it's wilderness boundary. Many even have structures, homes and phones. So it is, worst case, a simple 10 mile walk out to help if you get in trouble. I know people that have had to take advantage of that fact. Know your escape points, know your location and above all pay attention to what you see and where you are at. Many people forget to even look behind them and see what the trail looks like from the way they have come so they would have problems if they had to turn around and reverse what they just walked.

You may want more details. If so, feel free to ask.

BTW the Eastern end is startlingly beautiful and is not to be avoided or worried about.....

 

[moose droppings]

There are some navigation problems on the trail mostly related to how badly degraded and poorly maintained the trail and its signage have become. The USFS has been underfunded since Bush 1 and their maintenance backlog is measured in $B and not $M.

...and lets not forget that the USFS always ends of flipping the bill for battling anthropogenic fires using reallocated monies.

Take the East Fork Boy Scout camp fire in 2002 for example. the USFS lost $14mil due to that fire. The obvious parties at fault, BSA and LDS Corp failed to uphold their high standards of "doing their duty to god and their country" and better yet "Choosing The Right"©. In attempts to set a presidence, the USFS took the responsible party to court, costing more tax dollars. well, to no suprise the LDS church threw the BSA under the bus, and they (BSA) ended up settling outa court for $6.5mil.
now extrapolate the monetary losses every year, throughout every state due to anthropogenic fires, and well, it is of no suprise that the basic amenities such as trails are being neglected.

A good map, some familiarity with the landmarks, and proper navigation-savvy travel techniques contribute to having confidence and capability in walking this trail, any trail and even off-piste..

+1 on honing your orienteering skills.

 

[John Mckean]

Art

Thank you so much for that post!!! I appreciate the time you took to write that. That Aussie hiker is what got me thinking about the route finding difficulty of the HT. I was doing kings peak and saw the missing person bulletin at the TH and started following his story. You would think something of linked to him would have been found. I wanna scope out the difficult parts before I thru hike the whole thing. Where would you consider the difficult route finding parts to be? Thanks!!

 

[JoeJoeMeek]

Thanks for the responses every one! I'll have to show these reply's to my mother and let her know that the backpacking community thinks it's a good idea. I'm not exactly sure when I'll do it, but I'll let you know how it goes.

 

[moose droppings]

I wanna do this hike in one push but don't want to do it alone. Anyone up for this??

i missed this post. whata ya thinkin' for your single-push strategy: fastpack, trail run, or a combination thereof? post up some deets, i may be interested in joining up.

 

[John Mckean]

i missed this post. whata ya thinkin' for your single-push strategy: fastpack, trail run, or a combination thereof? post up some deets, i may be interested in joining up.

I wanna to do a combo of running and fast hiking. I will have to brush up on the info. I researched this hike last year and havent looked at the info in awhile. That would be great if you joined though. This thread has gotten me fired up on the idea of doing it again. Maybe we could do a quick hike up Kings Peak as a warm up?

 

[moose droppings]

I wanna to do a combo of running and fast hiking. I will have to brush up on the info. I researched this hike last year and havent looked at the info in awhile. That would be great if you joined though. This thread has gotten me fired up on the idea of doing it again. Maybe we could do a quick hike up Kings Peak as a warm up?

my summer is fillin' up fast, what dates are you thinkin'?

 

[John Mckean]

my summer is fillin' up fast, what dates are you thinkin'?

It would have to be later in Aug.

 

[Artemus]

Art

Thank you so much for that post!!! I appreciate the time you took to write that. .... Where would you consider the difficult route finding parts to be? Thanks!!

Hi John, probably the best thing to do would be to call me with a map in front of you and I can give you my view of the navigation difficulties. Or post a map I can mark up. Are you already familiar with the trail or parts of it?

 

[John Mckean]

Thanks a lot for that! I'm familiar with a small part of it. I'm heading up next week to check some parts out.