Hike Your Own Hike. We all have our preferences and hiking paces, and I’ve come to find that my pace can be slower than most. On average, it takes 14-21 days to complete the John Muir Trail, and 2 weeks is usually the average vacation time one can take off from work. I allowed myself 21 days to complete 211 miles of the JMT but caught myself soaking in the beauty of just slowing down, and enjoying my time on the trail. I believe, on average, a JMT thru-hiker will hike anywhere from 10-15 miles/day. My starting pace was a little slow as both my sister, and I took our time getting used to the trail and carrying a heavy pack. By Day 10, I was hiking on average 11+ miles a day, and I enjoyed every moment of being able to slow down and take the time to truly appreciate my journey.
I allowed myself 21 days on trail but on Day 18, I ran into a nasty thunderstorm and needed to shelter for the remainder of the day, a near nero, but still hiked 7.5 miles that day. I tried to slow down a bit, soaking in the creeks, journaling on trail, and actually cook lunch- but I couldn’t get myself to take a ZERO day.
So, here’s a leisurely 25-days on the John Muir Trail!
Watch a day-to-day on YouTube!
– DAY 1 –
📍 Yosemite National Park > Sunrise Creek
Miles: 11.3
Elevation: + 4,347 ft. -227 ft.
–DAY 2 –
📍 Sunrise Creek > Lower Cathedral Lake
Miles: 10.50 miles
Elevation: +2,386 / -1,035 ft.
– DAY 3 –
📍 Lower Cathedral Lake > Tuolumne Meadow (resupply) > Lyell Fork
Miles: 10.99
Elevation: +760 / -1,290 ft.
– DAY 4 –
📍 Lyell Fork > Donohue Pass ▲ > Rush Creek
Miles: 11.48
Elevation: +2,318 / -1,291 ft.
– DAY 5 –
📍 Rush Creek > Island Pass ▲ > Middle Fork San Joaquin
Miles: 6.75
Elevation: +913 / -1,152 ft.
– DAY 6 –
📍 Middle Fork San Joaquin > Glady’s Lake
Miles: 6.40
Elevation: +1,421 / -1,518 ft.
– DAY 7 –
📍 Glady’s Lake > Red’s Meadow (resupply)
Miles: 8.40
Elevation: +395 /-2,298 ft.
– DAY 8 –
📍 Red’s Meadow > Deer Creek
Miles: 6.28
Elevation: +1,598 /-137 ft.
– DAY 9 –
📍 Deer Creek > Lake Virginia
Miles: 10.42
Elevation: +2,244 / -1,081 ft.
– DAY 10 –
📍 Lake Virginia > Silver Pass ▲ > Mono Creek
Miles: 11.47
Elevation: +1,813 / -3,268 ft.
– DAY 11 –
📍 Mono Creek > Vermilion Valley Resort (resupply)
Miles: 10.11
Elevation: +735 / -1,918 ft.
– DAY 12 –
📍 Vermilion Valley Resort > Bear Creek
Miles: 9.67
Elevation: +2,348 / -1,070 ft.
– DAY 13 –
📍 Bear Creek > Marie Lakes
Miles: 8.53
Elevation: +1,881 / -302 ft.
– DAY 14 –
📍 Marie Lakes > Seldon Pass ▲ > Muir Trail Ranch (resupply)
Miles: 9.33
Elevation: +495 / -3,351 ft.
– DAY 15 –
📍 Muir Trail Ranch > Evolution Creek
Miles: 9.81
Elevation: +1,986 / -402 ft.
– DAY 16 –
📍 Evolution Creek > Wanda Lake
Miles: 11.90
Elevation: +2,467 / -197 ft.
– DAY 17 –
📍 Wanda Lake > Muir Pass ▲ > Le Conte Canyon
Miles: 12.98
Elevation: + 507 / -4,004 ft.
– DAY 18 –
📍 Le Conte Canyon > Lower Palisade Lake
Miles: 7.46
Elevation: +2,626 / -50 ft.
– DAY 19 –
📍 Lower Palisade Lake > Mather Pass ▲ > Lake Marjorie
Miles: 12.59
Elevation: +2,545 / -2,099 ft.
– DAY 20 –
📍 Lake Marjorie > Pinchot Pass ▲ > Baxter Creek
Miles: 12.80
Elevation: +2,009 / -3,608 ft.
– DAY 21 –
📍 Baxter Creek > Glen Pass ▲ > Vidette Meadow
Miles: 12.39
Elevation: +2,833 / -2,801 ft.
– DAY 22 –
📍 Vidette Meadow > Forester Pass ▲ > Sequoia National Park
Miles: 10.79
Elevation: +3,557 / -1,313 ft.
– DAY 23 –
📍 Sequoia National Park > Guitar Lake
Miles: 13.56
Elevation: +2,089 / -2,343 ft.
– DAY 24 –
📍 Guitar Lake > Mount Whitney ▲ > Outpost Camp
Miles: 11.02
Elevation: +3,055 / -4,171 ft.
– DAY 25 –
📍 Outpost Camp > Whitney Portal
Miles: 3.81
Elevation: -2,012 ft.
