Lit up with anticipation, we arrive at the launching site...
Welcome to the Tahoe Rim Trail (TRT), a 170-mile long-distance hiking trail that forms a loop around the Lake Tahoe Basin — and we’re here to count down the miles by collecting cache finds all along the way. What better way to celebrate circumnavigating the lake than by remembering those who have orbited the Earth? This series combines three of my passions into one massive project: hiking, geocaching, and space.
As the miles count down, the missions count up — tracking the full history of crewed human spaceflight from its beginnings to the present day. Astronauts, cosmonauts, and taikonauts: that’s a lot of history and a lot of hiking, two of my favorite things.
The series spans the full 170-mile loop, with a few caches per mile all the way around the Tahoe Rim. We use the official TRT mile marker system, which lists Mile 0/170 at Tahoe City counting clockwise — but our series is anchored near Echo Lakes, closer to my home on the South Shore, and counts up in missions as the miles count down headed counterclockwise. First launch is at the southern edge of Desolation Wilderness (we’ll cover the Wilderness a different way) — but there’s no need to go in order. Jump on at any trailhead, in any direction, at any time. All containers should look the same. Spoiler photos are included. Welcome to the mission.
About the Mile:
Mile 121-120 is where the TRT crosses Highway 50. North of the highway, you'll be on a wooded trail through the Johnson Pass Road neighborhood of Echo Summit. Crossing south brings you into the Caldor Fire burn zone, crossing the Pony Express trail and heading up the rocky ridge that now offers expansive views down the US 50 corridor.
Tahoe Rim Trail Segment:
Big Meadow to Echo Lakes · 18.3 Miles · “Enter the Lakes Region”
Between Big Meadow and Echo Summit, the trail wanders from meadows to lakes to creeks, and through dense stands of pine, fir and aspen. The trail heads south from Big Meadow trailhead across a gently rolling landscape of grassy meadows and fragrant conifer stands. The shaded shores of Round Lake is nestled beneath high cliffs. Further on, the TRT merges with the Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail (PCT) and swings north through flower filled Meiss Meadows and alongside the cool head waters of the Upper Truckee River. The trail then climbs past granite lined shores of Showers Lake and through a rocky bowl where seasonal creeks tumble down steep ridges into lush meadows. Further north the landscape becomes more rugged and much drier, and opens into occasional views of Lake Tahoe. The trail drops over a granite ridge in a long steep downhill traverse before leveling off. A small stream outlined with ferns and flowers provides a refreshing respite before the short ascent to the Echo Summit Trailhead.
About the Mission:
Voskhod 1 (Восход-1, 'Sunrise-1') was the seventh crewed Soviet space flight. Flown by cosmonauts Vladimir Komarov, Konstantin Feoktistov, and Boris Yegorov, it launched 12 October 1964, and returned on the 13th. Voskhod 1 was the first human spaceflight to carry more than one crewman into orbit, the first flight without the use of spacesuits, and the first to carry either an engineer or a physician into outer space. It also set a crewed spacecraft altitude record of 336 km (209 mi).
The three spacesuits for the Voskhod 1 cosmonauts were omitted; there was neither the room nor the payload capacity for the Voskhod to carry them. The original Voskhod had been designed to carry two cosmonauts, but Soviet politicians pushed the Soviet space program into squeezing three cosmonauts into Voskhod 1. The only other space flight in the short Voskhod program, Voskhod 2, carried two suited cosmonauts – of necessity, because it was the flight on which Alexei Leonov made the world's first walk in space.
As part of its payload Voskhod 1 carried a ribbon off a Communard banner from the Paris Commune of 1871 into orbit.
About the Insignia:
The mission patch for Voskhod 1 reflects the simple graphic style typical of early Soviet spaceflight emblems. A silver rocket rises through a field of stars, symbolizing humanity’s ascent into space and the expanding frontier of exploration. The globe at the base represents Earth as the origin of the journey, while the Cyrillic letters “СССР” identify the nation behind the mission.
Unlike later, more elaborate designs, early patches from the Soviet space program were intentionally straightforward—focusing on national identity and the achievement of reaching space rather than detailed mission symbolism.
See you on the next pass. — Mission Control