Hiking the JMT in late September/early October?

[David Thomas]

[David Thomas]

Cannibalism aside, is it doable?  Sure.

Is it reasonable?  I think so, if you can check enough boxes first.

Physical fitness – to be ready for 20-miles days, 10-miles WITH PACK and ON HILLS beforehand should be a total breeze.  Like, “That was fun, let’s go do it again.”

Some experience at altitude to rule out AMS/HAPE/HACE sensitivity (which is different than physical fitness).  Or lots of time at an intermediate elevation before the trip.

Practice with your all gear in challenging conditions.

Knowledge of how much food you need for repeated high-mileage days.

Factoring in lower temps and shorter days in your gear selection and mileage plans.

Situational awareness that some people have and others don’t.  Where’d that thunderstorm come from? versus keeping your head on a swivel, tracking the wind and clouds, and having that extra hour of warning to get into a sheltered spot before the (frequent) afternoon thunderstorms or some bigger storm system blows in.

A bit of redundancy in your gear since you’d be going solo in late season.

The first time I tried the JMT, it was long before the Internet and gathering intel was harder, but I was working in a backpacking store, had scores of nights backpacking and hundreds of nights of camping experience, was lean and miled up, and was pretty darn UL for that era (early 1980s).  The thing that caused me to bail was bringing 2500 calories/day while burning 6,000-7,000/day.  Now, some of that would come off my belly fat, but not then.

So I’d add another item to the checklist:

Be mentally ready to bail if weather, injury, food, or equipment failure happens.

 

[Kief H]

I’ve been backpacking the Sierra for 40+ years and go out for 7-10 days every year in the window from the end of September to mid October. The advice from Cameron M and Jim Fitzgerald rings truest to me. All I would add, especially if you end up going earlier in September, is that almost every year there is a warm, wet storm that hits a few days either before or after the middle of the month. You might be tentbound for as long as a day, and afterwards there’ll be lots more water in streams and on previously dry stretches of the trail itself. If it’s cold enough (and you’re high enough) for snow it will melt quickly, but definitely plan on getting your feet wet. As far as experience or lack of it goes, my own first long trip on the JMT was solo from North Lake via Lamarck Col to pick up the trail in Evolution Basin and exiting a week later over Kearsarge Pass. I started on October 5. I encountered snow flurries around Pinchot Pass and hunkered down early that night, ready to bail out over Taboose in the morning if things deteriorated. But the weather cleared, and the trail was easy to follow. The biggest learning curve for me was adjusting mileage expectations to match the shorter days, since my backpacking experience up till then had been in the summer.

[Cameron M]

I don’t think a walk-up permit at that time of year will be much of an issue, particularly if you are prepared to wait an additional day if you don’t get lucky the first day. Don’t wait until the hike to try the Diamox, try it now, you’ll know real fast how you like it. It does not agree with me, I can’t use it, but luckily I don’t need to. The “first snow” might only pin you down only one day, not a big deal except if you are not mentally comfortable with it. Insufficient fluids will hit you much harder than a lean diet; dehydration is perhaps the most common health problem of newbies. If you are properly equipped to stay dry and warm you will not have to stress out about the dreaded hypothermia. Get a copy of “Mountaineering- The Freedom of the Hills”; you will be more prepared than 90% of the other hikers.

[Miner]

Maybe I’m missing something, but in the time frame the OP is talking about (eg. finished by Oct. 5th).  With the exception of a freak early winter storm hitting the last few days of his trip during the first week of October, I would not expect to get the sort of snow that one MUST take time off in a tent all day unless one desires to do so.  No snow that I’ve seen in hiking in September would have me doing so.  Then again, some people prefer to wait out a major rain storm in a tent while I never have.

When I hiked last year, it was only the last few days in October I was worried about possibly getting a major storm (finished on the 6th), but I checked the weather on my cell at Kearsarge Pass (since I resupplied there) and the only storm forecast was hitting a few days after I planned on finishing.  I don’t count the storm that hit as I started in September as something to be concerned about if one was prepared for fall hiking.

I do agree the OP should try doing a few shorter backpacking trips this summer before leaving to shake out their gear and to see if they even enjoy doing backpacking or not.  Preferably in the mountains and not just the low lands.  A lot of people start long hikes with little to no experience and hate it so they bail after 2-3 days.  That said, when I hiked the PCT, I met a guy who had never backpacked before, only day hiked, and he made it from Mexico to Canada.  But the PCT has good weather most of the time during the hiking season and plenty of other hikers to give advice on what gear to dump or replace along the way.  Easy to do when you are out for months, not so for 2-3 weeks.  If they have their gear dialed in by the time they want to start the JMT in September, I say go for it.

 

Back To OP’s original questions:

Have maps and preferably GPS tracks of the various bailout points along the trail and know how to navigate with them just in case.  GPS on your phone is sufficient if you have a track.  Makes it easier to follow a trail that may be covered.

Check the weather forecast whenever you can at resupplies. A few places along the way may have cell coverage but at the southern end after VVR its basically just at Mt. Whitney and maybe Forrester Pass if you are lucky, and Kearsarge Pass if you hike out for a resupply there. Ask any hikers you meet along the way who may have left the trailhead since the last time you checked a forecast.  Be willing to hike extra miles in the dark if the weather concerns you so that you are located at a better position to bail if you need to.  Rangers will leave the high country for the season in mid to late September if a storm is forecast, otherwise may stay till the end of the month.  This last fall, I found notes at some of the backcountry ranger cabins with notes warning about the storm I started my hike in and how they were going home for the season so there were no Rangers out when I hiked.  So don’t expect to find them in the later part of September unless the weather has been good until you reached their cabin.  In which case you can ask for a forecast.

Have the layers necessary to deal with temperatures down into the teens.

Resupplying in late September.  Given you are hiking south.  Your choices are pretty much VVR (mail a box that late as store will be bare), MTR may still allow picking up a resupply bucket, and lastly taking the side trip over Kearsarge Pass to Onion Valley TH.  Some people leave a supply box in the bear boxes at the trail head there on the drive up.  I believe one of the hotels in Independence will drop it off for you.  The local horse packers may also do so.  Otherwise go down into Independence (send a box to Post Office or Hotel) though the Shell station has a decent selection for the non-picky or continue down Hwy 395 to Lone Pine where you have better shopping.

Schedule a few days in Mammoth Lakes or Tuolumne Meadows to adjust to the Altitude before starting if you don’t have any earlier opportunities to be in high elevation.  Otherwise, you should take it slow the first few days.

Consider joining the Yahoo JMT Group or their Facebook equivalent.  A lot of people with JMT experience there.  They also have a nice crib sheet of the necessary information along the way (resupply, buses, etc) and do a survey each year of gear that worked or failed.  But remember each person hikes in different weather and temperatures so take other peoples experience with a grain of salt.

[Taylor D]

<p style=”padding-left: 30px;”>Wow thanks for all the replies! I have much more info now and I’ll be sure to go over everyone’s advice as I take each step in prepping for the JMT! Y’all have been a great help</p>

[jessica b]

I start my hike the 23rd of September!

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