11 things you need to know before thru-hiking the John Muir Trail (JMT) in California

Here are my tips for thru-hiking the John Muir Trail! I hiked the trail from August 5 to August 20, 2023. Obviously conditions will vary by month and season; these tips are based on my experience at the time that I hiked. Check out my JMT playlist:    • John Muir Trail  . Send virtual trail magic: PayPal: https://paypal.me/audipayne?country.x... Buy Me A Coffee: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/audipayne Venmo: venmo.com/audipayne Follow my adventures: Subscribe to my channel:    / audreyadventures   Follow me on Instagram: Instagram.com/audipayne Follow me on TikTok: TikTok.com/@audipayne Visit my website: Audrey-Adventures.com Join my email list: http://eepurl.com/g-yJ35 My backpacking gear list: Backpack: Gossamer Gear Mariposa (https://bit.ly/3uwYyLg) Sleeping bag: Western Mountaineering Ultralite 20 F Down (https://bit.ly/2XtIjkk) Sleeping bag liner: Sea to Summit sleeping bag liner (https://amzn.to/2OsJ1WX) Tent: Zpacks plexamid (https://zpacks.com/products/plexamid-...) Sleeping pad: Nemo Tensor (https://bit.ly/3mllIPz) Emergency GPS device: Garmin inReach mini (https://bit.ly/3sIH1gp) Bear can: Bearikade weekender (https://wild-ideas.net/weekender/) Rain jacket: Marmot PreCip (https://bit.ly/3BYy9qM) Rain pants: Zpacks vertice (https://zpacks.com/products/womens-ve...) Stove: MSR Pocket Rocket (https://amzn.to/32jbIxz) Cookware. Titanium pot (https://amzn.to/3j8r0v2), cup (https://amzn.to/3jaKK0S), and long-handled spork (https://amzn.to/38YR2wd) Water filter: Sawyer Squeeze (https://amzn.to/32l1EUC) and Evernew water carry system (https://amzn.to/3fxNlA5) Bear bag: Ursack Major XL bear sack (https://bit.ly/3bi6aa0) Dry bags: Zpacks (https://zpacks.com/products/medium-pl...) Hiking boots: Oboz Sawtooth Lows (https://amzn.to/38ZkKRC) Trowel: Tentlab Deuce of Spades (https://amzn.to/2Wo74dH) Kula cloth (pee cloth) (https://bit.ly/2ZqrbMQ) Portable phone battery charger: Anker (https://amzn.to/3jeZqwn) Trekking poles: Black Diamonds (https://amzn.to/3ezC0OD) Headlamp: Black Diamond Astro (https://amzn.to/32odEVl Socks: Darn Toughs (https://amzn.to/390oZMD) Underwear: Ex Officios (https://amzn.to/3etg8UR) Puffy coat: Patagonia Micro Puff (https://bit.ly/3Gsnkjm) Camp shoes: Teva Women’s Original Universal Sandals (https://amzn.to/3CKqvkL) Other: Clothes (quick drying/ layers!), pillow (https://amzn.to/2ZxW5AE), sunglasses, hand sanitizer, bug spray, sun hat, sunscreen, personal hygiene items, small sponge, knife, trail map, gloves, hat, etc. *This post contains affiliate links. If you purchase something using these links, I may receive a small commission. This is at no additional cost to you.