John Muir Trail
The John Muir Trail ( JMT for short ) is a long-distance hiking trail in the Sierra Nevada in the US state of California . The trail begins at the Happy Isles Trailhead in Yosemite Valley and officially ends at the summit of Mount Whitney . It is approximately 340 kilometers long, with the descent from Mt. Whitney east to the Whitney Portal above the Owens Valley approximately 357 kilometers. A total of around 24,000 meters of altitude has to be overcome. The trail is named after John Muir . Much of the route is also a section of the 4000-kilometer Pacific Crest Trail (PCT).
Construction of the John Muir Trail began the year after the namesake in 1915 and ended in 1938. The trail crosses a total of six passes over 11,000 feet ( 3,353 m ) high from north to south : Donohue, Muir, Mather, Pinchot, Glen and Forester Pass ( the highest at 4009 m ). The four other, also named, but lower passes of the trail are Cathedral, Island, Silver and Seldon Pass. Most of the trail runs between 2500 and 3500 m above sea level.
In addition to the Yosemite National Park run sections of the trail through the Kings canyon and Sequoia National Park , through the State Forest Inyo and Sierra National Forest with wilderness areas John Muir Wilderness and Ansel Adams Wilderness and by the reserve Devils Postpile National Monument .
It takes about 14 to 20 days to walk the whole way. The course record, however, is only two days, 19 hours and 26 minutes. Most hikers, however, only commit individual sections. The best time for hiking is between July and October. It is mainly determined by the strength of the snowmelt in spring and the first snowfall in autumn.
A wilderness permit is required for the John Muir Trail , which is issued by the national park or the "National Forest" where you enter the JMT. After the number of hikers on the John Muir Trail doubled between 2011 and 2014, a special quota of permits over the Donohue Pass was introduced in 2015 . The aim is to distinguish long-distance hikers on the John Muir Trail in the permit system from other hikers and thus avoid overuse of the most traveled sections. A reservation of the permits is possible and advisable a maximum of 24 weeks before the date. It is also mandatory to take bear canisters with you to store food. These can be borrowed on site.
Web links
- Free maps to the John Muir Trail
- Yosemite National Park: wilderness permits
Individual evidence
- ^ François D'Haene Breaks John Muir Trail Speed Record on outsideonline.com, October 17, 2017
- ↑ Yosemite National Park: Wilderness Permits for John Muir Trail Hikers