I hiked the entire JMT, from Yosemite Valley to Whitney Portal, taking 25 days, in August/September of 2007. It was one of the greatest experiences of my life.

I was 48 years old, and I hiked solo. The hike was both harder and more beautiful than I imagined. But soooo worth it.

Temperatures ranged from the 80s in the day to as cold as 27 degrees at night, although most of the time while hiking the temperatures were in the 60s and 70s: near perfect weather. There were a couple days of rain, although it would clear up by nightfall.

Two main points of advice: keep your pack as light as possible and take as many days as possible. Even at 25 days I felt I was being rushed. There are so many, many places of absolute perfect beauty, that it is always a shame that you can’t stay as long as you would like, but instead have to get back on the trail. No matter how good a hiker you think you are, if you plan to hike the whole trail, give yourself more days than you think you need.

If you are there to savor the beauty and awesomeness, and not just trying for some athletic feat of endurance and speed, anything less than 3 weeks and you will be short changing yourself big time. If you only have two weeks, just do a section.

Thru-hiking the JMT is without a doubt one of the greatest recreational opportunities in the world. The trail is a national treasure. Its worth cannot be over-estimated.