Challenges from the start
After months of meticulous planning and rigorous training, the moment we had been waiting for had finally come! It was August 3rd, and we were about to officially kick off our journey on the JMT. In the early morning hours before our departure, I carefully went through my backpack one last time and went to bed, buzzing with excitement for the hike ahead.
In the dead of night, I was abruptly awakened by a flurry of text messages from American Airlines notifying me that our early Saturday flight from Portland had been canceled. Oh no! They rescheduled our flight for Sunday, which turned into a nightmare. We were unable to fly on Sunday because we had to be in Yosemite to pick up our JMT permits! Yosemite has stringent rules regarding permits. If we didn’t arrive by 11 AM on Sunday, August 4th, we would forfeit our permits, and our hiking plans would be ruined.
In a state of panic, I frantically picked up my phone and dialed American Airlines. After an hour of back-and-forth with customer service, I finally managed to book the last flight leaving Boston that Saturday night. I called Kim at 2 AM to fill her in on the situation. She mumbled a quick “OK” and was relieved to get a few extra hours of sleep.
I, on the other hand, was far from calm. I was consumed with our travel arrangements and all the details involved. What was supposed to be a relaxing day had turned into a late-night, last-minute arrival. We were cutting it close, with just enough time to grab the rental car, make our way to Fresno, and hop on the morning bus to Yosemite. Could we really pull this off?
Frederic, Kim’s oldest son, kindly drove us all to Boston, where we boarded our 6 PM flight to LA. Catie and I sailed through TSA, but Kim faced a bit of a hiccup. Her bag was flagged for a detailed inspection. What was the cause of the extra scrutiny? Our healthy snacker Kim had packed a cucumber for the first leg of her trip. This unusual addition piqued the interest of airport security and gave us all a good laugh.
The flight felt long and exhausting. Kim sat behind us, entertained by some chatty passengers. I was next to Catie and a tall guy who seemed quite uncomfortable. His knees pressed against the seat in front of us, and he had to use the aisle when possible to stretch his legs. While Catie slept, I watched a soccer game on the in-flight entertainment and played some solitaire on my phone.
We landed in LA just in time to grab a rental car before the office closed at 11 PM. With bags in the trunk and monster energy in our cupholders, we set off on a four-hour drive to Fresno. On our way, we stopped for gas at a convenience store that was buzzing with police, paramedics and onlookers. After chatting with the clerk, we learned there had just been a police shootout.
Finally, we arrived in Fresno at 3 AM and checked into our hotel. We managed to squeeze in a few hours of sleep before catching the YARTs bus into Yosemite at 8 AM. It was an exhausting trip that negatively impacted our first few days on the John Muir Trail.
