[pct-l] JMT Thru Hike?

Fri Jun 28 13:54:52 CDT 2013

Hey Andre S.

Making it through the High Sierra at that pace late in season with no snow
to contend with is easily done by distance hikers who have a few hundred
miles under their belts.  If you're coming straight from the street, it
really depends on your fitness level, but if you start early, as in when
the sun rises, you'll have 14 hours or more till dark and with a steady
pace, it should not be a problem to knock out 15 to 20 miles.  The main
downer is not having time to explore some of the marvels along the trail or
just off it with less of a feeling of urgency.

If you decide to take it slower and not rush to finish, so that you can
take in the incredible beauty, the great off trail climbs, hot springs, or
just to have an afternoon to loll on the shores of a lake that looks as if
it were made for Heaven, be assured that both ends of the JMT and almost
everything in between is so incredible, that you can't go wrong.  If you
only do half of it, you can come back next year and finish the other half.
 But it is truly the most beautiful 200+ miles of trail in the country.
 And all of it is worth spending time in.

Highlights for me are to get off the trail near Shadow Lake when you're
passing the Minarets and camp on the large rock on the far side of Lake
Ediza.  Then spend a day climbing on the slopes of Ritter and Banner and up
to Cecil and Iceberg Lakes out of which the Minarets rise as if they are
being born of those icy lakes.  The first time I hiked to the upper lake as
a kid, I watched the clouds scud by at eye level with the water's surface
and the minarets rising nearly straight up, and thought Zeus or Thor
hurling thunderbolts from the top of the massif was all that was missing.
 It is one of many wonderful side trips from the JMT if you give yourself
time.  Another is to climb up to Bishop Pass just to see the view looking
out over and into LeConte Canyon.  From the canyon floor where all the
hikers usually stay on the JMT/PCT, you get some pretty good views of the
canyon walls, but from above you see that canyon and the mountains rising
high above the rim, a view totally lost to those who stay on trail.

But, hell, stay on trail, wander off for a day or two, you can't go wrong.
 it's all just drop dead gorgeous!  And it's a long stretch of gorgeous, so
take your time and enjoy it.  This morning I just put two dear thru hiker
friends, Plain Slice and Little Engine, on the Amtrak in Martinez for their
train and bus ride to Yosemite to hike the JMT again.  They've given
themselves 3 weeks so they can really enjoy it this time.  The last time we
all hiked it together, the snow was deep and there was no thought to
exploring the little side trails as it was all we could do to find the snow
buried JMT itself that year.

Have a wonderful hike,

Shroomer

On Fri, Jun 28, 2013 at 10:48 AM, marmot marmot
<marmotwestvanc at hotmail.com>wrote:

> As a slow but steady hiker I found even when doing sections(not thruhike)
> I could do 20-25 per day through Sierras. It depends how you react to
> altitude,whether you get up in the morning, how much time you waste being
> lost. Even on a well marked trail I found many confused lost hikers;people
> just leaving camp when I had been hiking for hours. I have a hard time
> breathing above 9 thou. ft.  So have to start early ---end late. Hope you
> have a lovely hike. Marmot
>
> Sent from my iPhone
>
> On Jun 28, 2013, at 1:19 AM, "PRIMAPE ." <wurdboi at gmail.com> wrote:
>
> > M,
> >
> > I have been able to cover about 15 miles a day. That being said, I will
> > definitely have to plan more accordingly with exit strategies. Is it a
> > totally different experience approaching South to North versus North to
> > South? I have quite a bit of experience in the Tuolumne and Mammath areas
> > but would hope to still explore the areas of the JMT that I have not seen
> > around there.
> >
> > -Andre
> >
> >
> > On Fri, Jun 28, 2013 at 12:43 AM, Melanie Clarke
> > <melaniekclarke at gmail.com>wrote:
> >
> >> Plan your itinerary ahead of time so you know how far you have to hike
> >> each day. Plan a day to get to Yosemite and plant a car at Whitney
> Portal.
> >> And another day to get back home. That really only leaves 12 days to
> hike.
> >> That is 20 mile days with no break. I did the JMT in 11 days when I was
> 47
> >> years old. How many miles do you normally cover on a hike? The JMT has a
> >> LOT of climbing so you have to be fit. Plan escape routes in case you
> don't
> >> make it. Go south to north. More exit strategies at the north end, Red's
> >> Meadow etc.
> >>
> >> M
> >> On Jun 27, 2013 10:28 PM, "PRIMAPE ." <wurdboi at gmail.com> wrote:
> >>
> >>> Hey All,
> >>>
> >>> I'm planning to embark on the JMT later this summer, but sadly only
> have
> >>> 14
> >>> days that I can afford to be on the trail. Is it possible to finish
> this
> >>> 200+ mile trek in such a short period of time? If not, are there
> portions
> >>> that I can afford to miss that will not hinder my experience too much?
> >>> Thanks for the input!!!
> >>>
> >>>
> >>>
> >>> Best,
> >>>
> >>>
> >>> André S.
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