JMT Blog

On my first attempt hiking the John Muir Trail, I got as far as Mammoth Lakes, California and was sore, tired, lonely and ready to come home. It was a humbling experience, but since I was using seven year old gear, I blamed the failure on my equipment and decided to upgrade for next year. I bought another backpacking “how to” book, all new gear, and got ready for another try. On my second attempt, I had new and improved gear, but didn’t get any further before quitting again. I bought a...

After backpacking with my Sunday school teacher a second  time, I was ready to head out on my own...but not by myself, so I did the unthinkable...I invited my younger brother to join me backpacking. Normally I didn’t enjoy him tagging along with me, but I wasn’t confident enough to go solo, so he became my hiking partner. We backpacked a few times together and I remember with fondness the times we spent making campfires, cooking over an open fire, braving rain, snow and black ice, hiking...

In my teenage years, I had a Sunday school teacher who offered to take the students in his class on a backpacking trip. I had been camping, fishing, and even hunting with my father, but backpacking was something new and I remember my excitement checking out backpacking books at the library and spending lots of time at the local sporting goods store. My first backpacking trip was to the Mineral King area and I still remember with fondness the day we scrambled to the top of a ridge on the Grea...

Today is the first day of spring. I have been watching the snow pack totals for the high sierra and there is good news and bad news. The good news is that the hiking season should be starting sooner than normal because of the lower than normal snow pack. Unless we get a lot of spring snow storms, then I should be hiking at 6,000+ feet in May or early June! Pinecrest Lake here I come! The bad news is that we really need more snow or it’s going to be a very dry summer in the valley. You can ...

Welcome! I love hiking the John Muir Trail and enjoy planing, preparing, and training almost as much as the actual hike! I started planning for another JMT thru-hike this August and decided to create a website documenting the plans to share with my hiking partner as well as with others interested in following our journey. I hope this website evolves into something that encourages others to hike the John Muir Trail. I will continue to post additional information as we make decisions about our ...