JMT thru-hike questions

imported
#1

I am planning to hike the JMT north to south in late July-early August and had some questions I hoped to find answers for here on the list.

  1. Are flip-flops sufficient for stream crossings? I usually carry a pair camp shoes, but would like to use them in place of my boots for any places I might saturate my boots.

  2. What seems to be the best way to get to the trail? I have read alot online and in a couple guidebooks about this, but can’t decide whether to fly into reno, LAX, or SF. Any opinions?

  3. Is the ground generally soft enough to use titanium tent stakes, or should I bring a set that is more rugged? (MSR Ground Hogs)

  4. From what I have read, water seems to be available along the trail so that I don’t need to carry more than 2 liters at a time. Is this generally the case?

  5. Since I am flying in, I can’t bring fuel for my alcohol stove. Is this available at the Yosemite trailhead?

  6. Does anyone have advice on flying with my pack? My current plan is to put my pack in a duffel bag and check it. When I get there, I planned to leave
    the duffel bag in a locker at the airport.

Thanks for the help,
Eric

Eric

#2

if you know you are flying out of the same airport that is a great idea but you are probley not flying out of the same one. So why not bounce the duffle and some other stuff that you want at the end of the trail.

boy who wannders

#3

  1. Flip flops worked just fine for me.

  2. I flew into SFO then got a Greyhound to Merced. I stayed at the Merced YHA (Hostel of America, can be found online). The guy came to the Merced bus station, picked me up then dropped me back off there at 6.30 a.m the following day to catch the Yosemite transit bus into the park. The hostel is just his house so i’d try and pre book that as it has limited space. I just got lucky.

  3. I used my MSR microzoid which has titanium stakes with no problems.

  4. Water is readily avaliable along the trail. Some of the passes are waterless but no real significant stretches (based on 8 to 14 mile days). Plenty of glacial lakes and streams to keep you going.

  5. If you stay in Merced the night before you hit the park, I’ll bet the guy at the Youth Hostel could point you in the direction of some denatured. He also gives a great little talk on the park followed by icecream!

  6. I’ve always just checked my pack in as normal baggage. I always ask if they have a large plastic sack to put it in (sometimes they do) which they tape at the top and label. Other wise it goes as normal with no problems, even with one hiking pole strapped to the back!

Getting to the trailhead can be tricky but you should be just fine. Don’t think from what i’ve told you that i planned anything. I found out all this stuff as i went along. The only thing that i researched was the YART (Yosemite transit). They run a really good service into the park so you should have no worries.

Good luck! I’m envious.

Cheers

P.S Getting back is a little tricky. I believe if you can hitch up the eastern side of the Sierra you can go as far as Reno. If you can get to Lone Pine, a limited Greyhound service should get you to a bigger hub.

Cheers

#4

I’m flying into Fresno. It’s about an hour or two closer than SF. My plan is to rent a car and drive to Happy Isles. I’m then going to leave the car there and then hitch back to Yosemite from Whitney Portal to the car. It’s kind of a waste of money to just have the car sitting there but because of the way it worked out, I need to fly in on the same day that my wilderness permit is reserved for which means that I need to pick it up before 6 or I loose it. And I can’t arrive early enough to catch the train.

Anyways, if you can fly in the day before (or don’t mind arriving at Yosemite late), you can take a train from SF or Sacramento to Yosemite and then a shuttle to Happy Isles. When you get to Whitney Portal, you could then take a buss to Reno and fly out of Reno. I think that would be the easiest way to do things.

Bob

#5

In 1997 we flew into Fresno, spent the night at the Holiday Inn across the street from the airport. The hotel stored our travel duffel, clothes, etc. until we returned from the hike (no charge). The next morning we took the VIA bus from the airport into Yosemite for $20. Once in the park you can get around on the park shuttles very easily. Used a local shuttle to get from Lone Pine back to Yosemite, then VIA back to Fresno. I couln’t locate any Greyhound info at the time (or didn’t think to look into it) but did see a Greyhound sign while in Lone Pine. We bought our fuel at the park store,you could try calling them and asking about alcohol. You can also rent bear canisters at the store and return them at TM. We used aluminum tent stakes and they worked fine. Enjoy, it’s a great hike.

Bo

#6

We hiked the JMT N-S last summer. It was AWESOME!

  1. We went in mid-late August. Stream crossings were a snap. Flip-Flops should be fine. Check into Crocs for a lightweight, comfy camp/crossing shoe.

  2. Can’t really help you there, we drove from So. Oregon.

  3. Titanium stakes should be fine. We took an MSR Missing Link - except for one night of seemilgly 60+ MPH winds, our tent/stakes were fine. We enlisted the help of some rocks that night to keep our tent on the ground.

  4. I don’t remember water being a problem in most places. I carried a bit more than 2 liters though. It was pretty hot some of the time - I like to stay pretty hydrated.:cheers

  5. I don’t think you’ll have a problem finding fuel at Yosemtie. There were some stores and also maybe at the ranger station where you get your permit/bear canister.

  6. I would go with the bigh plastic bag option, but the duffel bag seems like a good way to do it too.

Other Misc. info:

Beware of all the tourons in Yosemite. They operate by the 90/50 rule (as one ranger told us): 90% of the folks don’t get more than 50ft from their campsite. I would leave REALLY early for the TH unless you want to share it with 1,000 dayhikers going a few miles up to the falls. We didn’t get to Yosem until maybe 6:30am after an all-night drive - slept for a while - waited in a long line for permits - got our packs together - and by the time we hit the trail it was 1pm, 97 degrees F, and the trail was absolutely packed. Ugh!

Beware of losing the trail after sunset creek (most likely day 1), although the detour up to clouds rest was spectacular!

Have fun!

Jackalope

#7

I thru hiked the JMT during the same time last year. There has been significant snowfall in the area compared to last year so stream crossings might be different than they were in my experience.

There was only one spot where I had to ford a stream and I just walked through with my trail runners. The water was approximately mid calf to knee depth. I think that flip flops would be sufficient. Also, with the snow amounts, water should definitely not be an issue. I carried no more than 2 liters at a time and had no problem with water sources.

The logistics in getting to/from the trail are difficult, neither end is really convenient for transportation. I flew into LAX and took a cab to the Greyhound and took that to Merced and took the Yarts from Merced to Yosemite. From Lone Pine I got a ride to San Diego and rented a car one way and drove to LAX. If I had to do it again I probably would have flown into SFO.

I carried the MSR Zoid 1 and didn’t have a problem with the stakes.

There is a store in Yosemite but I am not sure what they carry for fuel. I only know that they DO carry the fuel for my Pocket Rocket.

I checked my pack as luggage and didn’t have any problems. I didn’t think to ask for a bag to cover it. I will probably do that this year for my Wonderland Trail hike though.

Have fun.

HikerChick

#8

According to this website http://www.yosemite.org/visitor/trip.html there is nolonger any bus service from Fresno to Yosemite.

Arg,
Bob

Bob

#9

There is a 1 hour train that runs from Fresno to Merced. I am planning to take it to get there, but haven’t worked out for sure my return trip.

Eric

Eric

#10

Yes, but to do that you have to get on an early train to get to Merced before the bus leaves. My flight arrives in Fresno at 10:05 AM so I will miss the train and so would have to wait till the next day … which I don’t have the luxury of doing because I thought it would be a good idea to fly in on the same day that I have to pick up my wilderness permitt :wink: Damn permits.

Bob