High Sierra Topix

On your first day the Parker Pass Creek drainage is a no camping zone. The first legal campsites for that trailhead are outside the park over Mono or Parker passes.

The string of ponds just on the south side of Parker Pass have some nice camping, although no timber and it is exposed in a wind. I have always called these ponds "Parker Pass ponds", probably wrong considering they are not on the Parker Pass Creek drainage. I assumed this is where Tim meant. Alger Lakes would be my preferred campsite, but it is another couple of hours to get there. There is good camping there and some timber for shelter. However, do not attempt Koip Pass in a storm with any chance of lightning.

It is 10.5 miles to Alger Lakes, 2980 feet gain, 7-8 hours at best. Definitely do-able but very rigorous for first day.

Wandering Daisy wrote: ↑Sun Apr 17, 2022 1:02 pm The string of ponds just on the south side of Parker Pass have some nice camping, although no timber and it is exposed in a wind. I have always called these ponds "Parker Pass ponds", probably wrong considering they are not on the Parker Pass Creek drainage. I assumed this is where Tim meant. Alger Lakes would be my preferred campsite, but it is another couple of hours to get there. There is good camping there and some timber for shelter. However, do not attempt Koip Pass in a storm with any chance of lightning.

It is 10.5 miles to Alger Lakes, 2980 feet gain, 7-8 hours at best. Definitely do-able but very rigorous for first day.

Yes my thoughts exactly, getting over Parker Pass on day 1 but not starting the Koip Pass climb until day 2. On the other hand stopping at Alger Lakes rather than going over Gem Pass to the Rush Creek drainage would be a very short Day 2.

I would recommend resupplying at Reds meadow as well as MTR. It means you can start off with lighter packs and that is especially nice when you are acclimating to the altutude. And if you can time it so that you eat a meal while you are at your resupply points, those are meals you never have to carry at all.
As you acclimatize and the packs get lighter, you will probably gain speed. You can expect to cover more ground the last day into MTR than you will on the first day on the trail, and as you near the end you can expect to be able to handle more miles and more elevation gain than you will the first day out of MTR.
Getting 9 days worth of food for 2 into an expedtion and a garcia will be a tight squeeze, but should be feasible depending on your menu. Personally i take the approach that on the last day i dont need anything but breakfast. I may get hungry but it just means I appreciate that first meal in town that much more. Also my experience has been that for the first day or two my appetite is lower, so I bring less food for those days.

paul wrote: ↑Mon Apr 18, 2022 8:38 pm ..Getting 9 days worth of food for 2 into an expedtion and a garcia will be a tight squeeze, but should be feasible depending on your menu...

I get 12 days of meals into an expedition, but have never managed any more. But I eat a lot! Perhaps if I ate only seeds and oils I could get more. But going with the typical freeze dried/dehydrated fare, I found 12 days is my limit (six days for two people).

Ed

@pauls advice to resupply at Reds is well worth considering and if not camping there will take at most an hour to retrieve, sort, and pack.

And I echo @WD’s recommendation to take either a short day or push a long day and get onto a cadence where you camp at more scenic locations.

For what it's worth, I hiked the JMT in 2015. It was a combo of solo and meeting up with a friend group that started ahead of me. I completed it in 13 days and some of those days were 20+ miles. I don't recommend that kind of distance unless you're trying to check a box.

As for your camp planning, like you I tried to "pick places" ahead of time. What I found was it was better to be aware of what distance you have to cover, know your water sources (basically everywhere in the Sierra) and stop when you find "the spot". Some of my favorite camping spots were areas that others weren't. Some of the locations you have listed are beautiful, but I think you'll find the camping isn't ideal. Some of those distances are also very short, and pressing on will give you time to stop and swim as well as find better sites. I also found that people are drawn to people. On more than one occasion we would setup only to have other hikers see us and wonder/setup near us. So picking a place that is off the trail and a bit hidden could help you avoid these types of interactions (if you care).

Regarding resupplies, I used Red's (as others have suggested it's worth starting light) and MTR. My only box was a Garcia Bear Canister and I didn't find it too heavy. While I wouldn't count on it, we found both locations to have lots of abandoned food, as well as people trading for items.

I suggest Wenk's guide for the JMT, if not for camping ideas but for some local geography as well as information on area plant and wildlife.

You're going to have a great trip!

I’ve taken the advice on resupply and will drop a bucket with the second bear can (BV500) at Reds Meadow before we start. But measuring out the food for south of MTR our fully stuffed bucket (25-26lb) seems like it’s a bit lacking in calories for 9 nights/10 days. At an average of ~110 cal per oz (including packaging) I ended up with 400 oz of food = 44000 cals = 2200 per person per day. Are we going to be starving hungry the whole time?

Everyone’s metabolism is different, but 2200 calories per day for ten days sounds way too lean to me. You need more fats! Add fatty nuts like pecans and more chocolate!
-Phil

For last summer’s JMT I carried 3300 calories per day plus ate additional food at Tuolumne, Reds Meadow, and VVR. So I echo wildhikers judgement that 2200 feels lean.

Here is a link to my menu. I am 6’2” about 190 lbs and lost just shy of 10 lbs over the 2 weeks. https://1drv.ms/x/s!AuRFCa25NsESgr5Wa7MyRh1xVPsmHQ

My menu’s lack of diversity may be unappealing but it may provide ideas on how to add calories to your plan. Also note, I averaged hiking 10-12 hours per day. If your plan is less, reduce by ~100 calories per hour.