JMT 2017: Part II - The Hike
Part I of our JMT trip, covering our pre-trip activities, can be found here.
Day 0: We arrived in Lone Pine, CA at around 1:30 am Saturday morning. In normal traffic it is a little over a 7 hour drive. In Friday afternoon traffic...it’s a nightmare. After setting up our tents at the Portagee Joe Campground, we crashed for a few hours until sunrise. Come sunrise, we headed to the local diner to fill up on the largest breakfast we could find. This was probably going to be our last ‘real’ meal for a couple weeks. On our way up to Horseshoe Meadow Campground - where the Cottonwood Pass Trailhead is located - we stopped by the Eastern Sierra Interagency Visitor Center to pick up our JMT permit and got our first look at Mount Whitney! (pictured above)
Horseshoe Meadow (pictured below) is located at about 10,000 feet, so we planned an entire rest day at altitude to help ourselves adjust; and boy am I glad we planned for that. That evening I was suffering the effects of altitude sickness: headache, nausea, loss of appetite, malaise and insomnia. Having to backpack miles after ascending rapidly from 3,000 feet to 10,000 feet would have most likely spelled disaster for the trip.
Day 1: The next morning we woke up feeling much better than the day before. It looks like our bodies had adjusted enough. We started out early because we had a big first day. We hiked about 14 miles to Rock Creek, and along the way climbed Cottonwood Pass, our first of many Sierra Nevada mountain passes. We could start to feel the effects of the elevation as we made our way up: little tougher to breathe and it felt like our muscles were tiring out quicker.
A quick aside to describe the differences between east coast (the AT, especially up here in NH) and west coast hiking. Out on the JMT the trail is maintained for pack animals as well as for humans. As a result, the grade of the trail is much lower than out on the east coast (some great analysis on that here). Additionally, the trail condition on the JMT is generally smoother with less rocks, roots, or scrambles than on the east coast. The flip-side of that is you spend much longer ascending the mountain passes. I noticed that this played on my mind a little bit. I was used to just charging up the mountain and being done with it quickly. Spending a long time winding up switchbacks was at times a downer. Another difference is the exposure. Much of the JMT is alpine, with no tree cover, no clouds, and lots of sand. It took some time to adjust to the sand and constant sun exposure. Ok, back to the trail!
Day 2: Today brought us past some alpine meadows and lakes up to Guitar Lake and the base of Mount Whitney. It was a sunny and hot day, and the 10 miles felt more like 16 - I think elevation was still playing a role. (Not so) surprisingly, Guitar Lake is actually shaped like a guitar! We set up camp near the shore (pictured above) and enjoyed watching all of the marmots hiding in the rocks. There was an amazingly beautiful sunset and stars that night. I think this was the first time that I have ever seen the Milky Way.
Day 3: We woke up early to start our ascent of Mount Whitney (highest point in contiguous US) and the actual beginning of the JMT. Since we would be coming back down the way we came, we decided to leave most of our gear at base camp at Guitar Lake. The climb up the western face followed an endless path of switchbacks cut into the side of the mountain. We kept our steady pace (”slow is smooth; smooth is fast”) going and made it up to the summit in about 4 hours. The last couple of miles at high elevation really was tough on the lungs. I also think it made our minds just a little bit fuzzy, too. This elevation, 14,505′, is the highest I have ever been. I think we may have felt just a tiny little fraction of what high-altitude mountaineers may feel when they climb mountains. It sure is tough, but the feeling on top is worth it. After celebrating/resting on the summit, we started our descent. We passed many day hikers coming up from the east side of the mountain at Whitney Portal (8,000′), and a lot of them looked much more worn out by the elevation difference than we felt. It really reinforced our decision to start at 10,000 feet and spend those few days acclimating. Our descent went well, and we could really tell the difference in the lower elevations (climb high sleep low, as they say). We got back to Guitar Lake, packed up camp, and hiked a few more miles before pitching camp at Crabtree Meadows. All-in-all it was a 12 mile day and the official start of our JMT.
Day 4: We hiked 12.5 miles to reach the base of Forester Pass - the second highest point on the JMT. It was there that we camped at the highest elevation on the trail - 12,495 ft. We were feeling good, and I think that by now most of the effects of altitude have worn off. We camped by a beautiful alpine lake with ice/snow around the rim. The water was freezing cold, but very refreshing after another day of full sun. That evening we watched storm clouds roll through to the south, but thankfully we didn’t get any rain.
Day 5: An early start had us up to the top of Forester Pass before 8 am. On the north side of the pass we hit our first major snow field. The descent down was probably the scariest thing that I have ever done in my life. At one point, any slip in the snow would mean sliding down about 500 feet of vertical elevation right into a boulder field. Needless to say, the pucker factor was quite high. Thankfully, we made it down and back on smooth trail. We hurried along, because that evening we were meeting Kelly and friends at Charlotte Lake! We got to camp early and did some washing up in the lake. Around 6 or so our friends showed up (with our food!) and we had a wonderful evening hanging out.
Day 6: This morning we saw our first (and only) bear on the JMT. We woke up earlier than our friends, so we were just chilling in our tent, when a momma bear and cub come strolling through our camp just a few feet away! They didn’t cause any trouble, and we didn’t give em any.
The hiking today was an easy (low mileage) day over Glen Pass to Rae Lakes (pictured above). We spent the day hanging out at camp and having a good time with friends. A couple guys brought fishing poles and were catching some Rainbow and Brook Trout, and we ended up having a couple fish with our instant mashed potatoes and stuffing that night (they were delicious!).
Day 7: Today was another low(er) mileage day that ended with us at another lake (we really like camping at alpine lakes). We had a nice long downhill to a bridge crossing right before lunch. There aren’t too many bridges along the way, most of the time you have to ford the river, but this one was over a large gorge with a raging river, so it was a nice convenience. From there it was a few mile uphill to our destination - Twin Lakes. Randomly, we ran into our friend Nanako along the way! We had heard she was hiking the trail SOBO, but weren’t sure where she was or if we would even end up passing each other. We ended up passing at a small ice field/snow bridge along the river, and quite almost didn’t even recognize her! We hurried to set up camp because there were some nasty clouds/thunder/lightning that was building to our south. Thankfully the storm held off moving towards us and stayed on the other side of the pass. This would be our last night with our friends, so we stayed up playing cards and enjoying the sunset.
Day 8: Today was a big day for us. We tackled two passes in one day! Leaving our friends in the morning was pretty tough. They were still having their wonderful breakfasts and relaxing, so it was tough hiking away from that. We hit Pinchot Pass early in the morning. Mentally we felt down, but we were actually making some good time. The views from the passes are always so beautiful, and it is really neat to be able to look in both directions and see the meadow/bowl you came from and the new one you are heading towards. We had a few river fordings before the long approach to Mather Pass. On the other side was the Palisade Lakes. These lakes were some of the most beautiful lakes on the trail with their snow fields ringing the edges and large cliffs with waterfalls tumbling down. It was getting towards evening so we stopped briefly to eat our dinner and then continued on some more. We descended what is called the Golden Staircase. It is a series of (many) steep switchbacks down into a canyon, and in the afternoon light the rocks and river have a golden glow.
Day 9: This morning we woke up to a strange squawking noise only to see our very first pika. I think we camped close to his home, and he was not too pleased about that. We hiked through Le Conte Canyon on our way up to Muir Pass, named after John Muir. Today was the solar eclipse, but it ended up being cloudy out and we didn’t get to see any of it (bummer!). We had a light rain for about an hour - the first precipitation for us on the JMT. I don’t think we ever went a 9 day stretch on the AT with no rain! Climbing up to Muir Pass was probably the most amount of snowfields that we crossed, but we hit the pass in the afternoon so it was nice and soft for sure footing. There was so much snow melt that at times the trail was basically a very large and shallow river. On top of the pass (pictured above) is the Muir Hut - a stone shelter built in 1930 and dedicated to John Muir. The top of passes generally are not considered a safe place to be during inclimate weather, so I don’t think the hut gets much use these days. We descended the north side and camped at the base of the pass along Wanda Lake with some of the coldest water I have ever felt. It was very welcomed though as our tired feet could use the soak.
Day 10: Today was our 16 mile “nero”. Typically, a nero means a “near-zero” mile day; however, we consider this day a nero because we finished so early. That morning we passed by the Evolution Lakes, which were really nice, but also strangely crowded (a group of 15+ campers). It was another sunny and hot day, and the trail was mostly exposed today, which was really taking the energy out of us. When we reached Piute Pass Trail and the Piute River (pictured above) we decided to call it a day and have a nice rest. We set up our camp before 3pm! A nice bath and laundry in the river and then it was time to relax and recuperate. We probably fell asleep before 7pm, like a true Grams and Gramps!
Day 11: After our long relaxation day from yesterday, we woke up energized and ready to go. We put down some good miles early and tackled Selden Pass (pictured above) before lunch. We decided to go for our stretch goal that day and get to Lake Edison for a 22 mile day. After some off-trail excursions for some river fordings we started the climb up and over Bear Ridge. Everything was going pretty smoothly until we started our descent. Overhead cracked thunder and lightning, and out of nowhere the heavens opened up on us. It started as rain, but quickly turned to pebble sized hail. We were on the switchbacks of the descent, so there was no where to fast-pitch our tent to get some relief. We huddled under a tree and grabbed our trash bags to try and keep us and our gear somewhat dry, but basically we were soaked to the bone. The trail was a river of chocolate milk. We tried waiting it out, but we were getting pretty cold (and pelted by ice bullets!) so we decided to try and hoof it to a camp spot as fast as we could. Thankfully, we found a decent spot in a few tenths of a mile. We pitched our soggy tent and peeled of our freezing clothes and got into our bags to warm up as fast as we could. Naturally, the storm let up right when our bodies finally began to thaw.
Day 12: We had a late morning today. It’s always hard to get up when everything is cold and wet. Thankfully on the JMT, unlike the AT, we were almost guaranteed a warm sunny day to dry our gear. We packed up, put on our wet shoes, and started out towards Silver Pass. On top of the pass we had an extended lunch so we could air out and dry our wet gear (pictured above.) We also met some SOBO hikers from Massachusetts - small world! The second half of the day took us along Lake Virginia, a beautiful lake in large bowl. We ended our day at Duck Creek excited for tomorrow, because tomorrow we would be arriving at our resupply point in Reds Meadow! We were able to shave off a full day from our planned itinerary. We went to sleep dreaming of burgers and their famous milkshakes...
Day 13: It’s town day! Well, not exactly a town, but a place to get some real food! We woke up early and were grooving on the trail. We had 11.5 miles to go, and we were trying to make it there before they stopped serving breakfast. We pulled into Reds Meadow at 10:45 am, the sign at the cafe said “Breakfast 7 am - 11 am”. Whew! We sit down and promptly order the largest breakfast they had (eggs, bacon, toast, pancakes, hash-browns). After devouring our breakfast, we headed next door to the general store to pick up the few resupplies we need. With the extra day of food, we only needed a couple meals to get us to the end. We then immediately went back to the cafe to order ourselves some lunch! Probably 15-20 minutes had passed since finishing breakfast. Hiker hunger is a real thing folks, and it is scary. After chowing down on cheese burgers, coleslaw, and the best chocolate milkshake you could ever have, we were finally feeling satisfied. Now the hard part begins - actually leaving the wonderful place of filtered water, flush toilets and prepared food! We steeled ourselves, grabbed our packs, and started back to the trail. Along the way we took a detour to see Devils Postpile (pictured above). It is a unique columnar basalt formation formed by lava. It was pretty crowded with tourists, and quite hot that day (90s), so we didn’t spend too long there and kept moving. We tacked on about another 9 miles for what was a big day for us: 20 miles with a resupply. We ended at, you guessed it, Gladys Lake. This lake wasn’t as pretty as the others. We were now getting lower in elevation and away from the pristine alpine lakes. Gladys Lake was a little bit more muddy/boggy, which made the mosquitoes pretty ferocious.
Day 14: Today was the day: we were finally going to make it into Yosemite National Park! We decided to go for another bigger day and do 20 miles over Donahue Pass, which is the border of Yosemite NP. Along the way we passed many lakes that all had gemstone names (Ruby, Emerald, Garnet) and finally Thousand Island Lake (named for all the little islands and not the salad dressing). Our climb up Donahue Pass was a quick one, not because it was short, but because “strong legs and a dash of fear will get you up and over any mountain” (says Grams). Some ominous clouds were brewing, so we kicked it into gear. We also were pretty excited to be entering Yosemite. Mentally, it’s a pretty big milestone in the trip. Once on top of the pass we met a Yosemite backcountry ranger who was there verifying permits and bear canisters. After a brief chat we started down into Lyell Canyon. We hiked until we were completely down from the pass and in the Lyell Forks meadow area of the canyon (pictured below.) This started a pretty long stretch of basically completely flat trail. We pitched camp here so we could have a easy start to tomorrow.
Day 15: A record setting day for us: 26.2, the most miles we’ve backpacked in a day. For some that may be chump change, but for us it was a good day. We zoomed through Lyell Canyon and Tuolumne Meadows; all flat and easy trail. We hike up through Cathedral Pass, which is the last pass we would go through on the JMT. The hike down into Yosemite Valley took us through what looked like recent (past year or two) wildland fire areas. Burnt and charred shells of trees stood as sentinels all around us. And a current fire in the distance left a lingering haze in the valley. We were getting tired as sun continued to melt us, and finally reached our destination of Clouds Rest Trail. There were quite a few people camped here, because it’s a popular spot for those that want to hike either Half Dome or Clouds Rest. We accidentally ended up camping pretty much in the middle of a tour group, but they were pretty cool about it. We were wiped out and fell asleep almost immediately.
Day 16: The last day. Only 7.1 miles to go to Happy Isles. We woke up extra early today, because we needed to get down to catch the 10 am bus. We packed up in the dark, trying not to wake everyone else up, and started down to Yosemite Valley in high spirits. We had hiked most of this trail before on a previous trip out here, so it was somewhat nostalgic walking the same stretch of trail again past Nevada Falls and the Mist Trail. We reached the Happy Isles trailhead around 8 am and had our mini celebration...we did it! There was some time to spare before heading to the bus stop so we head over to Half Dome Village for a morning sandwich and snacks. A frozen breakfast burrito and ham and cheese sandwich never tasted so good! Although we were done hiking for the day, we still had a long way to go. We hopped on the bus for a 2.5 hour ride around the back roads of the western Yosemite area to finally arrive at the Merced Amtrak station. Two one way tickets to Richmond, CA, please! It was another few hours on the train where we sit, relax, eat our snacks, and talk about the trail. Once in Richmond transferred to the BART subway and got into San Francisco around 5 pm. Just an easy 7 hour commute! We found a hotel in the city (HIE of course), unpacked and cleaned our gear, took about 5 showers each, and stuffed our faces with all of the burritos, beer and tacos we could find. Our time on the JMT had finally come to an end.
Whew! What a long post! Thanks for sticking around for the whole thing. Stay tuned for another post covering our post trail thoughts and data!
