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Post by Alan Hackney on Jul 13, 2015 3:59:49 GMT -5
Ran into Ralph Burgess on top of Mt. Whitney, Saturday, July 11th, 2015 around 9am. (Actually he was the one running!) He had nothing but a running outfit on and at first glance, he certainly looked out of place and with no water! Half jokingly, I asked him if he were headed to Yosemite and he replied he was attempting to beat the unsupported John Muir Trail FKT (Whitney Portal to Happy Isles, Yosemite Valley) which I knew was held by family friend, Andrew Bentz (3d10h59m40s). He asked me to post verification that he was actually on top of Mt. Whitney and so I am. Interestingly, last year I had run into Leo Pantilat crossing the inlet stream to Guitar Lake on the backside of Mt. Whitney on the first day of his successful supported John Muir Trail FKT. Good luck Ralph! Anyone who attempts such an unbelievable feat deserves all the luck they can get.
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Post by Alan Hackney on Jul 13, 2015 23:13:10 GMT -5
Oops! Sorry I left off the "r" in Leor Pantilat's name. (I think auto correction changed it).
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Post by Ralph Burgess on Jul 16, 2015 15:02:43 GMT -5
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Post by Ralph Burgess on Jul 27, 2015 23:58:24 GMT -5
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Post by amber monforte on Jul 31, 2015 19:12:32 GMT -5
Hi,
Wondering what everyone is doing to navigate the bear canister issue. I'm thinking about an unsupported attempt in late August, and I'm starting to look at logistics. I'd like to use an ursack, but understand they aren't legal on all sections of the trail. Looking at permanent bear locker locations, but the site said they might not all still be there. Any recommendations??
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Post by Divesh on Jul 31, 2015 19:30:04 GMT -5
I used lighter1 sami - lighter1.com/ during my unsupported southbound (almost exactly 5.5 days) last August. It has enough space for about 4-5 days worth of food. |
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Post by Peter Bakwin on Jul 31, 2015 23:24:04 GMT -5
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Post by Allen Currano on Aug 3, 2015 10:27:36 GMT -5
I (Allen) bailed near Rosalie Lake (around 170 miles) - I got very disoriented/lost, likely due to sleep deprivation. Ralph Bailed at Muir Pass (exited at Bishop Pass) due to getting sick again. "Proper Food Storage is Required". If you can make it to Vidette Meadows, Rae Lakes, Woods Creek etc for your first night there are bear boxes there that you can use. This link shows where there are bear boxes, however do note that the one that is supposed to be near the Bishop Pass junction is not there: climber.org/data/BearBoxes/map.htmlThis link shows where Hanging is legal and where Bear cans are required. My understanding is that you don't need to have a bearcan unless you are camping in a place that it is required. sierrawild.gov/bears/food-storage-mapThe rangers will ask you if you have a bearcan when you pick up your permit. I have one, so I respond in the affirmative (This is for the the Inyo National Forest Permit offices - it may be different in Yosemite if you are starting there). They have never asked if I am bringing my bearcan on this particular trip, and have never told me that it is required to bring it. The permit says "Proper food storage is required" and you are required to initial that you understand this; it does not say that carrying a bear can is required. "Proper food storage" depends on where you camp, in many places hanging your food is considered proper food storage. Hanging is actually not that difficult if you practice a bit. It does help to know the trail a bit and have a good idea where you will be camping each night, and that there are suitable trees to hang from nearby. In some cases I have told the ranger that I have a bearcan but am not planning to camp anywhere that I would need it. They have not had a problem with this. They will ask where you are staying each night, and they know where bearcans are required and not required. You should know this as well before you go in to get your permit. |
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Post by jeffkozak on Aug 17, 2015 21:58:22 GMT -5
Hi Everyone, Here is a link to Sage To Summit's (where I work) blog where I will be doing a multi-part post (5 total) on the JMT and my upcoming unsupported attempt, for those that may be interested: www.sagetosummit.com/blog/Some of it will be very redundant information for those well-versed in the JMT and Peter's site so here is the short & sweet: 1) unsupported attempt starting at Whitney Portal on 8/26. I have an 8 day window from 8/24-8/31 so there is a minimal amount of start time leeway 2) using SPOT tracking device 3) using Ultimate Direction Fastpack 20; still making final gear/food decisions but will definitely be keeping pack under 20 lbs, and hopefully under 18 lbs, at start 4) since the current FKT standard is a bit like me shooting for top 10 at Western States I'm really just going after my own personal FKT with a dream goal of sneaking in under 4 days 5) my only other JMT attempt was in 2009, a supported SoBo that I bailed on at Kearsarge Pass trail junction (appx. 185 miles) in appx. 3d5h Cheers All! - Jeff Kozak |
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Post by amber monforte on Aug 26, 2015 21:31:26 GMT -5
Well... I only have this week off work and my permit is for tomorrow. Plan is to start tomorrow around 4 am at Whitney Portal and see how the smoke is up there. I have bail out options if it is too bad. I am going solo and unsupported. Decided in the end to bring a bear can as I can decide where to sleep on the fly. Here is a link to my delorme share.delorme.com/ambermonforte |
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Post by jeffkozak on Aug 26, 2015 22:53:47 GMT -5
Amber,
Good luck. Hope you have improving smoke conditions. I bailed on an attempt that was supposed to start today without even taking a step, or bothering to drive down to Whitney Portal from Bishop. The smoke in the Sierra from roughly Glen Pass/Woods Creek to Piute Creek/Selden Pass due to the Rough Fire has been the most consistently worst I've seen in all my years of living in the Eastern Sierra. I could look directly at the sun in the late afternoon while hiking to Bishop Pass yesterday, and my headlamp revealed a fine ash falling down near South Lake as I finished up. It will be worse closer to the fire on the JMT. I didn't feel particularly bad while hiking at a casual pace but this morning my throat was sore and my eyes were irritated, like I was getting sick.
Be well. Travel safe.
-Jeff Kozak
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Post by Amber monforte on Sept 1, 2015 16:57:34 GMT -5
Finished this morning! Total time of 5 days 37 min from portal. Time from Whitney is 4 days 19h 50 min. Had battery issues with Delorme so trip is under multiple tracks. Will post proper report after getting some sleep and food.
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Post by Ralph Burgess on Sept 2, 2015 10:38:40 GMT -5
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Post by Amber monforte on Sept 2, 2015 13:00:22 GMT -5
I was worried about the smoke on the drive down, but decided to head out and see how it was in mountains. I figured I'd be bailing after a day. A big advantage of going north was talking with everyone headed south. Everyone that had pushed through said it wasn't too bad and they were glad they continued.
I think I got REALLY lucky with wind conditions and only experienced smoke in a couple places for very short time periods. I had no eye irritation and zero breathing problems. I did wear a wet balaclava across my nose and mouth in the smoky section. Today I have no cough and usually after a 100 miler I do. When I did TRT last year I had breathing problems due to the silty nature of the decomposed granite.
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Post by amber monforte on Sept 3, 2015 0:15:37 GMT -5
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