Day 12 on the John Muir Trail…
Cumulative Distance: 113.1 miles
Total Ascent: 1,292 ft
Cumulative Ascent: 29,435 ft
Harrison Map Sheets 8 and 7
Carrying that 20 lbs. won’t be the biggest challenge. Our bodies have grown accustomed to the rigors of the life on the trail. We’ve got our “trail legs.” The real challenge will be getting 10 days of food to fit inside the mandatory bear canisters.
Waking up in Rosemarie Meadow was a beautiful start to the day. The sun glistened on the lazy creek. Frost coated the grass.
We warmed up with scrambled eggs (powdered, and not half bad), spiced up with slices of a beef stick and some olive oil; Â and our morning coffee (Starbucks Via).
We warmed up quickly as we began to climb Seldon Pass, in what would become our pattern for the days ahead — climb a pass, descend, camp. Rinse and repeat.
En route to the pass the JMT took us by the crystal-clear waters of Marie Lake. It never ceases to amaze me how clear and beautiful these lakes are. We could easily pick out the trout swimming in the water.
We regrouped at Seldon Pass, breaking for a snack (Clif Bar, anyone?) and snapping the requisite photos.
Just below the pass, we paused for yet another photo opportunity at Heart Lake. Yes, that is Joan and I standing in the “V” of the heart-shaped lake. The full view of the lake is at the top of this post.
Descending from Heart Lake, we followed the babbling water of Sallie Keyes Creek, which led to none other that the twin Sallie Keyes Lakes. These scenic lakes sit side by side, and the JMT travels right between them on a narrow band of forest. We stopped for lunch, but not for long — the mosquitos were also hungry.
Finally we began to descend the steep canyon walls through a series of switchbacks. At the 7.6 mile mark, we reached a junction that took us off the JMT and down towards Muir Trail Ranch.
At Muir Trail Ranch, we checked in and they started searching for our resupply packages. Due to the size, we had shipped three 5-gallon buckets. While we waited, we rummaged through the backpacker’s buckets — a set of buckets with “extra” stuff donated to anyone who needs it. We were like kids in a candy shop.
Bad News
They found one of the three buckets — with the supplies for Joan and I. But Hari and Jeffrey’s buckets were nowhere to be found. They double- and triple-checked the storage shed. Nothing in their inventory log, although they could see that we had paid for them. We waited for the tractor to delivery today’s shipment, but it wasn’t on there. We were getting worried.
The wonderful folks at MTR felt bad for this, and promised it had never happened before. They invited us to join them for dinner tonight and breakfast in the morning, and we were welcome to scrounge through the backpacker’s cache for anything we needed.
Joan took advantage of their offer to use the hot baths, and we enjoyed an amazing dinner alongside their regular guests. Jeffrey and Hari were able to pick through the extra supplies and piece together meals for the remainder of the trip.
Now the only challenge remaining was getting it all in our bear canisters.
We did not.
We ended up with some stuff that we threw into a bear bag and hung for the night. We chose the non-smelly, non-essentials, and hoped for the best.
We were  disappointed when our buckets didn’t turn up at MTR. Fortunately, there was more than enough food in the backpacker’s cache that we were able to do just fine.
With any big hike like the JMT, it’s important to remember that things will not go as planned. Something will go wrong, somewhere along the way. It’s important to keep a good attitude and be flexible.
Trail Map: Rosemarie Meadow to Muir Trail Ranch
JMT Day 12 Photo Gallery
Click on any photo to view a larger version. You can also leave comments on any photo.
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Tomorrow, we head from Muir Trail Ranch to McClure Meadow.
Originally hiked on August 8, 2010.
Thats intense that the food got lost! Did they have it on their doorsteps as a return to sender when they got home?
@Josh, it was returned to my doorstep (I shipped everything). There was no explanation from the Post Office. It was a bummer, but the point is, things WILL go awry on the trail.
@David, thanks for reading! I love hearing feedback.
I am really enjoying reading your JMT blog. Thanks for posting.
Thanks for posting this blog! It is very interesting to read as my husband and I just hiked half of the JMT a couple months ago. We started at Muir Trail Ranch and headed North to Happy Isle. We applied for permits to do the other half in July of 2017.
what are some examples of the food you picked up? Thank you