r/JMT

Hey guys!! I’m doing a quick backpacking trip to treasure lakes next week and it’ll be my first time in the sierra. But Ive also fell into a JMT rabbit hole. I want to do it maybe next summer does anyone have recommendations on shorter sierra backpacking trips to train for this? Also any recommendations on group trips or tour guides? I would love to do this with just my friends but I think my mom would pass away haha.

Hiya, I’m hiking SOBO solo and expecting to finish Whitney Around August 5. Any tips on options for how to get myself from the end of the JMT at Whitney to the Bay Area?

I have 2 happy isles past lyv permits (Donahue pass eligible) for 7/13. I’m looking for 2 for 7/16. Would anyone be willing to trade or swap?

Start date is September 3rd, Cottonwood Pass

Getting started on planning my itinerary and looking for any all advice and recommendations

This will be my Wife and I longest backpacking trip but have done a few in the past, most recently the TRT

We're typically good for 14-16 miles a day but have done up to 20

Day 1 Cottonwood Pass to Rock Creek (13.8mi, 1600ft)

Day 2 Rock Creek to Crabtree (7.3mi, 2000ft)

Day 3 Crabtree to Whitney and back to Crabtree (14.8mi, 3800ft)

Day 4 Crabtree to Tyndall Creek (8.6mi, 1400ft)

Day 5 Tyndall Creek to Lower Vidette (12.8mi, 2200ft)

Day 6 Lower Vidette to Independence (9.4mi, 2200ft)

Day 7 Zero in Independence

Day 8 Independence to Middle Rae Lake (12.1mi, 3800ft)

Day 9 Rae Lake to Lake Marjorie (15.6mi, 3600ft)

Day 10 Lake Marjorie to Lower Palisades Lake (11.8mi, 2000ft)

Day 11 Lower Palisades to Star Camp (15.2mi, 2300ft)

Day 12 Star Camp to Evolution Meadow (15.5mi, 1700ft)

Day 13 Evolution Meadow to Marie Lakes (16.3mi, 3000ft) stop halfway at MTR to pickup resupply

Day 14 Marie to North Fork Mono Creek (14.4mi, 1800ft)

Day 15 North Fork to Purple Lake (13.2 mi, 3700ft)

Day 16 Purple lake to Reds (13.8mi, 900ft)

Day 17 Zero Day

Day 18 Reds to Garnet Lake (13.9mi, 3700ft)

Day 19 Garnet to Lyell Canyon (13mi, 2200ft)

Day 20 Lyell Canyon to Upper Cathedral (14.2mi, 1300ft)

Day 21 Upper Cathedral to Happy Isles (17mi, 700ft)

So I kept everyday under 4000ft to not over do it

We are on a time crunch for work and have to get done in 21 days. Think it would be better to leave the car at Tuolumne Meadows, finish there and Day hike TM to Happy as long as time allows?

I'm planning a trip on the North Lake to South Lake route (Bishop/Inyo NF area) in mid-August this year. I'll be using a Locus Gear Khufu DCF as my shelter.

Since it's a floorless, non-mesh pyramid shelter, I'm a bit concerned about mosquitoes and other bugs getting inside at night. Does anyone have experience with this route (or the Sierra in general) in mid-August regarding bug pressure at camp?

A couple of questions:

• Do mosquitoes actually get into a floorless/no-mesh shelter like this in that area during that time of year?
• How many of you actually use floorless shelters out there? Would you recommend a shelter with built-in mesh (like a Plex Solo) instead?

Would appreciate any first-hand experience, especially for that specific area/time of year. Thanks!

I have a permit to hike the JMT starting at Mono Meadows and exiting Whitney Portal about 16 days later. The permit doesn't allow me to go through Donahue Pass, but I'd like to hike as much of the JMT as possible while avoiding any violations or permit checks. My current plan given to recreation gov was that I'd be taking Isberg pass over.

Looking into it using a combination of FarOut, physical maps, Google Maps, and AllTrails, I basically see three/four options:

1. Bus/Hitch to Mono Meadows TH and hike to Illilouette Basin and then north up to meet the Panorama Trail and take that to the JMT for a few miles and then take the Isberg Pass Alternate Trail. The strictest-to-the-permit option and adds about ~7-8 miles to the ~220 mile trip

1B) Alternative: Leave Valley Wilderness Center and walk over to Four-Mile Trail TH, hike the Panorama Trail to JMT to cut off a few miles

2. Get permit but walk over and start at Happy Isles, joining the masses of crowds up on the JMT and then take the Isberg Pass Alternate Trail.

3. Start at Mono Meadows and continue east at Illilouette Basin on the Merced Pass Trail past Red Peak to Isberg Pass. Seems to be shorter but not 100% sure.

Would love to get any feedback from those who have hiked the trail and remember these points or who have done somethign similar. TIA!

I’m starting the JMT SOBO soon, and I was planning on spending the night before in Mammoth and dropping off my resupply at Red’s Meadow. I just realized that the road to Red’s is closed Monday-Wednesday, so driving it up to Red’s will no longer be an option (we planned to drop it off Tuesday). The shuttle should be running on the day that I hike through Reds. II could shuttle down to Mammoth and resupply there. Is there somewhere in Mammoth that accepts resupply packages? I have missed my window for mailing, so it would need to be a local shop that would accept a package. I’d be happy to pay them to hold it for me for a few days.

Hi!! I’m hiking the JMT SOBO starting July 15 out of Yosemite. Is anyone driving from the Bay Area, or nearby, to Yosemite the few days prior (anytime July 11-14)? I’d love to hitch a ride! 30 y/o F, will bring snacks and split gas!

I've got a 17 day SOBO itinerary planned starting July 8. Unfortunately, my hiking partner just found out she'll have to bail at Bishop Pass, so now I'm looking at 7 days of solo hiking. I've done longish trips in the high Sierra before (HST in 2024) and I have solo car camping experience, but no real solo backpacking experience. I was able to to throw together a solo 1-night backpacking trip for this coming week, but that will be my only solo backpacking experience by the time I hit the trail.

I'm trying to decide if I should bail with her or continue on solo. OFC this is ultimately a decision for future me to make based on how I'm feeling at that point in the hike, but I'm curious if anyone has advice on how concerned I should be trying to attempt 7 reasonably high milage days as my first real solo backpacking experience. Did anyone else do JMT miles as their first time solo backpacking? How'd it go?

Don’t want to be another annoying voice in the crowd asking for shoe recommendation… but I am going to be 😅

Basically, I have tried many pairs of hiking boots (at least 6), which all, no matter what size or brand or sock used, gave me huge blisters on my big toes - tried wides, size ups, merino wool, synthetics, etc.

I recently switched to Altra timp 6 trail runners based of the recommendation at REI for the wide toe box and trail runners generally being more comfortable. Made the mistake of taking them on a 25 miles backcountry trip without realizing the low drop could hurt my achilles (severely) without getting used to them first AND they gave me huge blisters on both my big toes. (Used the altra size guide to purchase and wore smartwool hiking socks)

Should I send them back and size up a half size? Size down? Get a trail running shoe with a mid-drop? Insoles? Thicker socks? The toe socks that give me the heebie jeebies???

I am at my wits end with hiking shoes and need to find the best fit for the JMT in a month.

This is an issue I have been dealing with for years and trying to solve myself and with store employees to no avail. Thank you and i’m sorry if this is not the place for this question.

Edit/Disclaimer***

I have backpacked many times before, regularly in the Sierras and elsewhere for 25-40 mile trips doing 10-15 miles a day. Usually I just get blisters and deal with them as they come. The trip this past weekend was actually much easier terrain than the Sierras (mostly flat) which was why I didn’t think much about the shoes not being broken in - as mentioned in original post, this was a mistake, I know😅😊

Now I am wondering primarily if it is the shoes giving me blisters and I need to go a full size up rather than a half size from my typical shoe size, or if it is a different problem such as proper insoles, socks, etc.

I will definitely not be bringing the Altra’s on the JMT based on comments and wanting to avoid further inflammation of the Achilles and not having enough experience with them! Thanks for that help!

I will look in to comfier trail runners with higher drop!

Hi all, I'm planning to hike the JMT NoBo this year in early August, starting at Cottonwood Pass and exiting at Happy Isles in (target) 17 days. I'd like some feedback on my gear list:

https://lighterpack.com/r/6tb8xt

I purchased 2 new pieces of gear for this trek that I haven't had the chance to test yet (still shipping), the Durston Kakwa 55 pack and the Katabatic Flex 15 quilt. If for whatever reason these pieces don't fit, I have a backup pack and sleeping bag that will add about 2ish pounds.

This will be my first backpacking trip longer than 2-3 nights and my first long solo trip, so any suggestions and words of advice / encouragement would be appreciated! I've taken many 2-3 night trips before and feel comfortable , but I'm concerned about the mental challenges of hiking alone for 2.5 weeks (especially because the average daily mileage in my current itinerary is a bit more than my previous treks). For reference, I'm in my mid-20s and live at sea level.

(ETA: I'm actually located in CA and have taken a couple trips in the Sierras at altitude (camping / hiking above 11k): I day-hiked Whitney, summitted Langley via Old Army Pass, went over New Army Pass last week, etc. Other than the standard shortness of breath and early-onset fatigue, I've been fortunate enough to not experience any symptoms of altitude sickness. I have a bit of familiarity with the Sierra landscape but the length and strenuousness of the JMT are definitely still intimidating.)

Please share items you wish you had / hadn't brought. I've had many "a-ha" moments from reading other posts in this sub!

Thanks all in advance.

I'm going to be hiking the last 60 miles of John Mayer Trail starting in the middle of August over five days going from Horseshoe Meadow to the Yosemite valley. Our highest point will be Donohue pass. I'm trying to decide if I go for a fleece midlayer (mountain hardwear airmesh hoody or Patagonia R1 for example) or more of a wind shirt/shell as a midlayer (Mountain Hardwear Kor AirShell Hoody or Patagonia Houdini for example). I'm having a hard time deciding and at this point, I'm wondering if there's no "right" answer

I'll also be brining Frog Togs for rain, and have a down insulated jacket

I’m in a bit of a panic. I get on a plane late next week to start my SOBO hike. Excited, but very nervous. My MTR resupply bucket has been stuck in USPS hell for 3 weeks now. It keeps getting shipped all over the place (across the country twice, and through Denver 3 times now.)

I have no idea if it will ever arrive in Lakeshore, CA.

USPS has been no help at all. They say they can’t assist because it has been more than 14 days since the shipping date. (I shipped pretty early because I had to go on a 2 week business trip.) I feel like I’ve tried every avenue to get someone to help me at USPS.

I don’t think I have time to build another resupply bucket, and get it shipped out. And I don’t really want to pay to do that or spend the time.

I was planning 6 days from MTR to Independence. I’m not a fast hiker and I’ve never been to the Sierras before. Am I totally screwed? I don’t know what I would do with that resupply box.

I'm flying in from Japan specifically to experience the ultralight backpacking culture of the Sierra Nevada — the real thing. I'll be entering via San Francisco and exiting from Los Angeles, with a 4–5 night itinerary planned around August 20th.

I've previously hiked a short section of the JMT from Yosemite Valley to Nevada Fall, so I have some feel for the trail. Now I'm ready for a longer push and trying to decide between these two routes:

• Lyell Canyon → Duck Pass（JMT, ~51.6mi）
• North Lake → South Lake（Bishop area, ~53.2mi）

I'd love to hear from people who've done both. Specific things I'm curious about:

• Iconic JMT scenery that stays with you long after the trip
• Alpine lake variety and quality
• Overall "wow factor" moments

A few additional questions:

1. Timing / temperatures around August 20th — Is this a good window in terms of weather and conditions? Any concerns I should know about?
2. Mosquitoes & floorless tent — I've heard mosquitoes can be brutal in the Sierra in summer. I'll be carrying either a Locus Gear Khufu DCF or a Durston X-Mid 1+. Would you consider this a problem around that time of year, or is it manageable?

I have experience with Japanese Alps, so I'm comfortable with exposed terrain and elevation. Any input appreciated!

Planning to resupply at Independence Post Office. Wondering how easy it is to catch a hitch out of Onion Valley TH? Can this be done in one day there and back or do I need to plan for an overnight in Independence? Thanks!

I know we lost Paint last summer, but so far it doesn't look like there are plans to run the VVR ferry this year. Does anyone know differently?

Pre-season update [Facebook]

https://vvr.place/hikers/ferry/