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Folks, this is my 5th year in the lottery (thru lots of changes) looking for the golden ticket for SOBO out of Happy Isles. I¡¯ll concede that every year I¡¯ve applied for probably the most popular 8-10 week stretch of the year. But I also have had a lot of scheduling flexibility so have applied for start dates over that entire period, every year for now the 5th year (and will still be applying for late July and August) start dates. Is my experience unusual? Am I particularly unlucky? Could I be doing something wrong? Now 5 years ago I was fortunate enough to do a Horseshoe Meadows to Whitney stretch which only strengthened my desire to do the JMT. And I¡¯ve also been fortunate enough to secure a NOBO permit this year after hearing - thanks to this group - that they are also now difficult to get. But I really would like that SOBO¡¯er. Any suggestions or words of encouragement?
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Stephen,
I have been rejected in the lottery for the part 3 years despite applying for any day from July-August. The only way I got a golden ticket one year was through a cancellation. I think your experience is typical, as we usually only hear about the ones who won on Facebook not the ones who lost, and those are many.
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---------- Original Message ---------- From: "Stephen Coakley via groups.io" <stephen.coakley@...> To: [email protected]Subject: [JMT-groups.io] Lottery frustrations Date: Tue, 8 Feb 2022 08:42:16 -0500 Folks, this is my 5th year in the lottery (thru lots of changes) looking for the golden ticket for SOBO out of Happy Isles. I¡¯ll concede that every year I¡¯ve applied for probably the most popular 8-10 week stretch of the year. But I also have had a lot of scheduling flexibility so have applied for start dates over that entire period, every year for now the 5th year (and will still be applying for late July and August) start dates. Is my experience unusual? Am I particularly unlucky? Could I be doing something wrong? Now 5 years ago I was fortunate enough to do a Horseshoe Meadows to Whitney stretch which only strengthened my desire to do the JMT. And I¡¯ve also been fortunate enough to secure a NOBO permit this year after hearing - thanks to this group - that they are also now difficult to get. But I really would like that SOBO¡¯er. Any suggestions or words of encouragement?
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How is it possible that all 60 permits for (both) Cottonwood Pass and Cottonwood Lakes are gone by 07:02?
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Check frequently for cancellations showing up.? If you're persistent, you should be able to get one.
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Stephen, I agree that your experience is typical. I have snagged a permit in the past by watching the cancelations every day.?
I¡¯m trying something new this year: When I submit a permit request for the JMT I am also requesting local Yosemite-only hiking permits at a lower priority. That way, if I only get a Yosemite-only permit, I can justify going ahead and buying airplane tickets (from Georgia) in advance. That will give me another chance at getting a walk-up permit for the JMT. Worst case, I spend a week hiking in Yosemite.?
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Have you considered south bound out of rush creek? It¡¯s a bit easier. Even more easier if you exit cottonwood pass. You can get another permit from rush creek to happy isles for this year or later.?
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On Feb 8, 2022, at 7:21 AM, Steve Perry <perry240@...> wrote:
? Stephen, I agree that your experience is typical. I have snagged a permit in the past by watching the cancelations every day.?
I¡¯m trying something new this year: When I submit a permit request for the JMT I am also requesting local Yosemite-only hiking permits at a lower priority. That way, if I only get a Yosemite-only permit, I can justify going ahead and buying airplane tickets (from Georgia) in advance. That will give me another chance at getting a walk-up permit for the JMT. Worst case, I spend a week hiking in Yosemite.?
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Have you considered south bound out of rush creek? It¡¯s a bit easier. Even more easier if you exit cottonwood pass. You can get another permit from rush creek to happy isles for this year or later.? On Feb 8, 2022, at 7:21 AM, Steve Perry <perry240@...> wrote:
? Stephen, I agree that your experience is typical. I have snagged a permit in the past by watching the cancelations every day.?
I¡¯m trying something new this year: When I submit a permit request for the JMT I am also requesting local Yosemite-only hiking permits at a lower priority. That way, if I only get a Yosemite-only permit, I can justify going ahead and buying airplane tickets (from Georgia) in advance. That will give me another chance at getting a walk-up permit for the JMT. Worst case, I spend a week hiking in Yosemite.?
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I agree with Anand. ?For years, we tried for a permit SOBO from Happy Isle or Glacier Point with no success. Extremely frustrating to put it mildly. ?Finally in 2020, we hit the jackpot with a golden ticket SOBO from GP. ?We were beyond happy, but reality set
in when we were politely, but firmly, asked to leave the trail at Duck Lake Pass due to the Creek Fire. ?We entered the lottery (twice) again in 2021, but weren¡¯t successful. ?This time, however, I had a backup plan. ?Since I am a summer resident of June Lake,
Rush Creek TH is my main entry point to the Sierra back country. ?I knew there were 18 daily spots out of Rush Creek to hike any where in the Sierra so it was easier ( not easy) to get a permit. ?In February 2021 I secured a permit from Rush Creek TH ?exiting
Happy Isle. ?6 days later I secured a permit hiking south from the same trail head to Whitney. We finally finished our JMT Thru Hike as a flip flop. It¡¯s a 9 mile walk from the trail head to the JMT that it intersects about a mile north of Island Pass (mile
40 SOBO) ?One advantage to starting at Rush Creek, is that June Lake is at 7600 feet which allows you to aclimitize better then Yosemite Valley. When applying for your SOBO remember to check the exiting Whitney Portal box unless you plan to exit over Cottonwood
Pass or Lakes. ?Also start early as the hike up Rush Creek Trail is exposed to the sun with little water until you get to the end of Gem Lake. ?Good luck.?
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On Feb 8, 2022, at 9:27 AM, Anand Kumar Sankaran <anand.sankaran@...> wrote:
? Have you considered south bound out of rush creek? It¡¯s a bit easier. Even more easier if you exit cottonwood pass. You can get another permit from rush creek to happy isles for this year or later.?
On Feb 8, 2022, at 7:21 AM, Steve Perry <perry240@...> wrote:
?
Stephen, I agree that your experience is typical. I have snagged a permit in the past by watching the cancelations every day.?
I¡¯m trying something new this year: When I submit a permit request for the JMT I am also requesting local Yosemite-only hiking permits at a lower priority. That way, if I only get a Yosemite-only permit, I can justify going ahead and buying airplane tickets
(from Georgia) in advance. That will give me another chance at getting a walk-up permit for the JMT. Worst case, I spend a week hiking in Yosemite.?
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Completely in agreement with Sam.?
We started south bound out of Rush Creek trailhead at 9:45am on July 5, 2021. Getting out of that canyon, to put it mildly, prepared us well for JMT :). That day 1 was hard. Very hard.?
Nonetheless, it didn¡¯t stop me from getting another permit out of Rush creek this year, going north bound to happy isles.?
Even with the very hard first day to thousand island lakes, it¡¯s a better deal than figuring out transportation in and out of Agnew meadows!
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On Feb 8, 2022, at 8:01 AM, Sam Molinari <sammolinari@...> wrote:
?
I agree with Anand. ?For years, we tried for a permit SOBO from Happy Isle or Glacier Point with no success. Extremely frustrating to put it mildly. ?Finally in 2020, we hit the jackpot with a golden ticket SOBO from GP. ?We were beyond happy, but reality set
in when we were politely, but firmly, asked to leave the trail at Duck Lake Pass due to the Creek Fire. ?We entered the lottery (twice) again in 2021, but weren¡¯t successful. ?This time, however, I had a backup plan. ?Since I am a summer resident of June Lake,
Rush Creek TH is my main entry point to the Sierra back country. ?I knew there were 18 daily spots out of Rush Creek to hike any where in the Sierra so it was easier ( not easy) to get a permit. ?In February 2021 I secured a permit from Rush Creek TH ?exiting
Happy Isle. ?6 days later I secured a permit hiking south from the same trail head to Whitney. We finally finished our JMT Thru Hike as a flip flop. It¡¯s a 9 mile walk from the trail head to the JMT that it intersects about a mile north of Island Pass (mile
40 SOBO) ?One advantage to starting at Rush Creek, is that June Lake is at 7600 feet which allows you to aclimitize better then Yosemite Valley. When applying for your SOBO remember to check the exiting Whitney Portal box unless you plan to exit over Cottonwood
Pass or Lakes. ?Also start early as the hike up Rush Creek Trail is exposed to the sun with little water until you get to the end of Gem Lake. ?Good luck.?
On Feb 8, 2022, at 9:27 AM, Anand Kumar Sankaran <anand.sankaran@...> wrote:
? Have you considered south bound out of rush creek? It¡¯s a bit easier. Even more easier if you exit cottonwood pass. You can get another permit from rush creek to happy isles for this year or later.?
On Feb 8, 2022, at 7:21 AM, Steve Perry <perry240@...> wrote:
?
Stephen, I agree that your experience is typical. I have snagged a permit in the past by watching the cancelations every day.?
I¡¯m trying something new this year: When I submit a permit request for the JMT I am also requesting local Yosemite-only hiking permits at a lower priority. That way, if I only get a Yosemite-only permit, I can justify going ahead and buying airplane tickets
(from Georgia) in advance. That will give me another chance at getting a walk-up permit for the JMT. Worst case, I spend a week hiking in Yosemite.?
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You're not out of luck, but you'll need to be persistent! You have two options: walk-up permits or cancellations.
I got a walk-up permit from Happy Isles in 2016. I had actually reserved a permit from an alternative trailhead and was planning to meet up with the JMT farther down the trail, but I checked for a walk-up when I arrived and I got lucky. This is a fairly risky option, especially if you don't have a backup plan.
The other option, like other posters mentioned, is to pick up someone else's canceled permit. My dad was able to get a permit this way last year after losing the lottery. It requires some persistence -- canceled permits will show up on the permit availability report, so you need to open the permit website every day and refresh it, hoping to see an available permit for your trailhead and date. It looks like the application has moved to recreation.gov this year so there might be some differences, but I imagine the overall process is pretty much the same. If you're persistent and a little flexible with dates you'll almost definitely be able get a permit this way... but you'll have to be very persistent. (I actually quite like the JMT permit process for this reason. If someone?really wants a permit there's a way to get one even after losing the lottery.)
One more thing -- I'd consider starting from Lyell Canyon as well. Obviously take a Happy Isles permit if you can get one, but you'll increase your chances if you consider both trailheads. If you get Lyell Canyon, I'd recommend getting to Yosemite a couple days early and then you can do some of the Happy Isles section separately -- for example, the iconic first few miles from Happy Isles and Cathedral Lakes (from Tuolumne Meadows) can be done as day hikes, and Clouds Rest can be done as a long day hike or a one-night trip from a less competitive trailhead. This way you still get to experience the entire JMT, plus you get the benefit of doing it with a lighter pack. That said, even if you miss the Happy Isles to Tuolumne Meadows section entirely, the rest of the JMT obviously still worth it!
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I easily got a permit last year for Duck Pass to Cottonwood pass, and when I booked there were still other entry trails available through Inyo.? It was totally worth it, as opposed to sitting and playing lotteries trying to get the exact?starting point of the JMT.? It's not like there's a prize or your name goes in a book for doing the actual JMT. It took a while for me to get my head around that too, because of the wanting of *the* whole trail. Finally tired of waiting, I booked what I could and just got out there and so glad I did.
That said, i'm still waiting to get a Grand Canyon wilderness permit!
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If you want the whole trail, the easiest approach by far is get a NOBO permit out of Cottonwood Pass. ?Adds a few miles at the start.
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I easily got a permit last year for Duck Pass to Cottonwood pass, and when I booked there were still other entry trails available through Inyo.? It was totally worth it, as opposed to sitting and playing lotteries trying to get the exact?starting point of the JMT.? It's not like there's a prize or your name goes in a book for doing the actual JMT. It took a while for me to get my head around that too, because of the wanting of *the* whole trail. Finally tired of waiting, I booked what I could and just got out there and so glad I did.
That said, i'm still waiting to get a Grand Canyon wilderness permit!
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I also got a cancellation last year and upgraded it with an
on-line walk-up permit. I found the Yosemite Conservation process
used last year was pretty good. Cancellations were released all at
once at around the same time each day and were easy to scan for
open dates. I think recreation.gov releases them individually at
random times and it is more cumbersome to search for open permits.
The walk-up permits being available on-line was more convenient
for me.
Frank
On 2/8/2022 8:12 AM, djcunningham0@... wrote:
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You're not out of luck, but you'll need to be persistent! You have
two options: walk-up permits or cancellations.
I got a walk-up permit from Happy Isles in 2016. I had actually
reserved a permit from an alternative trailhead and was planning
to meet up with the JMT farther down the trail, but I checked for
a walk-up when I arrived and I got lucky. This is a fairly risky
option, especially if you don't have a backup plan.
The other option, like other posters mentioned, is to pick up
someone else's canceled permit. My dad was able to get a permit
this way last year after losing the lottery. It requires some
persistence -- canceled permits will show up on the permit
availability report, so you need to open the permit website every
day and refresh it, hoping to see an available permit for your
trailhead and date. It looks like the application has moved to
recreation.gov this year so there might be some differences, but I
imagine the overall process is pretty much the same. If you're
persistent and a little flexible with dates you'll almost
definitely be able get a permit this way... but you'll have to be
very persistent. (I actually quite like the JMT permit process for
this reason. If someone?really wants a permit there's a
way to get one even after losing the lottery.)
One more thing -- I'd consider starting from Lyell Canyon as well.
Obviously take a Happy Isles permit if you can get one, but you'll
increase your chances if you consider both trailheads. If you get
Lyell Canyon, I'd recommend getting to Yosemite a couple days
early and then you can do some of the Happy Isles section
separately -- for example, the iconic first few miles from Happy
Isles and Cathedral Lakes (from Tuolumne Meadows) can be done as
day hikes, and Clouds Rest can be done as a long day hike or a
one-night trip from a less competitive trailhead. This way you
still get to experience the entire JMT, plus you get the benefit
of doing it with a lighter pack. That said, even if you miss the
Happy Isles to Tuolumne Meadows section entirely, the rest of the
JMT obviously still worth it!
--
Frank
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I have yet to reach the six month window for my hike, but in all prior years, I have not seen Inyo permits disappear instantly, especially the large amount of permits for the Cottonwood Pass and Cottonwood Lakes entries. Being online at 7:00 am pacific time with the itinerary all planned out, I never had an issue and there were still quite a few permits available even a half hour later. ?So, maybe things have dramatically changed this year. I find it hard to believe that all of the Inyo permits for plausible JMT entry points could be gone at 7:00 am instantly unless perhaps there's some automated bot that's grabbing inventory instantly.?
In the past I've also suggested the High Sierra Trail out of Sequoia National Park as an alternative entry to the JMT, albeit one with a long approach before you get to the JMT itself. In 2016, I hiked northbound starting with the High Sierra Trail. I ended at Mammoth but the permit I had could have taken me to Happy Isles. ?Of all my JMT hikes over the past decade, that one was near the top. ?I did hike a SOBO "classic" thru hike in 2013 but the Yosemite permit system was not as difficult back then.?
This year I only have a week available on trail. I'll probably repeat my 2019 hike: South Lake to Whitney (or Horseshoe Meadows). South Lake is also a great entry point.
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I did a similar option in 2017.? Of course, things have changed, but I would definitely try for a Lyell canyon start.? I got mine as a walk up then, as my plan B.? Plan A, which I had in advance, was a permit for Mono/Parker Pass.? I've not done it, but it appears a fine alternative to Donahue Pass.? I don't feel like I didn't really no the JMT even though I skipped the Happy Isles to TM portion.? I had done Half Dome as a day hike a few years earlier, so only the HD intersection to TM is what I missed.
Curt
You're not out of luck, but you'll need to be persistent! You have two options: walk-up permits or cancellations.
I got a walk-up permit from Happy Isles in 2016. I had actually reserved a permit from an alternative trailhead and was planning to meet up with the JMT farther down the trail, but I checked for a walk-up when I arrived and I got lucky. This is a fairly risky option, especially if you don't have a backup plan.
The other option, like other posters mentioned, is to pick up someone else's canceled permit. My dad was able to get a permit this way last year after losing the lottery. It requires some persistence -- canceled permits will show up on the permit availability report, so you need to open the permit website every day and refresh it, hoping to see an available permit for your trailhead and date. It looks like the application has moved to this year so there might be some differences, but I imagine the overall process is pretty much the same. If you're persistent and a little flexible with dates you'll almost definitely be able get a permit this way... but you'll have to be very persistent. (I actually quite like the JMT permit process for this reason. If someone?really wants a permit there's a way to get one even after losing the lottery.)
One more thing -- I'd consider starting from Lyell Canyon as well. Obviously take a Happy Isles permit if you can get one, but you'll increase your chances if you consider both trailheads. If you get Lyell Canyon, I'd recommend getting to Yosemite a couple days early and then you can do some of the Happy Isles section separately -- for example, the iconic first few miles from Happy Isles and Cathedral Lakes (from Tuolumne Meadows) can be done as day hikes, and Clouds Rest can be done as a long day hike or a one-night trip from a less competitive trailhead. This way you still get to experience the entire JMT, plus you get the benefit of doing it with a lighter pack. That said, even if you miss the Happy Isles to Tuolumne Meadows section entirely, the rest of the JMT obviously still worth it!
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Agree with Granola.
Why aren't you considering alternatives?? If you've been trying for 4 or 5 years to get the "canonical" Happy Isles to Whitney permit without success, don't you think it's time to take a different approach?
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You can get 2 permits, 1-2 weeks apart depending on speed,? from either Florence Lake or VVR.? Use the first one to go SOBO to Mt Whitney - or NOBO to Happy Isles.? Then use the second permit to go the other way.? Transportation is the killer for this technique but the permits are fairly easy to get. If you're in a group of 3 or more you can set cars at Mt Whitney and Yosemite Valley which would make it very long drives but easy. -- Byron NevinsLead Moderator of JMT at groups.io
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It breaks my heart to see people foregoing the High Mountain Route trip just because THE particular most popular version of it is not available.? Fact is, there are many ways to skin this cat, and? so-called "Golden Ticket"? -? Happy Isles to Whitney - is a historical accident, and not even the best version of what folks were looking for when the idea first developed in the 1890's and early aughts.? It only ever started in the Valley - and not even Happy Isles at that -? beacuse Stephen Mather had only just bought Tioga Road and there was no other way to get to Tuolumne, where the Route actually began.? The idea was always? - beginning with William Colby and Leon Solomons in 1894, to put the Route as near the Crest as possible (nope that's not a typo: Little Brother Leon likely had the idea before Theodore swiped it) and much of the trail is a mediocre compromise of that goal.? Several sections would have followed what is today the SIerra High Route but for the fact that Little Joe LeConte couldn't get a mule over certain passes in the? 1907.?
Well, we are no longer restricted by where a mule can go, or even where you can hike with a 60 or 70 pound canvas pack, but the JMT is.? First 20-some miles SOBo is in the wrong place, too low an elevation and heads in the wrong direction.? Over the years, there have been two Valley trailheads for five different "Alternative Routes" in Starr's Guide, one of which doesn't even go over Donohue PassTwo very different main routes and several combincations of sections of each between the Crest and Red's, a couple of differnt routes through Red's, three ways over the SIlver Divide, a fe w variations across Vermilion Valley, Two over Selden Pass down Senger to South San Joaquin, three from the North Fork to South Fork Kings, two between Kings drainage and Kern that have been specifically desgnated JMT and at four that have not (two of which were under consideration for the title) and two JMT routes up very different drainages from Crabtree to Whitney, and even a few alternatives beyond that summit taken by early JMT parties.
And this list does not even touch the dozens of smaller JMT variations? and non-JMT section possible, all traveling? through the same glorious High Sierra region that the JMT does (and none of which are? the so-called "Theodore Solomons Trail").
All of these choices provide the essential High Mountain Route experience, itself.? People sacrifice and forego this experience, sometimes for years for an idea of the thing, but? missing the thing in and of itself.? If you can seek your own High Mountain Route, and let go of the specific - and in some ways mediocre? - idea of it that became the JMT, you need not wait.
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I loved what Peter Hirst wrote!
Thank you!
I have only done JMT Nobo all 3 times. Because I didn¡¯t wanted to deal with then mostly free lottery.
Now this year I COULD NOT get Cottonwood Pass.
Lakes yes, but I do know what it could mean over NAP. So didn't get lakes.
I was ready for permit drop logged and all - it was insane the error that was created on Recreation- ¡°error too many have the item in their carts¡±
It never happened before- I think it is largely due to the fact that going South is no longer ¡°Golden¡± due to $, Tuolumne restoration etc etc and more people know about it not realizing that you really need to acclimate and not everyone would be fit to hit Whitney day 3.
I always have a blast in our more private group mail here vs FB.
Thank you!
Karina
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On Tue, Feb 8, 2022 at 11:56 AM, Peter Hirst wrote:
People sacrifice and forego this experience, sometimes for years for an idea of the thing, but? missing the thing in and of itself.? If you can seek your own High Mountain Route, and let go of the specific - and in some ways mediocre? - idea of it that became the JMT, you need not wait.
I couldn't agree more strongly with this. I totally get the desire to do the official route - I felt that way on my first JMT in 2013 and obsessively stuck to the trail and it was a great experience. But my subsequent trips, none of which have included 100% of the official JMT, have been equally great and it some cases better because the alternates are always less crowded. I think this really clicked for me the most in 2016 when I was going NOBO and resupplied at VVR. Rather than rejoining the JMT at the end of the lake, I went over Goodale Pass. I hiked for several hours on that day without encountering another hiker. As soon as I rejoined the JMT, I encountered literally dozens of southbound hikers within the first hour.? I've redefined my goal for any long distance hike to be "a continuous set of footprints" rather than "official trail" and haven't regretted it.
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Steve Perry
Andrew Paisley
@dcunningham
Granola
ravi_jmt2013
Karina Bezkrovnaia