Travel to JMT - John Muir Trail

imported
#1

I’m hiking the JMT (southbound) in August and wonder if there’s a reliable way to get to/from the trail from San Francisco. I’d rather not use a car. I’ve heard there is a train/bus route. Any specific advice?

thanks!

mcdowell

#2

Join the excellent Yahoo Group groups.yahoo.com/group/johnmuirtrail/

Fly to SF and public trans to Fresno:
g.co/maps/h7yej

Follow directions from Yahoo Group:
f1.grp.yahoofs.com/v1/cOc6T2G1qBWqjbruGiE5BIFuPWz1QzjZE1VBmpWbFBY1Poux95WHRkHg1Wy6x_pDD_Lp-GhSNNgazg62Or8z4eywKxDLk9dnJShnHg/Planning%20and%20Transportation/Fly%20into%20Fresno%20then%20into%20Merced%20then%20Yose%20via%20Yarts.pdf

Tim

#3

I just did this trip last August. If you fly into SFO there is a BART Station right in the terminal. You have to take the outbound train to Richmond. When you get off the BART you just walk upstairs to the Amtrak platform and take the train to Merced. From Merced you take the YARTS bus that stops at the station right into Yosemite. The tricky part is to get all the schedules to line up correctly. Do not plan on staying in Richmond as it is a S***hole. Either stay at SFO (expensive)and get the earliest train out of the airport or stay in Merced. There are a number of cheaper hotels a short taxi ride from the station. Then take the early bus to Yosemite.

The rides back are tricky and involve an overnight stay at some point as the bus schedules do not line up well. You hitch from Whitney Portal to Lone Pine Take the CREST bus to Mammoth, a YARTS bus to Yosemite then switch to another YARTS bus to Merced.

Getting there proved much easier then getting back but relax, give yourself some extra time and just go with the flow. It will all workout some how, trail magic and all that is in your favor.

Big B

#4

we flew into Oakland and spent the nite there. Next morning we took Greyhound to Merced, then caught the YARTS to Yosemite. Problem was we got to Yosemite in the dark and had a hard time finding the Backpacker site.

If we had it to do over again we would take an overnite bus to Merced and catch an earlier Yarts.

rocky & swamp fox
JMT 2007

rocky &swamp fox

#5

Fly into Mammoth Lakes. From there it’s one YARTS bus ride away.

Will

#6

Mammoth is a great trail town that you will want to hit as your going south anyway. If your flight doesn’t line up with the bus schedule you can always stay overnight in town (there’s a motel 6) then you can catch the yarts bus outside McDonalds first thing in the morning.

A bonus is that if your not planning on hiking the valley section, you can start of at Tuolumne meadows.

Flights may be tricky. I just heard ocf cheap flights from SF (59 each way from SFO) but mammoth is more of a ski town so I’m not sure how many flights would be available in Summer.

jalan

#7

I wish I knew about flying into Mammoth before I hiked. It would have made things so easy. I started at Tuolumne and the bus schedule would have worked out great. It was hard finding lodging in Mammoth when I was there and we stayed in the National Forest Campground across from the Mcdonalds. It was the worst cam site we had the entire three weeks we were out there.

Big B