Resupply at Muir Trail Ranch

imported
#1

I’m planning a JMT southbound thru-hike starting about 8/1/09. I’m going to do mail drops at Reds and VVR. I’d like to avoid sending a maildrop to MTR if possible. I’ve read in the Wenk guidebook and elsewhere that I don’t really need to send a maildrop to MTR, since there is lots of food to choose from excess maildrops folks have left there, if one isn’t too picky. Call it my cheapskate Scotch heritage, but I’d like to try this. I’m thinking that if all else fails I’ll have enough from my VVR maildrop to get to Kearsarge Pass, and then I can hitch into Independence. Is this a realistic strategy?

Early Bird

#2

Hi,
You totally can go from VVR to Kearsarge Pass. And don’t go to MTR you will not be welcomed there. They don’t like thru-hikers unless you drive in with alot of$$$ and reservations. However if the water isn’t too high across the river are hot springs from MTR.
But yes Kearsarge Pass works great, but is a bit of a haul to get up and over. And once you get to Onion Valley you still have to hitch down to Independance. But there is a campground on the left right before town thats cheap. Better to stay overnight their and then hitch to Bishop, lots of grocery choices (better than Independance).
I can’t remember if there is a pass to get to Bishop or not, and Mammoth is always a great trail town to grocery shop at. Free bus system around town too.
One more thing, there is a bus system that runs the length of 395, so if you don’t want to hitch you can bus it all up and down that road. Lots of choices, good luck and have fun! P.S. Iva Bell Hot Springs on the Fish Creek trail from Mammoth is awsome!! PCT takes the high route and is super dry and boring.

GreenT

#3

Interesting - in 2007 I had the totally opposite experience at MTR - they had a full time person that was in charge of the hiker resupply and was courteous. I was there in the last portion of August and yes the hiker barrels were very full. Of course you will have potluck so to speak of what you find. I would still recommend you send a resupply there just to be safe that someone before you does not raid all the good items and you end up with something funky.

As GreenT points out - it is a long way over Keasarge Pass to civilization. The nice thing about hiking the extra 3 miles to MTR is that you don’t have to carry an extra 2 days of food from VVR to the end. That is alot of food you will need to carry and thus more weight and bear cannister issues. An extra stop for re-supply can cut down on your weight and make it much nicer to enjoy the first few days of Evolution Valley.

Yes MTR is mainly for their guests - but they do serve the thru-hikers with a resupply point. In 2007 they had over 800 resupplies and thus do appreciate the business. I guess it depends on your attitude (no offense to anyone). I arrived at the gate - rang the bell - they came and promptly gave me my buckets - they have a picnic table for your to sort at, swapped out some stuff in the hiker barrels, packed my trash in a USPS box (they charge a fee to send it back - once again they don’t have to - but they do provide the service and free up room in my bear cannister), went thru the barrels and left. You have to realize that you are in the middle of no where and you will pay a little extra for the service. This is not the AT with a town every 10 miles and the trail close to towns.

OregonBeerMan

#4

I went to MTR in 2006 and wouldn’t go back. They weren’t exactly rude, but they definitely were not very hospitable to hikers. They basically told us to get our stuff, pointed us to a table where we could sit, and made it clear that we were not to stay any longer than it took us to pack our resupply. The only reason I chose MTR over VVR was because a friend of mine who used to work there was going up and took my resupply with her, so I didn’t have to pay the outrageous $45 fee to pick it up. The hiker boxes were amazing though, I walked out of there with dried squid!

I understand that they prefer to cater to their paying guests and have no problem with that. After all, it is a business. It seems to me that among hikers they have a mixed reputation, and quite honestly, most hikers are not picky people. It’s not hard to get a good reputation among the hiking community. Maybe it just depends on the actual person that is there that day?

It is farther to go over Kearsarge, but it’s also a beautiful pass and Onion Valley is a popular trailhead so getting a hitch down to Independence is pretty easy. A little harder to get back up unless you’re there on a weekend. The market in Independence closed down. There are just mini-marts at the Chevron and Shell stations now. There’s also a couple of restaurants and a post office. Bishop, which is about 40 miles north, has everything you’d need, including Wilson’s Eastside Sports, a full outfitter just in case you need to replace any equipment. You could probably hitch to Bishop pretty easily, or check the CREST bus schedule to see when the bus is running.

I think your strategy is a realistic one. Resupplying at Red’s and VVR should be sufficient. I wouldn’t count on the hiker boxes at MTR, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t go in there and just check. Hopefully their attitude will be better than what I experienced.

ducky

#5

I’ve resupplied twice at Muir Ranch, once on a section hike in 2003 and again on my JMT hike in 2006. Both times the staff was friendly and I would definitely do it again. The hiker buckets were overflowing by late July so going “potluck” is an option. However, I have never heard anyone report if you can just wander in to do this if you didn’t send a bucket. If they had an issue, you could offer to buy something from their store (very limited supplies; batteries, sunscreen, socks, etc.) or pay for 15 minutes of internet time.

Kearsarge Pass is a beautiful and easy hike (compared to the southern JMT passes). The view from the high trail looking south over Bullfrog Lake gave me one of the best pictures I took on the entire hike.

Snowball

#6

I concur that the MTR folks are very hiker-friendly. I went through on my 06 JMT and my 08 PCT. Neither time did i send a box there or spend a cent. I just stopped in to say hi, chat, and raid the hiker boxes. Frankly, to do again, i’d consider skipping VVR, and resupplying at MTR instead. Or doing both. And Independence/Bishop too.

markv

#7

I hiked the JMT in 2005, and they were very friendly. I used their internet connection to let my family that I was fine. The staff bent over backwards to get me connected. I would use them again.

TriHiker