John Muir Trail Journal Day3

I did 211 mile (340 km) John Muir Trail thru-hike in July, 2014, by myself.

JMT hike is memorable and life-time accomplishment.
Every night during JMT, I wrote journal. I will share them.

 

Day3 Tuolumne Meadow-Dnohue Pass-Marie Lakes

Leaving crowded Yosemite, I have entered the Eastern Sierra.

The Eastern Sierra is always cool, strict, but attractive to me. 

Grey mountains, dry land, they talk to my heart, my conscience, places that I didn't even know existed, or somewhere deep inside of my body.

Donohue Pass

To finish JMT, I need to pass at least 10 peaks. Farther south, the peaks are higher. The most southern one is Mt.Whitney, the second tallest one, called Forester Pass, is to the north of Mt.Whitney.

Donohue Pass was the first peak on this JMT trip. It's just south of Yosemite, and it's the entrance for the Eastern Sierra. By the time I reached the summit, there were absolutely no general hikers, only JMT backpackers. Donohue Pass was just around 10,000 feet high, but it was hard. I was surprised that 5 or 6 hikers passed me. They were so fast. 

One thing I forgot to bring was a raincover for my backpack. Around 5 p.m., it started raining, so I had to stop hiking. I stopped under rocks to avoid getting wet. I got a little upset because my schedule was further behind if I could not hike more.

Luckily the rain got weaker, I hiked a few miles more and pitched a tent. 

I have realized I am an immature backpacker because I forgot an important gear and I easily got upset. 

Anyway, I am glad finally I entered the Eastern Sierra region.