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Thru-Hiking the JMT: Wright Creek to Guitar Lake

August 16, 2013 By Jeff H

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 met many challenges — both physical and mental. Now there was no question about whether we would finish the JMT — but when. 

img
John Muir Trail Day 21
Distance: 7.23 miles
Cumulative Distance: 206.23 miles
Total Ascent: 2,147 ft
Cumulative Ascent: 56,396 ft
Harrison Map Sheet 1
Joan felt so confident and enthusiastic, she talked about marching right up to the top of Mt. Whitney right now! I suggested we get to Guitar Lake first, and then see how we felt.

Guitar Lake sits at 11,500 feet on the west side of Mt. Whitney. Our hike today to the lake would be a relatively short seven miles, so who knows what we’ll do!

11 Miles to Mt Whitney

After breakfast, we broke camp and headed out. We had a bit of hiking up-and-down, roller coaster-style today. Up and over a ridge, then down to Wallace Creek.  Up and over another ridge, then down to Crabtree Meadows.

Crabtree Meadow

Wag What?

Wag Bag Distribution Center

Near the Crabtree Ranger station, we picked up a wag bag. This is a cleverly designed contraption that you poop into. That’s right, we would be required to carry any poop we created from here until the end of the trail.

Fortunately, we only had one more night on the trail.

From Crabtree, the JMT climbs steadily beside babbling Whitney Creek. We passed several smaller lakes, and stopped for lunch in a shady spot near the creek.

At this altitude, the trees were sparse. They clustered around ponds, leaving much of the trail exposed to the hot sun.

Heading up Whitney Creek

At about 3:30 PM, we reached Guitar Lake. We setup camp near the “guitar body” portion of the lake, by a cluster of large boulders that would provide a bit of shade later in the afternoon.

Guitar Lake

At this point, Joan agreed that hiking straight to the top of Mt. Whitney was not going to happen.

We set up the tent, filtered water, soaked our feet in the lake and rested. We ate an early dinner, and decided that we’d start hiking up Mt. Whitney at night. We cleaned up and packed up everything so we could easily break camp in the darkness. We set our alarms for 11:30 PM, then laid down to nap for a few hours before our final ascent.

img
A Plan is Hatched
JMT-JeffThe first time I hiked the John Muir Trail back in 1980, we started up Mt. Whitney at midnight. There was a full moon, and we wanted to get up in time to see the sunrise. Having done it once, I suggested we could give it a try this time. We wouldn’t have the sun beating down on us. We had headlamps. So we decided to give it a shot.

Trail Map: Wright Creek to Guitar Lake

© OpenStreetMap contributors
Download file: JMT-Day-21.gpx

JMT Day 21 Photo Gallery

Click on any photo to view a larger version. You can also leave comments on any photo.

Crabtree Meadow




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Tomorrow, we summit Mount Whitney and complete the John Muir Trail!

Originally hiked on August 16, 2010.

Filed Under: JMT Resources, Trail Guides Tagged With: Backpacking, Crabtree Meadow, Day 21, Guitar Lake, Hiking The John Muir Trail, JMT, John Muir Trail, Mount Whitney, Mt Whitney, Muir Trail, Sequoia National Park, Sierra Nevada, The John Muir Trail, wilderness

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Jeff H

About Jeff H

I'm an avid hiker and backpacker. My wife Joan and I are on the trails every weekend. I started SoCal Hiker to share my passion for outdoor adventure.

Comments

  1. Joan says

    August 16, 2013 at 6:55 pm

    It is so exciting to remember this next to last day!

  2. Kymee Martinak says

    August 19, 2013 at 9:00 am

    I love the Sierras living in way down in SO Cal it is hard to believe that such beauty exist this close thanks for sharing.

    • Jeff HJeff Hester says

      August 19, 2013 at 11:08 am

      @Kymee, it blows my mind to realize that this amazing wilderness is within a one day drive from millions of Californians. We are really lucky.

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JMT Planning

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Day-by-Day on the JMT

  • Driving to Lone Pine
  • Shuttle from Lone Pine to Yosemite
  • DAY 1: Happy Isles to Little Yosemite Valley (plus Half Dome)
  • DAY 2: Little Yosemite Valley to Sunrise Camp
  • DAY 3: Tuolumne Meadows Resupply
  • DAY 4: Tuolumne to Upper Lyell Canyon
  • DAY 5: Lyell Canyon to Thousand Island Lake
  • DAY 6: Thousand Island Lake to Reds Meadow
  • DAY 7: Devil’s Postpile to Deer Creek
  • DAY 8: Deer Creek to Tully Hole
  • DAY 9: Tully Hole to VVR
  • DAY 10: Zero DAY at VVR
  • DAY 11: Mono Creek to Rosemarie Meadow
  • DAY 12: Rosemarie Meadow to Muir Trail Ranch
  • DAY 13: Muir Trail Ranch to McClure Meadow
  • DAY 14: Over Muir Pass to Helen Lake
  • DAY 15: Le Conte Canyon to Palisade Creek
  • DAY 16: The Golden Staircase and Mather Pass
  • DAY 17: Over Pinchot Pass to Woods Creek
  • DAY 18: Woods Creek to Rae Lakes
  • DAY 19: Rae Lakes, Glen Pass to Vidette Meadow
  • DAY 20: Forester Pass to Wright Creek
  • DAY 21: Wright Creek to Guitar Lake
  • DAY 22: To Mt Whitney and Whitney Portal

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