Day 10 8/15/20
Start time: 4:35 A.M.
JMT Finish time: 6:55 A.M. (Whitney Summit)
Actual Finish: 12:30 P.M. (Descending Whitney)
JMT Total time: 1 hours 20 minutes
Actual time: 7 hours 55 minutes
Mile Marker: 210.4
JMT Miles Hiked Today: 4.1
Actual Miles 15.4
Just pure euphoria. I learned long ago to temper my excitement when coming down from the summit while others are still going uphill. A cheerful good morning is not what they are looking for while they are sucking wind and you're taking your victory lap. Today I learned the opposite is also true. Apparently double timing it up the mountain in running shorts and a sun hoody while smiling ear to ear wishing everyone on the way down in puffy jackets and beanies a good morning earns you scowls as well. You just can't please some people.
Getting to the top was surreal. It was very much like every other 14er in many ways. Covered in rock with spectacular 360 views, but too far away for a camera to do justice. It was an odd mix of "I ACTUALLY MADE IT" and "Yup, looks about right."
On the way down I was able to find Mount Muir by spotting some other hikers that beat me to it. I couldn't spot it on the way up. It's another 14er just off the Whitney trail, and ending the John Muir Trail on Mount Muir just felt right. It was surprisingly more difficult than I thought with some light class 4 involved. The last move seemed like it might be a bit too tricky to down-climb in trail runners, so I sort of wiggled up on my belly to tap the top. Still counting it!
After that detour I was practically running down the mountain with a virtually empty pack. I could hear my cold soak jar banging around my empty bear canister and kept thinking I can't wait to be done with those. With about six miles left I had to remind myself I couldn't finish the rest of the trail on pure adrenaline. At that point I'd only had two protein bars and a liter of water. After pausing in the only square foot of shade I could find to refuel, I continued my power walk down the mountain.
At the bottom I was rewarded with a bacon cheeseburger and two Gatorades. I also started chatting with two hikers named Dan and Bridge who I'd asked about Mount Muir on their way down. They had arranged a ride into Lone Pine already and let me pitch in to ride in with them and avoid a hitch hike. The Lone Pine Chamber of Commerce (aka Kathleen) picked the three of us up in a Tesla. Somehow sitting in a car that nice made me feel three times as dirty. Kathleen was an absolute treasure though. She is a fifth generation Lone Pine resident and told us all sorts of fun stories about the town and herself as she shuttled us in. Perfect end to a spectacular trip.