4 Things You Need to Know: Thru-Hiking the High Sierra Trail in 2021
The High Sierra Trail begins in Sequoia National Park at Crescent meadow and eventually leads to the summit of Mount Whitney, approximately 70 miles away. This dramatic trans-sierra route crosses the Great Western Divide, drops to the Kern Canyon, and climbs again to Mt. Whitney, the highest peak in the contiguous 48 states. The trail features the best the High Sierra has to offer along the way, including stunning views, high alpine lakes, and gorgeous meadows.
Here’s 5 things you need to know if you’re considering backpacking the High Sierra Trail in 2021.
Permits
For the 2021 season, Sequoia and Kings Canyon are moving to Recreation.gov for their permitting process for the first time ever! Permits are released 6 months in advance starting February 9, 2021 at 7:00 am Pacific Standard Time. This means that all permits for the backpacking season from June through August 9, 2021 will be released on February 9th. If you’d like to start the trail on August 10, permits will be released on February 10 at 7:00 am PST. For August 11, permits are released on February 11, and so on.
This is an update from their old faxing system. For help navigating recreation.gov, click here.
2. Current Conditions
Last year California endured a record setting fire year. Two fires affected the Sequoia kings national park, including the SQF complex fire and the rattlesnake fires.
According to the Sequoia Kings conditions page, there are currently large areas of the park under park closures. With regard to the High Sierra Trail, the park closure affects the Arroyo Junction area to Wallace Creek/JMT connection.
I emailed the park to see how the closures would affect this years ability to thru-hike the trail and received this response:
While it’s still too early to tell how much the fires will have impacted the trail, it does sound like the park will be issuing permits for a viable 2021 thru-hiking season. You can access the park webpage to check for updates here.
3. COVID Restrictions
Expect the 2021 backpacking season to still be impacted by COVID restrictions and regulations. Thru-hiking this season means you may have to take extra precautions, including bringing and wearing a mask, avoiding group travel, avoiding public transportation options, and minimizing contact with others while on trail. Additionally COVID restrictions may affect travel for the 2021 season, and some public transportation options may not be viable or available this year.
4. You can no longer use Alta trailhead as an alternative starting trailhead to hike the HST.
This is another change for the 2021 season. Prior to this year, you could hike the High Sierra Trail via Alta Peak Trailhead. The closure from 7 Mile Hill to Kaweah Gap effectively prohibits backpackers from connecting the Alta Peak Trailhead to connect to the High Sierra Trail. This is a response from the NPS as a result of overuse of the trail, especially due to high impact at Hamilton Lake.
With those four things in mind, good luck applying for a permit!
For a detailed overview of everything you need to know for backpacking the High Sierra Trail including itineraries, food recommendations, and more, click here.
