At 5:45 on a Wednesday in August we walked into Yosemite Valley, twenty-one days after setting out from the Whitney Portal trail head…and just like that it was over. The thing we had been dreaming about, and planning, and preparing for so long was suddenly a memory. In one sense it is very easy to quantify the accomplishment. We had walked a total of 234-ish miles in 21 days and climbed 42,240 vertical feet along the way…but those are just numbers. Numbers don’t begin to capture the feeling of topping out on a high pass after climbing uphill for miles, or the sight of a snow capped granite peak perfectly reflected in an alpine lake, or the magic of the evening light on that same mountain at sunset, or the power of a roaring waterfall or the soothing sound of a gentle riffle on that same creek. The statistics of a through hike have nothing to do with the joys of walking through wilderness and talking with old friends, or the simple pleasures of making new friends along the way. A hike on the John Muir Trail is very much more than the sum of all these parts.
Three years prior to this trip, I had the privilege of hiking a portion of the JMT with Dan, Phil, Steve and Michelle. ( https://www.seizingthecarp.com/jmt-august-2016/ ) Because of knee problems, Sharon was unable to participate on that trip. Having seen and heard about our experiences however, she suggested that now with the time to do so, we should through hike the entire trail. She didn’t have to convince me, and we reached out to our usual group of willing accomplices. Eventually the field of the willing was whittled down to those actually able to take the time. Dan Boss, Cailie the Gnome Princess and Andrew O all signed on to accompany us almost half way to an exit point over Bishop Pass. Sharon and I would complete the journey on our own. That was the plan. Reality of course had plans of her own.
The first day was tough. Lots of uphill with ten days of food crammed in our packs. 
High camp at 12,000′ 
We woke on day two to hysterical laughter while these two attempted to open Cailie’s bear canister. It was so full, it wouldn’t open. 
Dan being helpful as always. “We should go up there!” 
Whitney Pass and thankfully some “down” after all the “up”
On day two as we descended from Whitney pass, Andrew badly sprained his ankle near Guitar Lake. After an initial assessment and some treatment, we decided the best option was to make our way down to Crabtree Meadow and the ranger station there. By the next morning, it was clear Andrew was not going anywhere under his own power. His multi-colored, softball size ankle and the near certainty that he had broken a bone during his fall led Ranger Rob to order a helicopter evacuation. Thirty minutes later Andrew was whisked away, and we were left to mourn the departure of our friend. For someone who works as hard as he does, and has so little free time, it was incredibly sad to see him deprived of the rest of the trip. Having said that, it could easily have been much worse and we were very thankful for all the help in getting Andrew safely home (and to surgery several days later).
“Physician heal thyself.” First attempt at treatment at Guitar Lake 
Andrew convalescing in Crabtree Meadow prior to evac. Rest, ice and elevate. Doing all the right stuff 
Apparently only one in ten evacs are for ortho injuries. Most are for altitude related problems. Way to be special Andrew
With the evac done, we packed up and continued our journey northward. As I’ve noted before, the four remaining members of the Diapers and Depends team have shared many adventures and are all very experienced backpackers. We very quickly settled into an easy rhythm of life on the trail. Every day brought unbelievable world class views, challenging trails, stimulating conversation, and enjoyable camp life at the end of the day. All too quickly it was time for Dan and Cailie to jump off the trail and head out over Bishop Pass. The fact that we so enjoyed their company made it that much more difficult to say good-bye.
K2 and Bobo ready to head out over Bishop Pass.
Having said good-bye, Sharon and I fell right back into our own familiar routines…we’ve been doing this sort of thing for the past 34 years after all. One difference we did notice hiking as a couple, is that we started meeting and interacting more with other hikers along the trail. We met and spent time with some truly amazing people along the way (more on that in another post.) Unless you’ve done it, it is hard to get your mind around hiking 200+ miles or camping in the mountains for three weeks (without a shower I might add). Very quickly it becomes routine, and then suddenly the end looms. For me, walking into the campground at Tuolumne Meadow was the emotional end of the trip for me. We had decided that we would drop packs and hike the last bit from Tuolumne to Yosemite Valley as a day hike. Even though we took a detour to the top of Cloud’s Rest and enjoyed stunning views from far above Yosemite Valley – the last day seemed very much like an afterthought. We were really just connecting the dots to say we’d completed the hike.
Clouds Rest was a worthwhile side trip off the JMT on our last day 
Pretty amazing view into Yosemite Valley. 
JMT Rule #1 – Don’t believe anything anyone tells you! The official distance of the JMT is 211 miles. Note the distance listed to Mt Whitney…
So now we’re home. We’ve enjoyed several showers, washed clothes, cleaned and put away gear. We’ve reconnected with many of our friends here in Flagstaff and have tried to convey some sense of what it was like on the trail. We’re left to ponder what – if any – impact our time on the JMT has had. I’ll write more in depth, but here’s a quick first swipe at it.
- We are fortunate beyond belief to have the time and the health to complete a lengthy and challenging trip like this.
- We are fortunate beyond belief to have vast expanses of natural beauty like this in our country
- Sharon and I had very different trips. I felt good and truly didn’t have a bad day. Sharon fought through an early illness and other health issues along the way. As Cailie said, knowing you have the mental resilience and physical toughness to fight through issues like that is something you can put in the bank during other difficult days.
- I love nature and especially being in true wilderness settings without people. Having said that, having Andrew, Cailie and Dan along, and all the new friends we made along the trail really made this trip special.
There is much more I’d like to share about this trip. I’d like to talk specifically about some of the folks we met. I’ll speak a bit about some of the gear we used – what worked and what didn’t. I have no desire to give a step by step description of the trail or point out specific special places…there’s too much of that on the internet already. I would like to just share some of the beautiful images you might expect to see if you decide to wander this trail yourself…or at the very least, give you a small sense of what draws us to places like this. I will share some of the lessons we learned on a long trip (still possible to learn something new after all these years). So if you haven’t already done so, scroll down and sign up for email updates. And if you have any specific questions, please feel free to reach out. Sharon and I will be happy to offer any help we can. Until next time – Happy Trails and Seize the Carp!
