[pct-l] FOOD--Between Whitney and Muir Trail Ranch

[Edward Anderson]

Paul,
 
That 400 number was not an exaggeration! There were probably more. Last summer I didn't start my ride until July 20 because I did not want to have to ride my horse over snow on the high passes. That was most likely the peak time of year for JMT hikers. You will not have that problem if you are hiking the PCT and going NOBO in June or early July as most PCT thru hikers do. Virtually all of the hikers I passed were going SOBO and had started in Yosemite Valley. Almost all of them were hiking the famous John Muir Trail, and when I asked their destination it was "Mt. Whitney". They had come from all over the world - Australia, New Zealand, Hawaii, South America, Asia, Japan, Canada, and from many European countries. Of course, there were many Americans too. I became interested to ask where they came from. I met one friendly group of about 10 young people from South Korea - none of whom spoke English: several girls in that group wanted to know if it
 would be OK if they touched my horse: perhaps they had never actually seen a horse.  Interestingly, I don't recall any of the hikers I met replying "Whitney Portal" as their destination, which is actually the official southern terminus of the JMT. Almost everyone I asked said that they would camp at Guitar Lake before climbing Whitney. That lake must become a really crowded and polluted place. I only met one hiker, who I knew from this pct-l list. He guessed who I was and greeted me with "Hello MendoRider".
 
A note about my 1957 JMT hike, which took, I remember, about 18 days. I actually hiked a lot farther than the 180+ mile distance from W. Portal to T. Meadows. I took many side trips to climb a few peaks and to fish off-trail lakes. The trout were a delicious and important part of what I ate. That's why it took so long.
 
Last summer I didn't reach Yosemite Valley until mid- August. My planned destination was actually Wawona, but I had to give up because there were too many downed trees to cut as I got near Buena Vista Pass. Then I backtracked and descended to Yosemite Valley.  The JMT had been cleared - I only had to cut two trees and a few branches at one location south of McClure Meadow. Riding from Horseshoe Meadows ro Tuolumne Meadows completed the PCT for me - that was the last part to ride, a part that I had had to trailer around because of snow when I arrived at H. Meadows in  mid-June of 2008.
 
Have a good hike.
 
MendoRider-Hiker
 
 
 

________________________________
 From: Paul Mitchell <paul at bluebrain.ca>
To: pct-l at backcountry.net 
Sent: Wednesday, January 30, 2013 3:33 AM
Subject: Re: [pct-l] FOOD--Between Whitney and Muir Trail Ranch
  
> There were many hikers. I think I passed at least 400 heading south. I saw
four bears. Had no bear problems.

400?  Seriously?  Has traffic on the JMT exploded in the past few years, or
is there just a peak time of year that's not when PCT thru-hikers usually go
through?  

- Potential 178

-----Original Message-----
From: pct-l-bounces at backcountry.net [mailto:pct-l-bounces at backcountry.net]
On Behalf Of Edward Anderson
Sent: January-29-13 7:58 PM
To: James Stringer; pct-l at backcountry.net
Subject: Re: [pct-l] FOOD--Between Whitney and Muir Trail Ranch

When I solo hiked the Muir Trail way back in 1957, I went from Whitney
Portal to Tuolumne Meadows without a resupply.  I was a "Heavy Trucker" - my
pack weight, at the start, carried in my old Kelty Pack, was probably around
65 pounds. I brought no tent or stove. In those days I always cooked over a
wood fire. My trail diet included lots of trout and some wild plants that I
was familiar with. I took my time - I think that it took 18 days. There were
very few hikers on the JMT at that time. I never saw a bear in the high
country.
 
So, in 2012 I rode the JMT, starting from Horseshoe Meadows. I resupplied
twice, at Cedar Grove and at the Vermillion Valley Resort. There were many
hikers. I think I passed at least 400 heading south. I saw four bears. Had
no bear problems.
 
MendoRider-Hiker

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