Discovering a new sense of purpose
Morning on JMT, photo by Mick Rich
My solo backpacking trip on the John Muir Trail was more than just the 110 miles I hiked.
One of many mountain trails on the JMT, Photo by Mick Rich
The John Muir Trail (JMT) is "America's most famous trail." The JMT rises and falls 47,000 feet in the 211 miles of trails. The JMT rarely dips below 8,000-foot elevation, and most campsites are between 9,000 and 10,000-foot elevation. Approximately 1,500 people a year attempt to "thru-hike" the 211 miles. An attempt is an accurate phrase, with the steep drop-offs, narrow trails, rocky trails, high altitude, and quickly forming thunderstorms providing plenty of opportunities for life-threatening mistakes.
Backpacking the JMT is the only teenage goal I had not yet achieved. I first backpacked on the JMT in 1968 during a Boy Scout of America backpacking trip in Yosemite National Park. We hiked from Tuolumne Meadows to Lyle Glacier and back to Tuolumne Meadows. I made a vow at that time I would earn my Eagle Badge and hike the JMT. In 1972 I earned my Eagle Badge and backpacked the JMT from Yosemite Valley to Sunrise Lakes (including Half Dome) and vowed to hike Mt. Whitney (which I did in 1996). In 2017 our daughter Audrey and I hiked 68 miles of the JMT from Taboose Pass to Mt Whitney. Next year I will finish the last 39 miles of the JMT, finishing what I started fifty-five years ago.
On the JMT in 2017
Do I still have what it takes despite being 68-years-old? In the past forty years, I have had shoulder surgery, multiple knee surgeries, and have a bit of osteoarthritis. Despite entering the JMT notorious "Taboose Trailhead" (8 miles and a 6,000-foot climb with a fully loaded backpack) I had my doubts on every mountain pass. My thoughts while trudging up the mountain passes, what am I doing? I ought to call it quits but what will I tell people? I will just pitch myself off the trail, but that's not fair to those who have to pick up the pieces., Just keep going and I did. On the last day, I kept up with the thirty-year-old hikers; not bad.
Start of the last eleven miles, photo by Mick Rich
How much has changed since I first hiked on the JMT fifty-five years ago? Then I would drink straight out of the streams; today, drinking water must be treated. Then we cooked over a wood fire; today, fuel stoves are required. Then the only contact with the emergency services was to walk out; today, I had satellite text service. Then the dehydrated food was barely eatable; today, the freeze-dried is tasty (however, thru-hikers choose food based on calories/ounce, not taste).
Would I find a new sense of purpose on the JMT? New Mexico continues to be at the bottom of the fifty states, and almost ninety percent of Americans believe our country is on the wrong track while state and national media focus on personalities, not solutions. My challenge/solution-based articles (including past radio and television programs) are having an impact on the public dialogue in New Mexico (while being published nationally). The "New Mexico Conventional Wisdom" has kept the state at the bottom and Santa Fe Democrats in power. To The Point With Mick Rich will be the "Catalyst to Change" the status quo.
Ready for the next mountain, photo by fellow hiker