Wow, I wish I knew this thread existed earlier...Aaron, I only started from the Portal because I was trying to beat both records without there being any debate. In my opinion the unsupported record should coincide with the JMT and thus start from Whitney. The number is 82 and not 86! Having something called the "Supported JMT Record" be defined to start at the Portal is also fine. I had no intention of redefining the unsupported record route!

Regarding the northern terminus...I never actually really thought about this. I guess I saw Michael's picture at the sign and assumed that was it. Hehehe...oops.

Also, I did not take the northern route across the highway in Tuolumne. At the time I thought the southern route was the original JMT route, but I misinterpreted a post regarding the issue. It sounds like the length/time difference for the two routes is pretty small.

I stayed on the JMT near the end and did not take the Mist Trail. I know there's a considerable length difference between these two routes but I don't know what sort of time difference that creates.

"On my way, I met one of the BPL bloggers named "BJ" or "BG". He put two-and-two together and figured out who I was."

I have no idea who that could be. :-)

That was mid-day on August 2. I was only walking up the Whitney Trail for a mile or two with a friend to stretch my legs, since I was going up and down Whitney on August 3.

I'm glad we all made it out uninjured.

--B.G.--

First off... my hat is off to all who do complete the JMT unsupported and unresupplied. It was not to be for me.

Pushed out early from Happy Isles (permit for Aug 5th, left at 12am EDT on August 5th... too bad it was only 9pm PDT on August 4th in Yosemite). Hiked for 24 hours and only got down the trail 38 miles. Tuolumne Meadows in 12 hours, Donahue Pass by 23 hours (2 hour break in Lyell Canyon to cool off), and about another 2 miles into the Ansel Adams Wilderness before the 24 hour mark. Too slow for any record, but then I was only racing myself.

Day 2 I broke the unresupplied rule by grabbing a Gatorade,a Haagen Dazs bar, and some jerky at the Reds Meadow Store. "Ho-to-hey" had some extra ham and cheese to offer, so I scarfed on that, too. Oh well. Pushed down the trail for a few more miles in the dark. Total 28 miles.

Met up with a kindred spirit on Day 3, Kevin from San Diego. We informally hiked together the rest of the day, then pushed over Silver Pass and Bear Ridge for around 30 more miles.

We stuck together for the rest of the trip, Kevin became "Frodo" due to his preoccupation with Lord of the Rings. Thanks to my visually loud gaiters, I became "Disco". Everywhere I went, folks proclaimed "I like your gaiters" [especially the women :)]. Day 4 we made the decision to cut the mileage to 25 per day. We camped that night at the Piute Creek crossing at the northern entrance to Kings Canyon National Park. 100 miles to go.



Times to remember: Swim in Evolution Lake... found a $20 bill. Night hike over Glen Pass... Venus, sunglow, silhouettes, and the meteor showers. Foot soak at Crabtree. 3 hours sleep at Guitar Lake. After a total of 8 days, 8 hours, and 19 minutes, I stood atop Mt. Whitney at 5:19am (PDT) to await the sunrise.



Am I fast? Did I do it alone? Heck, no. But it was a good test of endurance and mental fortitude.

I learned a lot about myself and the cost and benefits of traveling ultralight. The tortoise finished the race.

For those of you with aspirations of setting records, best of luck to you. I found out I was much slower than anticipated. A thorough multi-day check is necessary to get the real feel for how much mileage you really are capable of over a period of time. I did two "day" outings: 39 miles up Whitney via Mountaineers Route, then out south over Cottonwood Pass to Horseshoe Meadow... 20 hours, and a 31-mile loop hike out of Mineral King, over Sawtooth Pass, across the backcountry with a return over Franklin Pass... 13 hours. Good workups both, but neither of these prepared me for the multi-day fatigue.

Take care, and always remember we are guests when traveling in the wilderness.

Oh, and for the record, timing started at Happy Isles ROAD. The sign with all the mileage was 4 minutes into the hike, after getting all my gear together. I finished the John Muir Trail at the SOUTHERN END of the John Muir Trail, atop Mt Whitney. If you really need to know the time to Whitney Portal, it was...?

Edited by ken_muller on 08/27/2010 03:59:23 MDT.

Awesome trek. I am glad you reached your goals. Eight days is not too shaby, my friend. After some training and much consideration, I have checked my aspirations for a five day JMT to a more realistic seven to eight days. If I happen to be ahead in strength and time then, I will push on; but, I will not jeopardize enjoying beauty and maintaining safety. I know what you mean when you say the single day hikes will not prepare the hiker for a multi-day bonanza. Nevertheless, I have some ideas I want to explore. You did not mention blisters or other medicals issues. Did you have a trouble-free run?

Thanks for the report!
Happy Trails.
JD

Blisters were a factor as was my knee problem. I further injured my knee after the hike in the Rio Del Lago 100 miler this September. I am working with a podiatrist to see about getting orthotics / inserts. This will help the knee and I hope help the blister issue. My right foot overpronates and the shear on the bottom of my foot generates a "30-mile" blister, so from 30 miles on through 211 miles, I used a 2nd Skin dressing to ease the irritation.

Both blisters and the knee slowed me a bit. Resolve was much more important though. Perhaps I could have kept up 30+ mile days without the problems, not sure. No other medical issues, knock on wood.

Keep us informed on your ideas that you are exploring... and best of luck.

Ken

I am at the point where I know I can not break the JMT Record. Next year I am going to try to get the Unsupported TRT record again and try to get it down below 60 hours.
I will go for this record 2 or 3 times if necessary. Would love to get it below 55 hours for a 3 mph average, but that is a demanding pace...

I am also planning on doing the Deca Ironman in Mexico next Nov.
They stopped doing the Deca in 2006 or 2007. I was planning on doing it in 2008, but they have been doing 10 back to back days, with an Ironman distance each of the ten days. Not my cup of tea.

The Deca that's back now is a true Deca distance, Swim 24 miles, Bike 1120 miles and Run 262 miles.

The Record for the Deca is 8 days and 8 Minutes. Daddy wants this!

You think this is crazy, they are also doing a Double Deca with a 28 day cutoff time.

Edited by awsorensen on 10/31/2010 21:24:39 MDT.

Go, Aaron !!! Yeah!

The Deca sounds like an awesome event. Best o'luck !

Does anyone know the youngest person to solo hike the jmt supported or unsupported? Very curious to know.

Ben