Food & Resupply on the JMT

“I couldn't change the other thread to view in trailtalk so I just copied it.


“These are the possible food resupply points I have found so far:

Tuolumne Meadows - at 31.3 miles (end of day 3)

Reds Meadows - at 70.1 miles (middle of day 7)

Vermillion Valley Resort - at 99.8 miles (day 10)

Muir Trail Ranch - at 121.6 miles (end of day 12)

If anyone knows of others please list them here.
last edited: 11/28/04 10:57:15 AM”
gforce
10:55:41 AM
11/28/04


“Those are the only ones really, I think Tuolumne is probably too close to the start, and Muir Trail Ranch will charge you way too much. The only other way to resupply is carry stuff in and cache it. I think the best spot would be from Cedar Grove roadend, it is like 17 miles hike to the JMT at Woods Creek, but no passes involved. Onion Valley is probably shorter, but you have to climb a pass.”
okiehiker
1:31:12 PM
11/30/04


“The deal with the resupply thing is having someone take it in to ya- it's a weekend trip for the supplier and a relief for the "suppliee" and a pleasure for both. Onion Valley (Kearsarge Pass) is a great resupply trip- relatively easy to meet at Charlotte Lake like we did for WLD last year. As long as it is on a weekend and I know in advance, I'd be glad to help. Keep me posted.”
trailtrekker
3:01:24 AM
12/01/04


“I am seriously interested in this trip. It makes sense to me to leave food at the store in Tuolumne Meadows, if they allow that, and then do the first push out of the valley with a small load and pick up the rest of the food upon arriving at Tuolumne.”
wannabp
12:31:21 PM
12/01/04


trailtrekker:
“Thanks for the offer! Right now, the schedule would have us in that area on a Tuesday, but we are thinking of bumping the entire schedule up by three days so we would be there on a Saturday. Even better than the food resupply, it would be great to meet anyone that could come out to meet up with us on that weekend.”
gforce
4:12:26 PM
12/01/04


wannabp:
“I'm leaning toward a resupply in Tuolumne myself, it would be great to start off with less weight just to help get your legs under you first . . . and also to help deal with the elevations for us flatlanders.

Really, for the most part, resupply can be done on an individual basis . . . whatever works better for you. We will be staying overnight at 3 of the 4 locations and going very near the fourth.

I'm going to get current info and costs for all the possible resupply points and post it here.”
gforce
4:16:53 PM
12/01/04


“If the store allows and a vehicle were available, it would be a relatively simple matter to drop off one's box of food, then return to the valley and hike back to the food. Ya know, when I read this, I have to admit that backpackers are a strange lot.”
wannabp
8:29:13 PM
12/01/04


“Okay, gforce. Keep me informed- e mail is metabulu@sbcglobal.net. I'm sure I could round up some socalhikers to help out”
trailtrekker
1:02:26 AM
12/02/04


“g- that's an awfully long day you have planned from TI Lake. You may want to leave yourself some extra time in there - if ya have any time for layovers beside Vermillion...”
trailtrekker
1:11:50 AM
12/02/04


“ooops - i meant the next day....”
trailtrekker
1:13:02 AM
12/02/04


“trailtrekker - yes that is a long day, but it's planned that way to allow more time the next day to spend at Devils Postpile, Red Meadows, and the thermal showers (yes!). If it gets to be too much we can stop short and just add the mileage to the next day . . . which is much shorter.

I'll add you to the e-mail list to keep you up to date with what's going on. If something should change and you cannot make it just let me know. It would be great to meet you and anyone else that can make it!”
gforce
1:26:43 PM
12/02/04


“Cool. When the date gets closer we can figure out how to get your food, and any other stuff you may want, to me so that I can resupply you. It would definately have to be a weekend for me to do this, so I hope you can work it out. Bears at Vidette Meadows and Charlotte Lake but I think both have bear boxes. I am sure that Charlotte Lake does, but don't count on it to store alot of stuff- I'm sure you will have bear cannisters, right? Anyway, let me know exact dates as soon as you can so I can leavr that weekend open(they fill up pretty darn quick in the summer!).”
trailtrekker
10:06:01 PM
12/02/04


“http://community.webshots.com/album/87599702VKUhnf
-pics on one of two resupplies we did for WLD last year- these are from Charlotte Lake”
trailtrekker
10:16:14 PM
12/02/04


“trailtrekker - I'm not sure what is going on with webshots, but when I click on the thumbnails the pic does not come up. I'll try again to look at them later. Thanks for the link and I'll definitely keep you in the loop!”
gforce
12:08:45 PM
12/07/04


Re supply At T. Meadow
“You might already know this. but just in case:Tuolumne Meadows store has an amazingly good deal of backpacking supplies and a cheesburger joint. You could also mail a resupply packet to their post office and pick it up when you get there. I have the address somewhere in my stuff and will post it soon. Hope it helps.
HR”
hrez13
9:05:44 PM
1/28/05


“im upgrading from a weak maybe to a medium maybe. as of right now, what are the days planned for re-supply?”
crash bang
8:49:44 PM
2/10/05


“Hrez, do you know if we can just hand the post office or the store our resupply boxes at Tuolumne Meadows then take the shuttle back to the valley? My husband will be with us from Happy Isles to Yosemite and that gets the car where he'll want it. I know we could stash stuff in the bear boxes, but there's not always a lot of room.

And, yeah, that store is a good one. And the "joint" has fantastic vegetarian chili, too. It's not just a burger joint.”
wannabp
8:23:41 PM
2/14/05


“Hi Guys,

Glad you got your permits. You'll love it.
Wannabp, I don't know if they hold items too, but they're very nice people and I won't be surprized if they do.
Resupply address and phone number to Tuolumne p/o:

Your name
C/O General Delivery
Tuolumne Meadows
Yosemite, CA 95389

(209)372-8236”
hrez13
2:04:38 PM
2/17/05


“has anyone considered re-supplying at the stores instead of by maildrop?”
Crash Bang
7:33:37 PM
2/24/05


“Thanks, Hrez. I'll call them when Tioga Road opens.

Crash Bang, I bet the stores don't have much of a selection, but I may be wrong. If anyone knows how to get this thread on the main page, we might learn something from people who have been there.”
wannabp
11:24:28 PM
2/25/05
last edited: 2/27/05 8:52:41 PM”

“Scott, from what I've read the supplies are limited, unless you hike off the trail and into a nearby town . . . and expensive. But, it most likely can be done.”

“ill stick to maildrops then. re-supplying at the stores sounds kinda iffy”

“Wow, thanks, Gary.

Closer to the time, I plan to call Tuolumne and Red's Meadow and see if I can drop off a resupply with them. And if it can include fuel cannisters. If so, I'll drop off a box on the way to the Sierra Rendevous trip in mid-July. I'd be happy to drop stuff for everyone if it can be done. It's also an opportunity to see what they stock.

I'm worried about depending on stores for fuel cannisters. They might be out of what I need the day we're there.”

“actually, resupply in the store at Reds Meadow might make the most sense. From that point you need only two full day's worth of food before reaching V V R. With that being the case, even if the food is more expensive to purchase there, overall cost would not be more when you factor in the handling fee (at least $25 + postage) and food cost to mail it ahead.

We'll be staying at the Devil's PostPile Backcountry campsite the night before, which is 3.4 miles from Reds Meadows. We could get up early and be in Reds Meadow in time to buy breakfast at the Mulehouse Cafe, go buy food at the store and hang out until lunch, eat lunch at the Mulehouse, and then go on to Deer Creek Meadows for the night. Also in there is the hot thermal showers at 1.9 miles from the DP camsite . . . so maybe a late breakfast at Reds Meadow.”

“When we did it (the JMT) we packed up our food before the trip in big garbage bags, with food for one week in each parcel. Then we had friends drive up and deliver the food to us at a roadhead. We hiked to the roadhead, had a store bought meal, bought some socks, washed clothes, and spent the night at the roadhead. One was Onion Valley, one was Devils Postpile, and the other was either N. or S. Lake. Our delivery person did not have to hike in that way,and we got to have a hamburger. But our food supplies were for 12 people, so it was too much for one or two people to carry anyway.”

“That's what I call true trailside service . . . a hamburger along with each resupply. Sounds like you have some really great friends Idaho Bob!”

“Our trip was from T Meadows to Whitney, btw. Bob”

“I've been trying to figure out what size of the bearikade to order. If I do a food resupply at Muir Trail Ranch, it looks like I can squeeze by with the weekender model . . . and save $70 over the custom size. Muir Trail Ranch is only two days worth of food from the V V R. If that's the case, I'd likely just buy supplies there too.

My tentative resupply would be like this:

Tuolomne Meadows - package
Reds Meadows - purchase at store
V V R - purchase at store
Muir Trail Ranch - package
Vidette/Charlotte Lake - package (trailtrekker)”

“If you don't mind camping next to car campers, you could camp right by the thermal showers at the backpackers campsite($15/person)which is about 200 yards away from the store, cafe, phone and lundry. You could also ride a bus($7/person-round trip?) to Mammoth Lakes and re-supply and have real food there. I believe the store at Red's will hold packets for you, but you'll need to hand carry it to them and leave it there.
I'm planning on taking a packet there myself and can take yours too. I'll call them when they open and get back to you on that.”

“That certainly would work for us hrez. We could stay at the backpackers campsite at Reds Meadows instead of Devils PostPile if the others don't mind an 11 mile day to do that. I'll leave it up to the others . . . or we can just leave it as an option and decide on the trail.”

“We didn't bring any food with us, we just tackled people on the trail and took their food, or sneaked into their camps at night and took what we wanted. We were the Pirates of the JMT. It's the only way to go. Hint: it's easier to take food away from weaker older women. Plus they spook real easily.”

“What do you think the snow levles will be like in early June on the JMT? planning on going from north to south”

“I would anticipate lots of snow in early June. The north sides of passes will probably be the heaviest.”

“Does anyone know if it's possible to hand deliver a resupply pack with fuel cannisters to the Tuolumne Meadow store or post office and/or the Reds Meadow store and/or post office? Because fuel cannisters cannot be sent by mail, right?

I'm a little nervous counting on a store to have the fuel cannister I need. They should have it, but I'd pay a high price if they didn't. And I'll be passing by both those places a week before our JMT trip.”

“wbp: we dropped off a cache at both Tuolumne Meadows and Reds Meadows. RM charged $7 to hold it. Our plan to pick up at TM was on a Sunday (the post office is closed!) but someone just happened to have the key to get in. That would have cost us a day. Even though TM was only 2.5 days away, we cached the extra food because we didn't want heavy packs up that first section of the trail (pretty steep). It was nice carrying a light pack for the first few days.

gf: We mailed our 10 day cache to Muir Ranch ($45 + $12 s/h). If you want to go to the store to resupply you have to hike out about 4 mi and take the taxi (boat ride $8 each way) to the store at Florence Lake. A friend hiked in with our fuel canisters since we couldn't mail it. You also lose 1/2 day by going to the store. We skipped VVM, which would have been another 1/2 day to take the boat, but if you want burgers and beer its the place to go.”

“Thanks, SN. I feel the same -- why carry all your food up that steep ascent if you don't have to do it. We're you able to have fuel in your dropped off cache?”

“Hiking from north to south starting June 10. Sounds like a ton of snow up high. I will have crampons and axe, but will this be enough? I anticipate some challenging route finging with the trail covered by snow on the passes but dont some of the PCT thru-hikers hike the JMT around this time of year? I expect it to be snowy but does anyone have any idea how snowy?”

“wbp: yes, we were able to leave fuel with the cache we dropped off.

goblue: Mammoth Mountain is staying open til Jul 4, maybe later. Depends on how much snow is left by then. I can take pictures of the JMT if you want to check the snowboarding section of my webpage ( www.snow-nymph.com ). From Mammoth Mountain you can see from the Silver Divide area to Donohue Pass. I took photos of the Reds Meadow area a few weeks ago.

This is the burn area by Reds Meadow from March 12 ( http://community.webshots.com/photo/296154451/296156183KTXIxO a).

Photo from March 5, of Banner & Ritter and the Thousand Island Lake area ( http://community.webshots.com/photo/289943357/289943750qGHJaB )

Mammoth got 15" new snow Sunday night (Apr 3). I'll get more photos and post weekly.”

“Fantastic, Snow Nymph. Dropping off a cache with fuel at Red Meadow en route to the Kearsarge trip is the way to go. Then dropping one at Tuolumne before we start.

Did you know that Sooz offered to resupply us? Maybe you could join her if you're free. I think the guys would enjoy seeing the west coast TTers.

Goblue, that sounds challenging.”

“I checked the date, and I'm committed that weekend or I would help with the resupply.”

“Snow Nymph: thanks for the photos. There sure is alot of snow but I am wishing for a warm, dry spring. This will be my first thru-hike and the dates really cant be altered.
Please keep me posted as I will be watching the snow reports and stuff via the internet.

Wannabp: yes, it will be challenging. That is what I am looking for. I just hope that it will not be impossible.

I plan to travel light and fast but with the caveat that i will be prepared for cold weather and lots of snow. A little extra insulation and fuel to go with the crampons and axe.

I am aloso planning on rations at TM, RM and either VVR or MR but maybe both. What to you think? I would like to do as may re-rations as possible in order to keep my weight low so that when I am looking for lost trail I am as light as possisible.

do you guys know of anyone that has done this section of the PCT (the JMT) this early in the season?

How about on such a high snow year as this?

Thanks for the help guys.”

“Snow Nymph: thanks for the photos. There sure is alot of snow but I am wishing for a warm, dry spring. This will be my first thru-hike and the dates really cant be altered.
Please keep me posted as I will be watching the snow reports and stuff via the internet.

Wannabp: yes, it will be challenging. That is what I am looking for. I just hope that it will not be impossible.

I plan to travel light and fast but with the caveat that i will be prepared for cold weather and lots of snow. A little extra insulation and fuel to go with the crampons and axe.

I am aloso planning on rations at TM, RM and either VVR or MR but maybe both. What to you think? I would like to do as may re-rations as possible in order to keep my weight low so that when I am looking for lost trail I am as light as possisible.

do you guys know of anyone that has done this section of the PCT (the JMT) this early in the season?

How about on such a high snow year as this?

Thanks for the help guys.”

“Thanks for the offer, Snow. Maybe next time. I want to hike it again with Jerry since he can't get away this year.

Goblue, I don't know many people who have hiked it. [url]http://www.trailjournals.com/journals.cfm [/url] might have something.”

“Goblue:

Red Cones and the Mammoth burn area on 4/9/05:http://community.webshots.com/photo/319852868/319938245LbuaEA


Minarettes, Ritter, Banner, Donohue Pass area on 4/9/05: http://community.webshots.com/photo/319938301/319938301MospkN

I took photos from 395 of the eastern sierra, so you can see what it looks like this week.

There's a lotta snow out there!”

“REI has the Mountain House Pro (single serving) meals on sale right now. I've been using the Enertia meals, but these have more calories and higher protein content.

http://www.rei.com/online/store/Search?vcat=REI_SEARCH&stat=7889&langId=-1&storeId=8000&textQuery=mountain+house+pro&x=0&y=0

REI Outlet has the Backpacker's Pantry meals (2 serving) available at 30%+ off. They are packaging seconds . . . they won't stand up on their own. You have to lean them up against something.

http://www.rei.com/online/store/Search?vcat=OUTLET_SEARCH&stat=8265&langId=-1&storeId=8001&textQuery=backpackers+pantry&x=0&y=0

Right now I'm planning on carrying 21 breakfasts and lunches . . . and 20 dinners. It looks like I'll be buying dinner and breakfast at Tuolomne Meadows . . . lunch at Reds Meadow . . . and 2 dinners, lunch, and breakfast (possibly 2 breakfasts) at V V R. Anyone else given this any thought?”

“Wow, gforce. What kind of pack weight are you looking at starting with?”

“Repackage everything in freezer baggies. Bring only 1-2 foil bags to keep the heat in. You'll save a lot of weight that way. We buy ours thru Mountain House in the big can. SD eats ~1-1/2 servings, I eat a little less than a single serving. You can add seasonings too, for more flavor.”

“Snow Nymph - thanks for the tip on repackaging. I was wondering if that would work with freeze dried meals. Do you just add your boiling water to the freezer bags? If so, are the 1 qt. bags big enough?

That's total number of meals Hubcap. We'll have at least three resupply points along the way.”

“"Do you just add your boiling water to the freezer bags? If so, are the 1 qt. bags big enough?"

Yeah, and I've used enough of them to think that it's better to use brands like Ziploc or Glad than others. Then put the freezer bag in the foil bag or other 'oven' to retain the heat.

The 1 qt. size works well. It'll handle a one to two person supper entree.

Have fun!”

“This sounds like a gret trip you have planned!”

“maybe you should join us on this trip to show us how it's done . . . :)”

“Ya know, I had even gotten to the meal planning part. You wanna offer me employment for after the hike? :)”

“Devil's Postpile is about 2 miles before Reds Meadow on a 7.7 mile, primarily downhill day. We might prefer to forge ahead and stay at the campground there, if that is even possible. Then we could have dinner and breakfast there and maybe even get to shower before going to bed that night.

Otherwise, it looks the same for me as far as buying meals.

As for having given it any thought......... well, not before now. And Cow Patty was planning meals before getting time off. I'm impressed. Darn, CP, wish you could come. What kind of job are you looking for after the hike? We could all use a masseuse after..........

I will most likely bring Luna bars and coffee for breakfast, cheese and nuts for lunch, and cous cous, dried beans, potatoes O'Brien, and dehydrated soups for dinner. Maybe a backpacking dinner occasionally, but I don't really like any of them compared to my staples doctored up with some dried vegies and cheese.

I think our appetites are going to increase dramatically after the first week. That's hard to plan for without really knowing, but I think we will burn off any reserves and the appetite depressant effects of altitude will be overcome pretty quickly once we've been hiking all day every day. Anyone have any experience with that?”

“I'd be up for pushing on to Reds Meadow for the night and the real food if that's what everyone wants to do.

I really don't care for the backpacking meals much either. On a trip like this they will help cut down on the fuel consumption when you just boil water.

The first two weeks on the Long Trail I lost over 10 lbs. . . . too much for two weeks. When you lose that much that quickly you, generally speaking, are experiencing muscle loss. I am watching my nutritional values much more closely for this trip . . . especially in the protein department. I'm also going to plan to increase the amount of food/calories a little for after about 10 days.

cow patty - you just need to let them know who the "real" boss is at work . . . ;)”

“Gary, I just boil water for my staples -- cous cous with almonds and dried apricots or with dried corn and cheese and onions, dried beans and corn with dried tomatoes and onions with cheese and tortilla, dried soup with cous cous or beans or jerky added -- that kind of stuff. Maybe I'll be tired of it after 3 consecutive weeks, but I'm not yet tired of it after years of eating it on most bping trips. Other advantages of making my own meals are that it's a whole lot cheaper and I can increase portions as I go.

Let's see what Ed thinks of pressing on. I think it might be worth it for the chance to do the store/shower/resupply without worrying about it eating into the middle of a travel day. We could even take along a deli sandwich for lunch that day.

As for protein, I like protein bars and they're generally 10 grams apiece. I could eat mixed nuts all day every day, and they're full of calories and protein. Jerky is good, too, although it is only protein with no other calories.”

“Cow Patty, a little bird (or was it a cow) told me that the reason you can't get time off is because you're invaluable and they can't do without you. Couldn't that be used to your advantage?”

“G-force, you are going to carry 20 days of food.

Correct me if I am wrong, but don't we have the option of resupply at:

Tuolumne- Day 4
Reds Meadow- Day 9
VVR-Day 11 & 12
Trailtreker-Day 19

The most you have to carry is 6 days of food.

Yeah, technical difficulties.
last edited: 5/12/05 11:55:05 AM”

“Looks like some technical difficulties. : )”

“I'm going to carry 20 days worth of food . . . just not all at once . . . :) Those numbers were meant for the total of breakfasts, lunches, and dinners to get ready for the entire trip.

wb - I haven't experimented with cous cous very much. It is very compact. I'll be looking forward to see how you flavor it on the trail. What kind of cheese will you be taking? Are you planning on sending it ahead in the resupply boxes or purchase it as we go?”

“Hey, Pros, technical difficulties or Gary's comment left you speechless?”

“The good thing about JMT is that you'll haave regular food about once every 3 days. On my other JMT trips, I used at least 5000( not a typo) calories a day and lost about 15 pounds. If you're planning on taking freeze dried food, don't forget to take some kind of high calory stuff (i.e. olive oil/clarified butter...) to add to them. They don't have a lot of usable calories. Oh and don't forget to send yourself a "fun" food in your resupply. Canned fruit, coke, saussage... whatever that will make you look forward to reach the place.”

“Gforce, good luck on the JMT. I am sure you will earn your name again. Also, thanks for showing me the film canister line while we were in HSF. It came in handy last weekend in Red River Gorge and even more so on the way home to tie up my tailpipe which cracked in nowhere Indiana.

Brian”

“hrez - are there places that you know of to get regular food after Edison Lake? Are you still looking to meet up with us around Reds Meadow?

BFB - well, that's a use for the line I hadn't thought of . . . and one I hope not to use! Sorry to hear about that, but I'm glad it worked for you. I'm trying to find the time to get a trip together up in MI . . . send me your email address . . . grach96 at hotmail dot com”

“No there's no other spot after Vermilion to get prepared food. My bad. But you could ask and see if youre friend would bring cooked and fresh food in your resupply at Viddett.
And yes I'm still hoping to meet you guys at Vermilion.”