John Muir Trail

The John Muir Trail (JMT) is the classic long-distance hike across California’s Sierra Nevada, running from Happy Isles in Yosemite Valley to the summit of Mount Whitney. The thru-hike is commonly done in the southbound direction, ending with the Whitney summit and then descending via Whitney Portal.

This route traces the high backbone of the Sierra Nevada through major protected areas including Yosemite National Park, Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Parks, and Ansel Adams Wilderness, with a big wilderness share along the way.

At the mapped scale used here, the route distance is about 351.4 km (≈351 km / 218 mi). The JMT’s overall profile is built around substantial sustained climbing and repeated high passes, with the trail staying largely at or above 8,000 ft for most of its length.

A major logistical reality is that it’s a permit-driven thru-hike: it uses a competitive permitting process, and trail planning has to match your start trailhead and finish timing along the corridor.

The most common overlap is with the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT): for roughly 160 miles of the JMT, hikers follow the same corridor as the PCT before splitting again.

Season planning matters because the route crosses high-elevation terrain where snowmelt and icy conditions can persist early in the year, and stream levels can be a major factor during snowmelt periods.

Hikers typically plan a multi-week itinerary (often around 2–3 weeks) to manage distance plus several “zero” or rest days for pacing, acclimatization, and resupply timing across the route corridor.

More information: Booking, Wikipedia, How to Thru-Hike the John Muir Trail: A Beginner's Guide