Fast Packing the John Muir Trail

High on the list for trips this year is fast packing the John Muir Trail with some good friends from college. This idea has been floating around for awhile, but this past Fall at one friends wedding, it coalesced into a workable idea.

For those unfamiliar with the JMT, it is 212 miles from Yosemite Valley to the summit of Mt. Whitney (plus another 11 miles to get to the Whitney portal trailhead). It appears the preference is to hike North to South, as you are somewhat acclimated before undertaking the majority of the high passes towards to the Southern end of the trip. Our group is thinking 8 days on trail, so roughly 28 miles a day.

My Wife and I hiked the entire trail in 1996 in 18 days. Not super fast, but we didn’t take any rest days either. Two of my favorite memories, were dropping the packs and running the final mile to the summit of Mt. Whitney at 14,000 feet. We were fit and light after 2+ weeks on the trail. Later that day my wife was ready to eat the dehydrated potato flakes, as that was the only food we had left.

Which brings us to the first principle of Leave No Trace, Plan Ahead and Prepare. Obviously this will be critical to the success of this trip. First we will need to secure permits and check group size regulations. It looks like there are 8 of us very interested at this point, with some planning to peel off early. Then I have read on other blogs and trip reports that Bear Canisters may be required throughout the High Sierra now. Obviously we will want to work these details out far in advance.

Over the next several months, I will blog about the planning and preparation that we are doing to prepare for this adventure. As always feel free to share any thoughts you may have.

Visit the Pacific Crest Trail Association to see an elevation profile of the entire trail.