View Full Version : Mail drops, am I reading this right?
wornoutboots
07-28-2013, 21:49
I'm heading Sobo so it looks like my first drop will be sent to Reds Meadow at MM 58.7 the 2nd to Vermilion Valley Resort off of Edison Lake at mm 87.6 ( can I walk into there or do I have to take the ferry?) & the final drop sent to Muir Ranch between mm 107 & 108. Any insight would be great! Thanks
Mountain Mike
07-28-2013, 22:00
You can find enough food to buy at the store at Red's meadow to get to Vermillion if you want to avoid a mail drop. No, you don't have to take the ferry, there is a tril you can walk to it. I walked in & enjoyed the ferry ride back the next morning. Didn't use Muir Trail ranch since I dropped into Seqoia to meet a friend. I was on PCT but the two intersect several times. Enjoy your hike. It's awesome country!
DaFireMedic
07-28-2013, 23:55
I used Tuolomne (enabled me to keep a very light starting pack weight), then rode the bus into Mammoth for 2 rest days and bought resupply there (sending in to Red's is fine too), and finally MTR.
I would recommend against using both Vermillion and MTR, they are too close together (2 days apart for us) and there is not enough to be gained by using both IMO. I loved Vermillion, possibly the most enjoyable rest days I've had anywhere, but MTR is the better resupply option being 2 days farther down the trail. I don't believe the ferry is running this year to Vermillion. We walked in last year, just under 7 miles off the trail and well worth the effort.
Some of this has been mentioned....
1) pack light to get to TM. Get enough food to get to reds from store.
2)Go to reds, eat a meal and get enough food at the store to get you to MTR. You can also mail a package to reds but the store is well supplied with typical hiker food.
3) I have done both VVR and MTR. I would reco MTR over VVR because it is further south and much easier to get to. Absolutely no reason to do both, they are a day apart and you will blow half a day getting to VVR.
wornoutboots
07-31-2013, 21:53
Thanks everyone!!
I undertsand, when you're accustomed to the ease and frequency of AT or LT resupplying at first resupplying on the JMT can seem complex and even daunting. Just eep in mind this isn't the AT!
Different JMTers resupply differently. In three JMT thrus, a PCT thru(much of the JMT is the PCT), and SHR thru(some of the SHR is the JMT) as well as several other 2 wk or more Sierra hikes in the JMT area I NEVER have hiked within a rushed time frame. It's just too scenic for me to allow myself to have a rushed hike in the Sierras. It's also my idea that I want to experience as much as I can that is near the trail I'm hiking. I'm saying all that so you take my strategies in context when comparing to your hiking style. Hiking in the Sierras has NEVER been about saying I've done a trail there. HYOH, but that's my JMT hiking philosophy.
I approach my food wt hauls like water wt hauls! I resupply more often allowing less food wt hauled between resupplies. For me, it potentially factors into more comfortable greater MPD averages, experiencing the amenities and interesting in town things to do as well as the near the JMT sights to a greater degree, and, when thrown into the mix effectively, allows for more ooh ahh lets stop and take a looksie time which I think is especially important on one of the most scenic hikes in the U.S. Going into and out of resupply pts more often has the advantage ON THE JMT of experiencing additional jaw dropping FABULOUS SCENERY. However, its' not always so easy as say compared to the AT.
I like minimizing my haul up from Happy Isles by doing a small resupply at Tuolomne Meadows which is basically on the JMT for the same reason as DaFireMedic and Malto gave. It also allows for less wt hauled overall if I decide to also do Half Dome and/or Clouds Rest(recommend it!) along the way which if you haven't done I would recommend you take in. TM is a convenient place to resupply(SMALL cafe here to supplement with a sandwich, b-fast etc too, USPO also) and it's quite easy, even with my picky eating habits, to purchase food there for about up to 5-6 days. But I never take that much from there because I usually head into Red Meadow to either supplement food or take the bus into Mammoth Lakes(it helps when you have friends who reside there and have a place to stay). I especially like stopping in this area to enjoy the HOT free showers not far from RM. Unless RM general store has changed I find this resupply option to be marginal and consisting of too many canned heavy foods. It's more geared, at least IMHO, last time I was there, towards campground car camping or day hike type foods. I've always found it to be more of a miss trying to purchase several days resupply at RM. RM has a restaurant/cafe, showers, and laundry on site though and does hold boxes. Despite all of us wanting to be in optimal acclimitized hiking shape when hitting a starting TH that just isn't the situation all the time. So, breaking up the hauls here in the beginning of a 300 mile thru can also help somone not accustomed to the elev or not already in prime hiking shape to more readily ease into their JMT thru-hike. Again, the scenery is usually a BIG TIME reward in the Sierras with every additional mile you do!
VVR - first thing that must be said is that this is the Sierras, take into acct resupply pts are typically in remote places or require a hike out and back in, VVR is a WONDERFUL stop in my mind! I've been there at least half a dozen times. Great freshly prepared HUGE meals, hiker barrel, holds boxes, and you can resupply by buying. One night(first night, no minimum required length of stay) is FREE for JMTers and PCTers. I would be astonished if the ferry service has stopped. I find that HIGHLY unlikely! Yes, you can walk around the lake but it takes longer than people think it will(usually about 1 1/2 hrs) and I've experienced it being muddy and a bit overgrown at times My rec - take the ferry! The boat ride is scenic, is reasonably priced, and gets you to VVR doorstep and back to the JMT in a fraction of the time. Personally, I don't think there is anymore walking involved getting to VVR and back to the JMT when you take the ferry intp/out of VVR than going to MTR. I like the boat(pontoon boat) ride just to get off my feet and watch the Ospreys or possibly Bald Eagles. I find being in or on the water a rather refreshing change of pace on a hike that enriches my hiking experiences compared to just always looking at all the lakes, tarns, streams, and rivers. HYOH. There are other ways to get into out of VVR than this though. If you want to further explore those options I would be glad to help. At least two of those alternative options make a lot of logistical sense to me.
MTR - you can avoid VVR and do MTR by mailing a box. This is not a buy resupply option. MTR is closer to the JMT but it's still not on the JMT. By avoiding VVR you can make it POSSIBLY less logistically complicated to make this your final resupply pt. Personally, I like VVR and then going out over Kearsarge Pass to do my last resupply but it depends on how you organize your JMT thru-hike. When I'm really chugging out the bigger JMT MPDs and staying just on the JMT I can make VVR my last resupply and eliminate Kearsarge Pass. Another option is to avoid VVR and mail a box to the USPO at Mono Springs which would require a scenic off the JMT blue blaze and a hot walk/hitch down a dead end paved road(it dead ends at VVR).
Let's not forget it cost $20 to send a drop to VVR and $55 to send a drop (5 gallon bucket) to MTR. You can also miss a few miles of JMT and hike directly to and from VVR using the Goodale Pass Trail and the Bear Creek/Ridge Trail. (go away purist, it's all the Sierra, you won't be missing nothing!)
http://www.edisonlake.com/hikers/resupply
http://muirtrailranch.com/resupply.html
wornoutboots
08-04-2013, 10:49
Thanks Again!! Looks like I'll just send a bucket to MTR & buy everything else along the way. I plan on doing Halfdome & possibly Cloudsrest + hitting any other 2 mileish side trail to other isolated lake or sites to possibly camp at or xplore, so I plan on always carrying an extra 2 meals & some PB to allow me to never rush.
Let's not forget it cost $20 to send a drop to VVR and $55 to send a drop (5 gallon bucket) to MTR. You can also miss a few miles of JMT and hike directly to and from VVR using the Goodale Pass Trail and the Bear Creek/Ridge Trail. (go away purist, it's all the Sierra, you won't be missing nothing!)
http://www.edisonlake.com/hikers/resupply
http://muirtrailranch.com/resupply.html
its a whole different experience, sly. Everyone should do the bear ridge switchbacks at least once, it cures purism.
its a whole different experience, sly. Everyone should do the bear ridge switchbacks at least once, it cures purism.
LOL... yeah right. I did them northbound. Probably still be there going south. The "blue blazes" are a good alternative if the ferry isn't running. (or you're on a budget)
LOL... yeah right. I did them northbound. Probably still be there going south. The "blue blazes" are a good alternative if the ferry isn't running. (or you're on a budget)
I sorta did it NoBo also, sorta because they were all covered in snow and I went straight down the side of the ridge. Finally hit the last switchback before the creek. If I were to do it over I would have taken the direct route to VVR. But I was still a purist PCT hiker and I paid for it when I had to do the long walk around the lake. I sat on the dock eating the last crumb of my food, the ferry wasn't making regular runs.
But I was still a purist PCT hiker .....
Once you cure yourself of purism, there are several decent alternatives mentioned in the Wilderness Press guidebooks. I hope you didn't miss tunnel falls or the Crater Lake rim trail.
Maybe everyone needs to hike the CDT first to understand one of the concepts of HYOH.
I hope you didn't miss tunnel falls or the Crater Lake rim trail.
Not a chance I missed either. Both were highlights of the trip. Can't imagine why the actual PCT doesn't go on both routes, other than maybe the restrictions to horses. Good news is that they both have become defacto PCT.
Not a chance I missed either. Both were highlights of the trip. Can't imagine why the actual PCT doesn't go on both routes, other than maybe the restrictions to horses. Good news is that they both have become defacto PCT.
Yes, because the PCT is also a horse trail is the reason. It would be a trick getting a horse through tunnel falls and erosion too destructive on the rim trail.
As you probably well know there's at least one small section in southern CA that's designated hiker or horse. The hiker detour bypasses a fairly nice campground that looks like it's used by horse packers later than the thru-hiker season. That one got my goat.
wornoutboots
08-07-2013, 10:42
I'm thinking of after hitting Halfdome the 2nd day heading to Cloudsrest. Is there anywhere to camp near the base?