A windy night is followed by a windy morning, so I pack up quickly and start hiking just as Rob, Peter and John start preparing breakfast.
I have about 650 meters remaining to climb to Forester Pass. There is a lake half way up that seems to be protected from the wind. There I cook my breakfast at one of the few tiny campsites so many hikers have aimed for yesterday. Continue Reading
I wake up to another beautiful day at Rae Lakes. The scenery at this place is really amazing.
What’s even more amazing: I have been warned about the merciless mosquitoes here, but not a single bug has shown up. It is now over a week ago that I’ve seen the last of those bloodsuckers.Continue Reading
This was the first night that felt a bit cold. It was 5°C (41°F) inside the tent, but what’s worse is that I had some rather wet nights recently, either rainy or close to lakes. My sleeping bag seems to have soaked up some moisture and hence lost insulation.
Overall I didn’t sleep too well, besides drying the sleeping bag I will have to find a solution on what to use as cushion, my fleece jacket is not really working.Continue Reading
Sunshine and a clear blue sky in the morning! What a good idea to save Mather Pass for today. My campsite, however, is still in the shade, so I pack up and start immediately – delaying breakfast for later. I have about 1000 ft (300m) left to climb until I reach the pass.
When I reach the pass the amazing views to the other side are completely mind-blowing.Continue Reading
The bad news of the day is that it is still raining when I wake up. The good news is that my tent seems to be pretty unimpressed by the elements, even though it was advertised as well-ventilated.
I am not really keen on hiking in the pouring rain, so I decide to wait for a while. At 7 am the rain stops and we get up quickly.Continue Reading
Being lulled into a deep sleep by the noise of the nearby stream I slept very well last night. It was not a cold night, but in the morning there is a lot of condensation on the fly of my tent.
We start at 8 am, the path remains almost flat for a few miles. This is followed by a rather steep 600 ft climb to gorgeous Evolution Lake.Continue Reading
After a windy night at Heart Lake we wake up to a clear sky! The view and the panorama is sooooo much nicer without the smoke!
Today is a special day on our JMT hike: Half way! We will pick up our resupplies at Muir Trail Ranch which is about the same distance from the trailheads in Yosemite Valley and Mount Whitney! The John Muir Trail is now officially the longest hike I’ve ever done!Continue Reading
After enjoying the amenities of civilisation (a shower, beer, real food…) at Vermillion Valley Resort for a night we take the first shuttle boat back through a half-dry Edison lake.
There is still some smoke from the nearby fire hovering over the lake, but it seems to be less in the direction we will be heading today.Continue Reading
On another cloudy morning about 800 ft remain to climb to the top of Silver Pass.
The rest of the day should be downhill to Lake Edison. From there we will take the ferry to Vermillion Valley resort where we will spend the night. That is, if the ferry operates…
We are way ahead of schedule so we can easily afford making the detour.Continue Reading