Ep 053. John Muir Trail Day 18 (Trail Series). Silver Pass, Trail Friends, and Purple Lake

Welcome to the John Muir Trail Podcast Series - I'm taking a little summer break from the podcast while I head off on some new adventures (and guide some epic client trips too!). But I didn’t want to leave you hanging—so I’m sharing something special: a never-before-released Trail Series from our John Muir Trail thru-hike.

Today we climbed Silver Pass, tackled nearly 13 miles of rolling terrain, and finally arrived at camp with time to spare—our reward after days of pushing hard. We soaked our feet in one of the coldest creeks yet, hiked through fish-filled rivers and steep switchbacks, and ended the day at the scenic (but misleadingly named) Purple Lake.

The heat still showed up for parts of the day, but Allison's heat rash had miraculously vanished, and our trail crew grew by one as we hiked all day with our new friend. Michael even tried his luck at fishing with his half-rod again (with one clever trout evading him at the last second).

We’re dirty, tired, and dreaming of Red’s Meadow tomorrow—burgers, laundry, showers, and maybe a little reset before our final JMT push.

In this episode:

• Climbing Silver Pass and easing into the rhythm of the trail
• Miraculous heat rash recovery and cooler trail temps
• The trout of Fish Creek (and Michael’s almost-catch)
• Painfully cold water, switchbacks, and beautiful alpine lakes
• New trail friendships and group hiking dynamics
• The promise of clean clothes and burgers at Red’s Meadow
• Audiobooks, nerd reads, and what we’re listening to on trail

🎧 Come along as we hike, fish, and daydream our way toward civilization—with trout rumors, icy creek dips, and some hard-earned trail joy.

JMT Resources on the Blog:

• The Stress-Free Guide to John Muir Trail Permits
• The Ultimate John Muir Trail Planning Guide
• 15 Reasons I’m Excited to Hike the John Muir Trail

Where to learn more about Allison:

• She Dreams of Alpine Blog
• Instagram @shedreamsofalpine

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