A Taste of the JMT

The John Muir Trail (JMT) is a 220 mile stretch of track that runs from Yosemite to Mt Whitney. It is known as the "High Sierra Trail" and that name suits it well. The track rarely dips below 8,000ft and many of the days are spent above 10,000ft. Sometimes the trail looks like the moon because there are no trees in sight and other times the trees are so high you can't see much else. It is a land of utter extremes.

This will be the first of several entries about the trail because there would be no way anyone could write just one. Our purpose through these will be to give people a taste of what it was like. John Muir himself called the Sierras the most divinely inspired mountains he had ever seen and after spending over 2 weeks hiking their spine I must agree with him. Each day would provide challenges and views that most people only read about. I feel blessed to have lived through them.

There is something primal about hiking that brings human senses to a new level. We were able to smell people from far away, we were able to hear small sounds at night, and we were able to judge the wind from a waterfall with just one listen. I like being tuned that way and although it's not a glamourous road to reach that level for us it felt worth it. I think most of the hikers we met would agree that the woods makes you sharper. They refine just about every part of you, but first they break you down. We had a lot of pain on the trail.

Hiking is a great way to meet strangers who will do selfless deeds to help you. The people we met along the way made the blisters and sweat seem to fade. We will dedicate an entire entry to these people but for now enjoy the pictures from the comfort of your computer.