Planning Thru-Hike of JMT Summer of 2018

[colorado_rob]

Sounds like a great trip....how long y’all out for? I assume it was tough to do higher mpd with the rock hopping and route finding. I’ve been thinking about HSR since doing JMT...the Sierra is an amazing place like no other...assume there’s no guthook app? You use a topo map with a stand alone gps ie garmin? iPhone gps sufficient? No better time out west than the fall...

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Sorry for the drift, OP, but to reiterate what others have said, please seriously consider a NOBO JMT effort starting from an alternate place, like Cottonwood lakes. Permits should be easy-peasy, and Starvin Marvin has laid out an excellent overall itinerary for staving off any altitude acclimation issues.
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Anyway, Salty, we had 19 days allocated to do the 220 SHR miles (in fact doing 190 miles in 16 days), kind of rushed us a time or two, I think 21 days would be more like it as some days, lots of days in fact we hiked 9 hours to do.... 9-10 miles. Other days we did 14-15 or so. Tough terrain! And time lost for route finding. We did find some use trails here and there to make the going easier at times. We also benefitted greatly from lots of leftover snow (in mid September!) on the down-side (mostly northern sides) of many of the tougher passes, where we boot-skied or glissaded in lieu of more rock/talus hopping. If I were to do it again, and we might, I'd go earlier for more snow terrain help and we'd bring an ice axe and microspikes. Go light! I can't imagine doing this "hike" with more than about 20 pounds on my back.

[MuddyWaters]

I’ve been thinking about HSR since doing JMT...the Sierra is an amazing place like no other...assume there’s no guthook app? You use a topo map with a stand alone gps ie garmin? iPhone gps sufficient? No better time out west than the fall...

Use ropers book. Its a route, not a trail .
Some would like it to remain that way.
Encouraging people to follow one path, will create a trail.

Skurka put together a map set. He wouldnt put a trail on it for that reason. The route finding is part of the trip.
IMG_20171004_155413650.jpg

[saltysack]

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Sorry for the drift, OP, but to reiterate what others have said, please seriously consider a NOBO JMT effort starting from an alternate place, like Cottonwood lakes. Permits should be easy-peasy, and Starvin Marvin has laid out an excellent overall itinerary for staving off any altitude acclimation issues.
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Anyway, Salty, we had 19 days allocated to do the 220 SHR miles (in fact doing 190 miles in 16 days), kind of rushed us a time or two, I think 21 days would be more like it as some days, lots of days in fact we hiked 9 hours to do.... 9-10 miles. Other days we did 14-15 or so. Tough terrain! And time lost for route finding. We did find some use trails here and there to make the going easier at times. We also benefitted greatly from lots of leftover snow (in mid September!) on the down-side (mostly northern sides) of many of the tougher passes, where we boot-skied or glissaded in lieu of more rock/talus hopping. If I were to do it again, and we might, I'd go earlier for more snow terrain help and we'd bring an ice axe and microspikes. Go light! I can't imagine doing this "hike" with more than about 20 pounds on my back.

When would you recommend over September...June with a higher snow year like we have?


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[saltysack]

Use ropers book. Its a route, not a trail .
Some would like it to remain that way.
Encouraging people to follow one path, will create a trail.

Skurka put together a map set. He wouldnt put a trail on it for that reason. The route finding is part of the trip.
IMG_20171004_155413650.jpg

Thx...think I read skurkas trip reports SHR.. will check out ropers book....


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[colorado_rob]

Use ropers book. Its a route, not a trail .
Some would like it to remain that way.
Encouraging people to follow one path, will create a trail.

Skurka put together a map set. He wouldnt put a trail on it for that reason. The route finding is part of the trip.

With due respect to the creator of this fine route, Roper's book is of very limited use, except for the extensive discussions of flora and fauna. Skurka's maps seem useful, but what we did is found a couple TR's online of folks that did variations of the route, and they had GPS tracks of their route. (One of them might have been Skurka's...). So we uploaded those routes into our devices (we had three) and kinda used them as a general guide, sometimes using one, other times using the other but hardly ever exactly on either route, except in the technical parts over passes, etc, where pretty much everyone would be on the same path. We had detailed 24K maps of the entire route on paper, and these were invaluable.
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I seriously don't think there is any danger of the SHR becoming a trail (except in the 40-50 miles it does follow trails) in the foreseeable future. Perhaps I'm naïve. But I'm definitely not cynical.
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In any case, SS, I'd be more than willing to share the (now) three GPS tracks (ours and the two others we used) if you get serious about this little adventure. One point: there is a High Sierra Trail that should not be confused with the SHR (you mentioned "HSR")

[MuddyWaters]

With due respect to the creator of this fine route, Roper's book is of very limited use, except for the extensive discussions of flora and fauna.

No doubt compared to gps.
But Roper, who pioneered the route and wrote of it, also did not want to give people an exact trail to follow.

His vagueness was completely intentional

Plenty managed it based on that prior to gps. It was part of the challenge and allure.

[saltysack]

With due respect to the creator of this fine route, Roper's book is of very limited use, except for the extensive discussions of flora and fauna. Skurka's maps seem useful, but what we did is found a couple TR's online of folks that did variations of the route, and they had GPS tracks of their route. (One of them might have been Skurka's...). So we uploaded those routes into our devices (we had three) and kinda used them as a general guide, sometimes using one, other times using the other but hardly ever exactly on either route, except in the technical parts over passes, etc, where pretty much everyone would be on the same path. We had detailed 24K maps of the entire route on paper, and these were invaluable.
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I seriously don't think there is any danger of the SHR becoming a trail (except in the 40-50 miles it does follow trails) in the foreseeable future. Perhaps I'm naïve. But I'm definitely not cynical.
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In any case, SS, I'd be more than willing to share the (now) three GPS tracks (ours and the two others we used) if you get serious about this little adventure. One point: there is a High Sierra Trail that should not be confused with the SHR (you mentioned "HSR")

Oops yea I forgot...that’s out of sequoia runs east west over range and about 70 miles... Damn abbreviations always get me...SHR probably not best fit for me as I’m always solo and don’t have much mountaineering experience growing up in Fl! Again the damn list keeps growing! I hope I live long enough to Eiffel it down...guess I’ll die trying....first I’ve got unfinished business with the CT next fall...


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[MuddyWaters]

Oops yea I forgot...that’s out of sequoia runs east west over range and about 70 miles... Damn abbreviations always get me...SHR probably not best fit for me as I’m always solo and don’t have much mountaineering experience growing up in Fl! Again the damn list keeps growing! I hope I live long enough to Eiffel it down...guess I’ll die trying....first I’ve got unfinished business with the CT next fall...


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You can find a partner on High Sierra Topix board without much difficulty. Top site for all things sierra..

[saltysack]

You can find a partner on High Sierra Topix board without much difficulty. Top site for all things sierra..

Thx I’ll look into that....great...more day dreaming material!


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[Starvin Marvin]

I wonder if there is any chance we crossed paths? We were just out there doing 190 miles of the Sierra High Route**, starting at Road's End, heading NOBO, on Sept 5... I clearly remember chatting with someone along the way, a couple, who had started at Cottonwood and told us about the not-needing-a-permit-for-Half-Dome thing. There were 5 of us, all grey hair-60-somethings. Did we see you?
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**Sierra High Route: DO IT! But only if you're comfortable with miles and miles of steep, sometimes loose rock/talus hopping and occasional 3rd-4th-class rock scrambling. And you have decent micro-navigation skills, AKA: Tactical route finding. The general route finding along the SHR is easy-peasy with today's technology (GPS with track loaded). We touched down on the JMT in three places; near Bishop, VVR, Red's, plus we finished at Tuolumne, skipping the last 30 miles of the SHR due to fairly heavy snow and the fact that there was a bunch of 4th class scrambling to follow. When we weren't on the JMT, we saw NO ONE, zero, nada, we owned the most beautiful parts of the Sierra. Fantastic!

It is possible we crossed paths. We talked to a lot of people during our hike, including a few groups.

I would love to do the SHR, but I pretty sure the wife wouldn't be up for that type of travel. Maybe some day.

[Starvin Marvin]

Two minor points, jmt is 211 miles, 220 with a WP exit, so you walked a lot of extra miles. Not a bad thing, but not JMT. I did extra too.

You are allowed to exit wilderness for less than 24 hrs to resupply, as long as reenter same trailhead. Otherwise permit is technically void. This is overlooked by some that dont realize it, and think they will take zero day at a place like mt williamson. No, you cant do that without getting a new permit. People contemplating hiking need to be aware of permit limitations.

VVR and MTR are actually in wilderness, operating under special permits. you can stay there as long as can afford.

Yes, the JMT is 211 miles. The extra days (miles) that I mentioned were IN ADDITION to the actual trail. For example we hiked around a few of the Cottonwood Lakes, though we didn't need to.

A good point about mentioning wilderness exits and permits. Just to clarify, we never left the wilderness for more than 24 hrs. The deal with Mt Williamson is they pick you up at the Onion Valley Campground at noon, and have you back the next morning before 9am. Their deal also includes the shuttle, a drink when you arrive at their place, laundry, a very nice room, breakfast, and a ride back. A bit expensive, but a nice luxury. The 1.5 days is the time you're not on the JMT, which includes hiking the Kearsarge Pass Trail, time spent in town and hiking back.

As far as the V V R, we were enjoying ourselves there so decided to extend our stay.

You could easily skip both of those and just resupply at MTR.

I wish I had more time to spend out there, It's beautiful.

[Venchka]

I’m glad to know that the Permit Hassle is self inflicted.
I might have to put the JMT back on my list.
Thanks everyone!
Wayne


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[MuddyWaters]

I’m glad to know that the Permit Hassle is self inflicted.
I might have to put the JMT back on my list.
Thanks everyone!
Wayne


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Well, theres a great preference for sobo thats not irrational.
Terrain gets better as go south, so have something to look forward too. Instead of most dramatic to meh.
Yosemite....is a zoo. It sucks. It really sucks. The scenery is great, but its a city. Cant wait to leave the whole park. Even remote park areas have front country feel, its a park filled to capacity with day hikers and weekenders.
Acclimatization is real. More real for some than others. Yes theres drugs, but nice to not need that.
Worst of all, your gonna pass every sobo hiker going nobo. Talk about how to ruin a wilderness feeling. 50 per day or more.. The exploding nobo numbers now ruin this for sobo as well

Extra miles, need to resupply to reach mtr, etc. Backtracking to summit whitney, etc.

[Venchka]

I don’t feel the need to summit Whitney. Those days are long gone.
Thanks for the Reality Check. I did say “might have to put the JMT back on my list.”
There are many other places that also have my attention.
It’s always nice to learn.
Wayne


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[colorado_rob]

I don’t feel the need to summit Whitney. Those days are long gone.
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I agree Wayne, there's no compelling reason for some to bother with Whitney on a NOBO JMT hike, but I've been up it three times now; for anyone never have been up, it is the highest point in the lower 48 and all.
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Except for the permit thing, NOBO vs. SOBO arguments for the JMT are somewhat similar to SOBO vs NOBO AT hikes I suppose...
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Anyway, one NOBO argument for the JMT not mentioned is the fact that when travelling NOBO the sun is at your back more of the time than when going SOBO. I like the sun at my back.
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Another thought to consider addressing the crowds on the JMT, again referring to the Sierra High Route: Consider taking some alternate "trails" here and there along the way. Attached is an example.... when passing by Duck Lake approaching Red's Meadow, hang a right on the trail to the lake, follow an actual trail along the west side of the lake, then head up and over a small pass and down to Deer Lakes, then up to Mammoth Pass, then eventually into Red's from the east. This is actually a small leg of the SHR, but has zero difficult terrain, and is in fact on a decent trail almost the entire way. We saw a couple hunters on this stretch, but no one else until we got near mammoth pass, when we saw a bunch of day hikers out of Mammoth. The stretch of the actual JMT from Duck lake to Mammoth is particularly un-inspiring, whereas this SHR alternative is gorgeous and much less crowded.
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Lots and lots of other JMT alternates along its length for those willing to do a bit of independent thinking and can use Caltopo well!

On the attached map pic, the black dotted line is the JMT, the numbered black dots are Skurka's SHR waypoints, and the blue line is our actual SHR track.

[HooKooDooKu]

Yosemite....is a zoo. It sucks. It really sucks. The scenery is great, but its a city. Cant wait to leave the whole park. Even remote park areas have front country feel, its a park filled to capacity with day hikers and weekenders.

That's not the feeling I had when I did my JMT hike starting July 10 of last year (but then again, I've gotten used to dealing with crowds at Disney World).

Yea, there were a lot of people in the valley, so it took more than 5 minutes to order lunch. But the only thing that seemed REALLY BAD was the car traffic. But that didn't bother me at all since I wasn't there in a car.

Not sure how crowded the back-packer's campground is like, because I reserved a camping spot in the Upper Pines campground.

The morning I started the JMT, there were already lots of day-hikers on the Mist Trail. But the official JMT soon turns away from the Mist Trail and rejoins at Nevada Falls. I followed that path and encountered fewer than a dozen people before reaching Nevada Falls.

I had a LYV thru permit, so I don't know how crowded the LYV campground gets. But I had no problems getting a campsite in the general area around the junction for Clouds Rest.

Didn't see any more day-visitors until I approached Tuolumne Meadows. But since I didn't spend the night at Tuolumne, I didn't really have any issues with the number of people I saw around there.

[MuddyWaters]

Particularly on a weekend, youll encounter dayhikers and trail runners between tuolumne and the valley. Crowds come by lyv from valley to summit halfdome. Tons of out-and-back weekend campers in lyell canyon. Crowds of campground campers at tuolumne. All the way to fobahue pass, your surrounded by weekenders and dayhikers. As far as im concerned, jmt starts at donahue. Thats where the multi day overnighters separate and it takes on a better feel.

Backpackers camp in yosemite valley is ok, way less crowded than a reserve spot. I hears the one in tuolumne gets crowded.

[Venchka]

As a retired Fossil, I don’t have to be bothered by weekends, holidays, etc.
I’m also not OCD bound to the Super Official JMT tread.
Rob, thanks for the alternate trail. I’m certainly agreeable to deviations like that.
Wayne


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[vucatsengr]

On the subject of transportation...
Using public transportation, there's basically no way you can travel from the East Coast all the way to Yosemite Valley in one day. About the best you can do (if you want to avoid to cost of a hotel room) is to catch a late flight to California and then take an over-night train/bus ride to Yosemite. But IMHO, it's a much easier start to your trip by paying for a hotel room and take two days to casually travel to Yosemite Valley.

The way I did it from Birmingham, AL was to take a 10am flight to Sacramento with a reservation at the Vagabond Inn. When I landed, I simply called the Inn and they sent their shuttle to pick me up (saving the cost of a cab ride). The next morning, I walked across the street to the Amtrak station to catch the 6:00am train (which didn't 'feel' that early in the morning due to the change of time zones). My pre-purchased Amtrak ticket included a YARTS bus transfer and admission to Yosemite National Park. I arrived in Yosemite Valley about noon time.

The night before your hike...
In Yosemite Valley, there is a Back Packer's Camp Ground that (for a fee) your permit allows you to camp there the night before you start your hike. From what I understand, its a 'group camp' area with ground space available on a first-come first-serve basis. I decided that rather than trying to compete for space at that campground, for about $20 more, I was able to reserve a front-country campsite in the Upper Pines campground. As a bonus... the Back Packer's Camp Ground is located about 1 mile from the Happy Isles trail head... my reserved spot in the Upper Pines Camp Ground was about 500 feet from the trail head. Reservations for front country campsites open about 5 months ahead of time (so check their website for the process... you want to try to make an online reservation the SECOND the campsites open up from reservations).

Travel Home...
At the end of my hike, I hitch-hiked into Lone Pine, CA. The day I arrived at the Whitney Portal, there wasn't much traffic. So it took me about an hour to catch a ride. But anyone leaving the Whitney Portal has to travel thru Lone Pine, so it's a pretty easy hitch. I've known others that have instead opted to pay for a shuttle, but they can be very expensive. Since I wasn't sure of the day I would exit the trail, I didn't bother to make a hotel reservation in Lone Pine. But if you get there early, rooms will be available. For such a small town that is otherwise in the middle of no-where, hotel rooms are some-what expensive (~$120-$150). At 6:30am (Mon, Tue, Thr, Fri) there is a shuttle bus that runs from Lone Pine to the Reno Airport. It gets to the airport a little after noon, so there's a good chance that it is possible for you to fly home 'same day'.

This is quite possibly the best, most concise, East Coast travel plan I've seen on any site. Thanks.

[Berserker]

In regards to travel and some of the other details you asked about, rather than repeat all this information just check out the first few pages of my 2013 JMT trip report here: http://www.trailjournals.com/journal/entry/414703. I traveled from Charlotte, NC.