What I Learned From Last Year’s Failed Attempt Hiking the John Muir Trail (JMT)

In late August, 2017 I attempted to hike a 195 mile stretch of the John Muir Trail, from Tuolumne Meadows in Yosemite to Mount Whitney. I saw it as a beautiful and inspiring challenge. The already difficult endeavor was exacerbated by my limited time off from work and my relative inexperience backpacking, let alone thru-hiking (longest I'd ever been backpacking was three days). But I was not deterred to embark on this exciting adventure, even if I had to give it a go solo.

I planned and trained for months, making weight and schedule spreadsheets, taking long night walks with a loaded pack through the hills of San Francisco and buying a bunch of new backpacking gear to replace some of the older and heavier gear that my dad has passed down to me. Finally the time came for me to head to Yosemite and start this long journey I had been building up in my mind for the previous 12 months.

The hike started out great with good weather and amazing scenery. But it all changed on my 3rd afternoon on the trail, when I slipped off a boulder descending to Rosalie Lake and ended up slightly tearing the LCL in my left knee.

While my JMT hike came to an abrupt and painful end, I had plenty of time to reflect on my short 3 day stint on the trail as I hobbled the 8 miles to Reds Meadow to catch a bus the next morning back to SF and the doctor's office. The shortened trail experience taught me a few key things and lit an even bigger fire of inspiration to return and hike the trail again.

(View of Banner Peak over Thousand Island Lake)

The landscapes and ecosystems I'd hiked through on my first few days up Lyell Canyon and over Donahue Pass to Thousand Island Lake were so beautiful and awe inspiring that I am planning to return to the trail again this fall to see what the rest of the JMT has to offer.

This time I am armed with some insights and knowledge that I was missing last time. Some of these tips and lessons I have found iterated on other blogs or forums and support my ideas, others I have not seen on other blogs and I think they would be helpful to other thru hikers.

Here are the key things which I learned and will be incorporating into my attempt this year in late August. Also if you are interested in joining me for all or part of the hike this year, please let me know!

(Mount Ritter over Garnet Lake)

Taking my time

First off I am adding 5 days to my hiking schedule. Last year I tried to do the whole thing in 15 days due to the limited time I had off from work. This year, as I am currently not working for the man and can set my own schedule, I am free to hike the JMT at a more leisurely pace, spreading my trip over 20ish days. This should make the hike more enjoyable and allow for more time taking pictures, fishing, swimming and just enjoying the awesome scenery.

I've read so many blogs about people hiking it in 2 weeks, but for the average hiker that is a fiercely fast pace and does not lend much opportunity for enjoying the trail as opposed to just getting through it and ticking it off your list.

Skipping the lottery and the first 25 miles

For the diehard JMT truthers, skipping the first portion of the SOBO trail out of Yosemite Valley to Tuolumne Meadows would be unthinkable. But for people like me who just want to get on the trail and enjoy a still long a beautiful hike, skipping a small portion is a small price to pay in order to still get to hike the remaining 195 miles. For those who are not lucky enough to win the permit lottery or missed the lottery date you can still get on the trail by getting a walk-up permit.

Last year I was dropped off out front of the Tuolumne Meadows Wilderness Center at 5 am and waited in line until they opened at 9 am. I was second in line and could have waited until 6am to get a spot and still been perfectly fine. That day they had a few same day JMT wilderness permits left over from the prior day, plus the daily allotted 10 for the next day.

Since I am again heading off on the JMT relatively late, last week of August, the trail should be a bit less populated and I do not expect to have any issues getting a walk-up permit this year.

The alternative for getting a permit is to apply for the lottery 168 days before you want to start your hike. You can apply for a range of dates of up to 21 days so you don't have to reapply every day. I tried this last year and applied for about 40 days in total, but I never received a permit. I found the show up and get a permit in person process fairly simple. So I'm sticking with this plan and will again start the trail from Tuolumne instead of Happy Isles.

If you are planning to do the JMT during the peak times, July - early August, then you should apply for a permit through the lottery as I've heard there is more competition for the walk-up permits, but just remember the walk-up permits are still an option and seem more plentiful for early and late starters.

Check out the permit info in the NPS link below.

https://www.nps.gov/yose/planyourvisit/wpres.htm

Skip the sunscreen and cover up

Last year I did a few weekend backpacking trips to gear up and train for the full hike. Some of these hikes were in dry and very hot areas of central California during the dead of summer. I found that I hated putting on sunscreen then having half of it sweat off in the heat or it getting into the water sources when I got to camp, polluting the beautiful ecosystems I was trying to enjoy.

I knew at the high altitudes of the JMT the sun is much stronger and you need to protect yourself. I found that the best way to do this was to wear light long sleeve shirts, hiking pants, a large brim hat and hiking gloves!

I hiked fully covered up last year, allowing me to leave the sunscreen at home and not risk damaging the fragile ecosystems of the high Sierra lakes and streams I planned to frequently swim in.

Also having long sleeve shirts and pants are helpful to defend against the inevitable mosquitos that will attack you, even starting late in August as I did.

Hiking gloves - commonly overlooked but vital tool

I noticed early in my training that my hands were facing two obstacles to their continued comfort and function: constant exposure to the direct sun and rubbing/blisters from gripping my hiking poles for many miles a day while frequently sweating.

I read up on how others protected their hands from blisters and sun on the trail apart from just sunscreen and tape. I saw that a few blogs recommended hiking gloves, but after looking at the gloves on the market, I found most were for cold weather. The only pair I found that were for summer hiking were the Outdoor Research sun gloves. These had good reviews and I am sure they are well worth the money, but at the time I wasn't excited about spending another chunk of change on specialized gloves. Other people recommended construction work gloves, but in my experience I know those tend to get quite hot and sweaty and would not be comfortable for many miles many days in a row.

That is when I stumbled upon the perfect alternative solution in my box of sports equipment. Sitting in the bottom were my old football receiver gloves. These things were made to have great grip, protect your hands and are designed to be worn while sweating and playing football. I tried these out on a few practice hikes and found they were a perfect solution. Football gloves are comfortable, durable and can be cheaper than specialized hiking gloves (or just lying around the house from your glory days).

Either way I would definitely recommend some kind of hiking gloves, as they were awesome for protecting my hands from both hiking pole blisters and from getting sun burnt.

Resupply more often

Last year I planned to skip a resupply at Reds Meadow and just resupply at Muir Trail Ranch. This broke up my trip in two even parts. It also meant I had to unnecessarily carry a full half of my food for the first few days of my trip.

This year I will resupply at both Reds Meadow and MTR, meaning I only have to carry a few days of food at a time for the first half of the trip. The second half of the hike, a 100+ mile 10 day stretch between MTR and Whitney, I will still have to do without a resupply. But this plan will surely make the first half of the trip a bit easier and more comfortable.

Wear higher ankle boots

Last year I followed the popular movement of foregoing full hiking boots and wearing trail runners. While I found them super comfortable and much lighter than most boots, they ended up not providing quite the ankle support I required on such a demanding trail as the John Muir.

This year I have switched to wearing light boots with high ankle support. After much research and a few trials of multiple boots, I landed on the Salomon X Ultra Mid 3 GTX Boots. They honestly feel like you are wearing some high ankle comfy basketball shoes that have been beefed up with Gortex and sturdy hiking soles. I have hiked about 100 miles on intense terrain since I picked them up and I love them so far. As comfy as trail runners, but with much more support and stability.

Address known hot spots before blisters can start

Its common advice, but is not to be overlooked. It is so important to address hot spots with tape, moleskin or band aids, BEFORE they turn into blisters. It is a good habit to start the morning off with a check of your feet and to put on any preventive measures before you are in pain!

Don't bring scented wipes

I made the mistake of bringing some little sanitary wipes that were scented last year. You must keep all wipes in your bear canister to keep them safe from animals. While hiking along in the warmth of the day the scent seeped through the plastic baggie they were kept in and permeated into some of my foods. It was a gross and disappointing realization as I went to cook up some breakfasts and dinners and was greeted with a chemical taste. So if you are going to bring any sanitary wipes, make sure they are totally unscented!

Corn starch is a butt saver

If you have seen the amazing movie Chef, you may remember the scene when they are driving the food truck through the South on a hot night and the second chef guy tosses some corn starch down his pants for some quick relief. Lets just say a long day on the trail can be equally as hot and sweaty as a drive through Louisiana, and bringing along a little bag of corn starch is an easy way to stay comfy and avoid any unwanted friction. Baby powder does the same thing, but again, baby powder is scented and corn starch is not.

Hiking poles don't look cool, but I don't care

I always thought hiking poles were silly, until I tried them. Now I would never do any serious hike without them. They are great for added stability and make decents on rough or unstable terrain much easier and safer.

(Lyell Canyon, looking up towards Donahue Pass)

Those are the key things I learned from my brief trip on the John Muir Trail last year that will hopefully make this year's trip more enjoyable and safer.

Again please let me know if you want to tag along for some or all of my journey this year. I plan to start around August 29th this year and be on the trail for about 3 weeks.