Silent Hiking the John Muir Trail for 21 days

► ABOUT THIS HIKE
In September-October 2023, I hiked the John Muir Trail, a 350-kilometer (215-mile) long-distance trail that is often considered one of the most beautiful hiking trails in the United States. It stretches from Yosemite Valley to Mount Whitney (4,421m, 14,505ft) straight through the Sierra Nevada mountains, passing through Yosemite National Park, the John Muir and Ansel Adams Wildernesses, Sequoia National Park, and Kings Canyon National Park. Along the way, it passes over 9 major mountain passes: Donohue Pass (3,323m, 10,902ft), Island Pass (3,205m, 10,515ft), Silver Pass (3,180m, 10,433ft), Selden Pass (3,094m, 10,151ft), Muir Pass (3,558m, 11,969ft), Mather Pass (3,700m, 12,139ft), Pinchot Pass (3,797m, 12,457ft), Glen Pass (3,585m, 11,758ft), and Forester Pass (4,009m, 13,153ft). Along the way, I wildcamped and made 2 resupply stops, in Mammoth Lakes and Bishop.

This is an ambient film without dialog.

► TIMESTAMPS
0:00 Intro
0:56 Yosemite's Half Dome Climb
11:01 1000 Island Lake & Rain Storm
17:34 Mammoth Lakes Resupply
24:38 Camp under Western Junipers
29:02 Hot Springs & Muir Trail Ranch
31:51 Sequoia National Park - meeting Scott
26:33 Muir Pass & Bishop Resupply
42:04 Snowstorm at Bishop Lake
49:24 Mather Pass & Rae Lakes
57:32 Forester Pass (4,009 meter | 13,153 feet)
1:00:50 Camp with Mount Whitney view
1:03:17 Sleeping on Mount Whitney
1:09:46 Outro

#sierranevadamountains #johnmuirtrail #jmt #california #camping #hiking #solohiking

[HarmenHoek]

Hope you all enjoyed this film! This was the longest and most remote hike I've done so far. It was a beast to edit, taking me several weeks to complete. Before going on this hike, I never had a clear answer when people asked me 'what is your favorite hike?'. But after completing the JMT, I can say that the JMT is my favorite hike in the world. It has all the elements of a good trek - beautiful nature, remoteness, solitude and wilderness. What amazes me is that you can hike over 350 kilometer through the Sierras without crossing a single road or passing a single building. Especially if you realize that within a 350-kilometer radius over 40 million people live! That's conservation!

Here are some random facts and more chapter markers I thought you might enjoy:
0:56 Day 1 - Yosemite Valley & Half Dome
2:08 It's rare to see the cables without people! The secret: go just before sunset.
3:27 RightOnTrek.com was so nice to provide me with a bunch of meals for this trip! However, I mistakenly assumed I could eat them out of the bag, they are best enjoyed and ready faster after cooking in a pot.
3:40 Day 2 - Sunrise Meadows & Cathedral Lakes
6:28 Day 3 - Tuolumne Meadows & Lyell Canyon
7:18 This is a Belding Ground Squirrel. In late summer you only see the young adults under 2 years of age. The aldults are already in their wintersleep by then.
9:49 Day 4 - Donohue Pass & 1000 Island Lake
12:56 Day 5 - Alpine lakes & rain
14:46 I honestly enjoyed the rain, especially from a filmmaking standpoint: blue skies for 4 days is not very cinematic.
16:31 Day 6 - Devil's Postpile & Mammoth Lakes
18:36 Day 7 - John Muir Wilderness
18:38 This is officially not the JMT, but a (more beautiful) detour via Duck Pass merging with the JMT at Duck Lake.
19:32 Day 8 - Duck Pass, Lake Virginia & Tully Hole
23:03 Day 9 - Silver Pass & Bear Ridge
24:38 This was one of my favorite campsites on the JMT. I spotted it just down the trail when taking a short brake in the afternoon. When I saw it, I couldn't keep going, so I decided to make it a very short day and enjoy the beauty of this campsite.
26:41 Day 10 - Marie Lake, Seldon Pass, Muir Trail Ranch & Blaney Hot Springs
30:44 Day 11 - Sequoia National Park
32:45 Day 12 - Goddard Canyon, Evolution Valley & Wanda Lake
35:23 This is Wanda Lake just below Muir's pass, named after John Muir's daughter. The lake on the other side of the pass (38:10) is named after his other daughter: Helen.
36:33 Day 13 - Muir Pass, Le Conte Valley, Bishop Pass & Bishop
37:24 The Muir Hut on Muir Pass is the only pass hut on the JMT.
41:28 Day 15 - Bishop Lake & snow
42:46 I'm layering 2 quilts together here. A synethic quilt below with a down quilt on top. The best way to stay warm at -7ºC (19ºF).
44:12 Day 16 - Bishop Pass, Golden Staircase & Palaside Lakes
45:15 #TeamShorts
46:33 Compare this shot with 39:21.
47:21 This is the Golden Staircase — a marvel of trail engineering characterized by its steep switchbacks through narrow canyons. This segment stands as the last part of the JMT to be completed, a full 22 years after the trail officially opened.
48:07 I'm packing up my tent again. While pitching my tent the wind started picking up to the point where my tent started collapsing. With only rocks to secure my tent and an exposed spot, I decided to move my tent to a more sheltered spot.
48:26 Day 17 - Mather Pass (3, 396m, 11, 138ft) & Pinchot Pass (3, 422m, 11, 226ft)
52:24 Day 18 - Rae Lakes & Glenn Pass
54:20 Seeing a helicopter in the Sierras is rare. They only fly for search and rescue operations, to drop supplies at ranger stations once a year and pick up trash from ranger stations once a year. The latter was the case here.
57:24 Day 19 - Forester Pass (4, 009m, 13, 153ft) & Bighorn Plateau
58:29 This is a pika. One of the only animals in the Sierras that doesn't hibernate. Instead, they collect grass and flowers during the summer (you see them often with a flower in their mouth - so cute) that they store under talus (large boulder fields). All winter they live under the talus with several meters of snow above them.
1:00:03 The descent from Forester Pass is quite an engineering marvel. The trail is blasted out of the granite and makes an almost impossible gentle way down to the valley floor.
1:00:40 This is a (dead) Foxtail Pine. A rare pine at only grow in California in Sequioa Kings Canyon National Parks and surrounding forests. On the JMT it's only seen south of Forester Pass.
1:02:40 Day 20 - Mount Whitney
1:05:30 You might recognize the last 2 songs from this film, they are identical as the last 2 songs from my Yosemite film. It was in Sierra Mountains where my backpacking adventures started, and that place holds a special place in my heart.
1:07:46 It was freezing cold. Just after sunset all the mosture on my quilts turned into ice crystals almost instantly (flash freezing). Temperatures dropped far below zero that night, but it was so worth being up there. Once in bed I stared at the night sky for over an hour before even attempting to sleep. There was a perfect silence, not a single breeze out there. And since I was alone, I can say I was the highest person in the contiguous USA that night (and most likely also in the all of North America). (;
1:08:11 Day 21 - Sunrise on Mount Whitney
1:09:51 What followed was a long 2, 200m descent down to Whitney Portal via hundreds of switchbacks. A beautiful section, but I didn't film any of it. Mount Whitney is the official end of the JMT, so I wanted the film to end there, not at an anti-climaxal trailhead.

[RamblingRuth]

Hi Harman. I’m currently battling a rare and aggressive blood cancer in hospital and it’s been truly awful. Your films are helping me to relax and escape. You have no idea how much they are keeping me sane. Thank you!

[amankumar-zxeo]

“Of all the paths you take in life, make sure a few of them are dirt.”
― John Muir

[casey-mac]

Silent hiking videos are all over the place on YouTube these days, but yours rise well above the rest. It feels like every single sequence has been thought out and has a distinct purpose - rather than just "camera on tripod, walk through the frame." The dedication to capture some of your wide shots and walk several hundred meters away does not go unnoticed. And, somehow each video keeps getting better. You're inspiring me to want to attempt my own silent videos. Well done, mate, and congratulations on your success.

[garybarr]

I'm 80 and I spent most of my younger hiking years in Sierra Nevada range around Mt. Whitney. I estimate I've been on Mt. Whitney Peak a min of 40 times. It is a piece of me. Thank you for the "no words" production. It said more than all the words could offer. It brought back many memories. I loved it.

[cikic]

Am I the only one who had the urge to applaud at the end?? Simply the entire video is phenomenal, as if I was watching a high-budget documentary

[alexander.starbuck]

Harmen deserves an academy award for cinematography (and another prize for his physical efforts to obtain these shots), even though this is not a narrative film. Hats off to you Sir! 🥲

[josiahambrose]

I hiked the JMT with friends in 2001. The quality of this video in terms of capturing the experience is just amazing. Thank you for allowing me to revisit one of the best experiences of my life. Not only are you having amazing outdoor adventures, but you are sharing some of the most beautiful places on the planet with the rest of the world. This is like a public service. Hat's off to you sir.

[christophere.herbert]

In 1968, I was 15 years old with two brothers, an uncle, plus four friends, and my father, having hiked from Yosemite to Mt. Whitney, lasting 28 days. We slept on top of Mt. Whitney and saw also the sunset and sunrise shadows that Mt. Whitney creates in the distant atmosphere, like you showed. In September 2015, I hiked with my son on the Sequoia High Sierra Trail to stand on top of Mt. Whitney a second time. Thanks for renewing many memories of the JMT.

[lenwerner]

As a geologist who mapped the rocks of the St. Elias Mtns and the Juneau Icefields with the GSC many years ago before they were National Parks, I hope many who watch this can appreciate that this is someone who has lived, not just existed. It shows.

[molassescricket]

Harmen, I’m 63 years old, and it is practically impossible for me to hike the sierra now due to my health. I did not find the mountains until my 40’s. It’s very moving to watch your videos, as for me these are sacred places etched into my heart. There is a trail out of Virginia Lakes that goes into the Hoover Wilderness via an unnamed pass. Standing at the top of the pass affords a view of the Hoover and a couple other lakes. It’s is an expansive view across a large valley and over to mountains about 5 miles in the distance that rip open clouds. It looks right into the heart of Hoover Wilderness. If you ever have a chance I encourage you to go there. If you do please record it for the world. I’d love to see it one more time. Thank you for bringing us these videos. 🖖

[kaleemjan]

To carry all that weight on the back... going all the back and forth, leaving the camera all behind for the perfect shots for all of us is not a that easy and simple. This is an incredible great job sir and only those can understand who loves hiking.. Big salute and respect sir... Thank you for this and all your work. cant wait for you next adventure .

[pluran]

"To a mind that is still the whole universe surrenders"
'
Your videos are amazing. Feels so good.🙂

[lightwalker]

Its not the number of breathes that define your life. Its the number of moments that take your breath away. This video has a lot of them. Thanks and God bless you. ❤

[toddshampine]

As an American. I teared up with pride reading; “This is my favorite hike in the world.”

I’ve done a fair bit of backpacking in the states. Mostly Colorado, Montana, and Wyoming. And, I’m always blown away by people that can create these videos. I understand how much work it must be. I often think. I would have to stop. Set up a camera. And, rehike this section, or cross this river multiple times to capture this.

I love your channel. I stumbled across it while researching a trip to Norway. And, I’m so thankful I did. I retire next year, and have many backpacking trips planned, all over the world. And, I am so thankful for your channel as a source of inspiration.

[Sheety]

Had a blast hiking together my friend - the best way to spend the end of the Summer season. The high effort shots in this film are outstanding! Amazing cinematography once again!

[ronafrye]

I don't know if you still look back at comments, Harmen, but your hiking adventure touched me and had me feeling the emotions that come from rare, raw beauty that is right there for the picking if one only chooses to hike, 'in silence', through this incredible John Muir Trail. Thank you for doing this for you and all of us who are right there with you.I have hiked many trails and know the wonder of doing it in silence and alone.

[Concolorproductions]

This is more than a YouTube channel, this is art.

[johnbwill]

I've trekked in many remote parts of the world - but never bothered or took the time to film my experiences - they reside only in memory and body) - this back and forth to collect cameras must be so much work ... all to provide us with this superb, seamless masterpice. Thanks very much Harmen. You are an artisan of the highest order. Deepest respect from Downunder.

[DonSmith-kl]

I'm 80 and I spent most of my younger hiking years in Sierra Nevada range around Mt. Whitney. I estimate I've been on Mt. Whitney Peak a min of 40 times. It is a piece of me. Thank you for the "no words" production. It said more than all the words could offer. It brought back many memories. I loved it.