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8,7 miles first day Mostly up hill
6.7 miles second day mostly down hill
Start at Twentymile Ranger Station
Head north on Wolf Ridge Trail
Then East on Twentymile Trai
Then continue north on Long Hungry Ridge Traill
Camp at Gregory Bald Campsite at 8.7 miles
Then head west on Gregory Bald Trail
Then south on Wolf Ridge Trail back to Clingmans Dome parking lot

I am changing the location because the road into the Forney Creek area closes on 30 November.
I hope that this is a nice replacement.

It seems like we just did this hike! My legs finally stopped being sore.
We'll hike to PantherCreek Falls on Saturday and setup camp. The views from the Falls are breathtaking and the sunsets from the bluff are the awesome too. Some of us with hammock may try some stealth camping over by the Falls, depending on the wind conditions.
The following morning, we'll hike on the Panther Creek Trail down to the river. This is a fun challenging trail because it follows the falls all the way down and there's big rocks and a bit of semi-scrambling. We'll then reach and cross the Conasauga River. On the other side we'll climb up the infamous Tearbritches trail and when you're done, you better hope you told Santa you're going to need a new pair of britches! If you like a good climb, this one's for you! Check out the trip report from last years hike: http://backpackers.meetup.com/126/messages/boards/thread/6016095/0#24033610

Some of us will meet for breakfast at 7am, but I want to be ready to leave by 8am.

We'll park our cars at the Little bld mtn parking area and shuttle over to Three Forks Mnt where we'll start our hike on the Cowpen Trail.

This is considered a moderate to strenuous trail and not recommended to "Nevers", but newbies are welcome. Just let me know what you need for equipment. If you're very new at backpacking, please let us check your equipment list before you come, so we make sure you have everything you need. Many of us have extra equipment to share.

Pack light, because Tearbritches trail is a butt kicker! Last one up the hill buys the beer

My book on Yosemite (by Suzanne Swedo) refers to the John Muir and Pacific Crest Trails as some of the most spectacular high country anywhere. Actually, the chapter that describes those two is called "Two Famous Trails".

I think we can arrange a very nice loop that will include a section of John Muir trail and will touch the Pacific Crest Trail. My point to point description can be followed on the map that I uploaded on our files page.

Day 1: Little Yosemite Valley 4023' - Moraine Dome 6208', 5.8 miles
Day 2: Moraine Dome 6208' - Merced Lake 7232', 5.74 mile
Day 3: Merced Lake 7232' - Vogelsang 10,082', 7.3 miles
Day 4: Vogelsang 10,082' - Tuolumne Meadows 8666', 6.42 miles (resupply)
Day 5: Tuolumne Meadows 8666' - Sunrise 9938' (highest elevation), 9.3 miles
Day 6: Sunrise 9311' - Little Yosemite Valley 4143' 12.7 miles

Obviously, this is a very conservative plan as we have 6 days to cover 48 miles, and we begin very slowly with less than 6 miles covered on day 1 and day 2. If I had a choice, I would not do less than 8 miles a day, but this is how campsites are located. If we decide to camp out of campsites areas, we will have more flexibility in daily mileage.

Given the unfamiliar terrain and higher elevations (up to 10,000'), which might require some acclimatization, I would rather be conservative rather than adventurous. If it turns too easy, we can do day hikes on spur trails or just finish earlier and have an add on plan if we have a spare day or two.

Let me know what you think!

Cheers,
Brer Mountain Rabbit