Planning an epic backpacking trip on the John Muir Trail is not only essential to a successful trip; it’s also part of the fun. Learning about where and how to ship resupply packages; planning your itinerary; poring over the maps and elevation charts all add to the sense of adventure and excitement. Having the right […]
Thru-Hiking the JMT: Guitar Lake to Mt. Whitney
Day 22 on the John Muir Trail… Technically, this day begins at the end of Day 21. We went to bed early last night, sleeping lightly for a few hours and waking to our alarm at 11:30 PM. We ate Clif Bars and packed up our sleeping gear and tent. Donning our headlamps, we made […]
Thru-Hiking the JMT: Wright Creek to Guitar Lake
Day 21 on the John Muir Trail… Last night we camped in the shadow of Mt. Whitney. We woke up excited, knowing that we were so close to our goal. We had been hiking on the John Muir Trail for three weeks. We had come a long way from that first day in Yosemite. We […]
Thru-Hiking the JMT: Over Forester Pass to Wright Creek
Day 20 on the John Muir Trail… At 13,200 feet above sea level, Forester Pass may not be the highest point on the John Muir Trail (that would be Mt. Whitney) but it is the high point of the Pacific Crest Trail. As we’ve hiked further and further south on the JMT, our average altitude has […]
Thru-Hiking the JMT: Upper Rae Lake, Glen Pass to Vidette Meadow
Day 19 on the John Muir Trail… We awoke early, determined to get a jump on Glen Pass (11, 970ft.). Last night we camped at 10,600ft. just above Upper Rae Lake and were looking forward to reaching the pass early before it got too warm. I need to qualify what I mean by an “early start.” […]
Thru-Hiking the JMT: Woods Creek to the Rae Lakes
Day 18 on the John Muir Trail… Yesterday we discussed our plans for today’s hike. We had originally planned to hike over Glen Pass to Vidette Meadow, but decided to modify the itinerary to have an easier day and leave us just below Glen Pass. Even with the modification, we would meet our original exit date […]
Thru-Hiking the JMT: Muir Trail Ranch to McClure Meadow
Day 13 on the John Muir Trail… We slept not too far away from Muir Trail Ranch, with the headwaters of the San Joaquin providing our soundtrack for the night. Fortunately, our bear bag was unmolested. We broke camp and hiked about a quarter mile back to MTR to enjoy the promised breakfast (it was […]
Thru-Hiking the JMT: Mono Creek to Rosemarie Meadow
Day 11 on the John Muir Trail… With our packs on our backs, our bear canisters filled and our bodies rested from our zero day, we settled up at VVR and took the ferry back to the east end of Lake Edison. From the ferry landing on the northeast shore, we hike about 2 miles […]
