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The John Muir Trail: Through the Californian Sierra Nevada (Cicerone Guide) Vinyl Bound – 2003

by Alan Castle (Author)

17 customer reviews

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The John Muir Trail (JMT) is one of the world's most spectacular treks and is North America's best known mid-distance walking trail. It runs for 216 miles through the high Sierra Nevada mountains of California, from Yosemite Valley to the summit of Mount Whitney (14,496 ft), the highest peak in the USA outside Alaska. The walking trail, which is named after the great 19th century Scottish naturalist, conservationist and writer John Muir, is entirely through the unspoiled wilderness of the American West and passes through three National Parks, Yosemite, Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Parks. A land of dramatic towering peaks, tranquil mountain lakes, cascading rivers and ancient forests.Despite the fact that the JMT negotiates several mountain passes over 10,000 ft in altitude the trail is well graded and is well within the capabilities of the average hill walker, requiring no scrambling ability. The trail guide divides the route into 21 daily stages, each finishing at a good camping area. The optional detour to climb Half Dome, the jewel in Yosemite's crown, is included.

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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Alan Castle has trekked and cycled in over 30 countries and five continents and for many years led organized walking holidays in Europe. He has written more than a dozen guidebooks for Cicerone, several on long-distance mountain routes in France and has been exploring the French Massif Central for over 20 years.

Product details

Vinyl Bound: 256 pages
Publisher: Cicerone Press Limited; 1 edition (2003)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 9781852843960
ISBN-13: 978-1852843960
ASIN: 1852843969
Product Dimensions: 4.7 x 0.6 x 6.9 inches
Shipping Weight: 10.6 ounces
Average Customer Review: 17 customer reviews
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,664,812 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #2401 in Books > Travel > United States > West > Mountain
- #3813 in Books > Travel > United States > West > Pacific
- #4569 in Books > Sports & Outdoors > Hiking & Camping > Excursion Guides

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3.9 out of 5 stars

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David Ciaffardini

Great book for planning a JMT thru-hike. Don't neglect it!

July 12, 2010

Format: Vinyl BoundVerified Purchase

I own all the available guides to hiking the JMT that are mentioned by reviewers of this book and, as someone who used this book, along with the Tom Harrison map pack, to plan a JMT solo thru-hike that I successfully completed, I can, without reservations, recommend this book. Keep in mind that it is aimed at those who are planning a north-to-south thru-hike (though it can be "reverse engineered" for going the other direction.) I can say from experience that this book, along with the above-mentioned map pack, is all you need to plan and guide your trip.

The strength of this book is how it breaks the trip down into reasonable segments, aimed at a 21-day itinerary, and provides very helpful diagrams detailing what kind of elevations and ascents and descents you will encounter on each segment, along with nice summaries of other things to expect along each segment. I didn't follow the 21-day itinerary exactly--my trip lasting 25 days--but the itinerary was a great foundation that I tweaked as my trip progressed.

(By the way, if you are planning a thru-hike, try to give yourself as many days as possible and be aware that I found that nearly every thru-hiker I encountered on my trip, no matter what their experience or stamina, seemed to have underestimated the strenuousness of this hike, and had "over-booked" the number of miles they could comfortably complete each day.) There is so much AWESOME beauty on this trail that every extra moment you can find to relax and savor the experience is like gold!

I didn't bring the entire book on my trip (save weight wherever you can!), but with the pages I brought, I found I had "an edge" of helpful, concise information (not just bare facts and figures) of what to expect in the miles ahead, that others I met on the trail did not but who appreciated it when I shared it with them.

I truly feel that anyone doing a JMT thru-hike, especially for the first time, will benefit from aspects of this book that you won't find in the others.

9 people found this helpful

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Highly Recommend for Non-US hikers of JMT

October 11, 2011

Format: Vinyl BoundVerified Purchase

I really appreciated this book, as I'm planning a JMT hike from outside the USA. The author, Alan Castle, appreciates the difficulties of organizing and setting up the supports such as buying and sending food resupply packs, when you have limited time between arrival in the country and starting the hike. There are lots of little pointers which only someone who is not from the USA would think to mention! (eg, don't tell the customs official that you are carrying a "torch"! - call it a "flashlight".) He also gives helpful information about public transport, getting to and from the trail, escape routes etc although I must say the information in this regard is not exhaustive. The information he gives regarding his preferred access route to the start of the trail (San Francisco, Merced) is very detailed and practical and incredibly helpful. He even tells you where to find a supermarket in Merced and which postal service to use, where to buy the correct packaging etc and explains the postal system in USA to outsiders. I LOVED this!!! Really I felt that the author was a very experienced, caring guide who felt that he was leading the walk via this book, and he could not provide to the same level of detailed information for a variety of routes/methods - just for his chosen one - which is fair enough! The book is intended to be carried on the hike, and is compact and has lots of helpful information and terrific appendices, and a waterproof plastic cover. There is also a good margin at the edge of each page where you can write in your own notes or supplemental/updated information.

The 21 day schedule this fit, experienced hiking guide sets for his charges is too much of a cracking pace for me, so I will not be able to use his suggested segments and camp sites, but you can't suit everyone! In conjunction with other JMT guidebooks eg the Wenk and Morey guide, which is excellent!) it is helping to round out my knowledge nicely. Well, I hope so anyhow!! (Time will tell). I was also entertained by some of the author's peculiarities. For instance, relating the story of a little girl attacked by hornets, he commented that it was a "most unpleasant sight". Also, there were European geographical terms such as "dale" and "corrie" (?) I have no idea what these are, but it was nice to stumble over them! I giggled at the frequent reminders about the absence of hotels, cafes and restaurants along the trail, which he evidently felt was something that would astonish European hikers. And I did not count but the frequent mention of the need to carry ten days' supply of food for the final section was somehow touching ! The book has been updated since its original printing in 2004 but the updates are inserted as separate notes into the text at the end of sections rather than the original text being changed. But this is not a major inconvenience; they are only small notes. Generally, Alan Castle has tried to keep the book confined to useful information very specific to the JMT, which is a great thing as so many books include generic hiking information about equipment etc. This author assumes that you can find that information elsewhere, and that you will not need to carry it with you on the trail. Too true!

I must mention the colour photos - they are wonderful!

One person found this helpful

Comment

My favorite JMT guide

January 29, 2014

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

I have 3 JMT guidebooks and this one is my favorite. It is well organized and complete. I love the brief summary at the beginning of each day followed by the more detailed descriptions. There is some flora and fauna described but not to the point of total distraction that I prefer not to have when planning my trip. Also, great little maps, elevation chart and mileage chart at the beginning of each chapter. I highly recommend this book for planning a thru hike on the JMT. The guide is also very helpful for someone coming from a country other than the U.S. There are helpful hints on travel plans and etc. They did apply to me, but it seems like that would be helpful if you were not starting from the U.S.

One person found this helpful

Comment

Great for planning a JMT trip

February 6, 2006

Format: Vinyl BoundVerified Purchase

I purchased this book last summer as part of a planning effort for hiking the trail in September. Even though I was quite familiar with the Sierra, I had no idea on how to plan the trip out as far as legs and campsites. I found this book to be invaluable as far as proposing a reasonable itinerary and giving the person a good idea of what to expect on each leg and where to find campsites. Castle first gives an overview of what should be done before the trip, and then breaks it out into a very doable 21-day itinerary (with 2 layover days) that range from 10-15 miles per day. He gives you a quick-hit overview of elevation gains and mileage and then a more detailed description of the day's hike. Also, he does a good job of planning the days so that you start with a climb and end with a descent. The one unfortunate is that the book is a bit heavy, though compact in size to actually carry with you -- the person I hiked with did carry it though and we enjoyed reading it along the trail as well as at night. I suppose one might xerox the pages you found necessary. By the way, I also had the Winnett book and found that far less helpful, and less organized as far as actually planning the trip. This is an awesome trip, and I strongly recommend both the book as well as doing the JMT -- it is a life-changing experience!

45 people found this helpful

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