After three years and three attempts, this summer I finally completed the 211-mile John Muir Trail entirely without shoes.  Whether sensible or not, that was my objective all along.  As my friend Mat reminded me, when I ran in to him at Red’s Meadow, “finishing what you start is a good habit to get into.”  And then a few seconds later I realized that’s what I told him — in 2021 when he’d seen me struggling on Glen Pass, shortly before I gave up and pulled on shoes.  So throughout my 2022 journey, especially when things got tough, I kept thinking to myself how much better it would be to report to Matt a successful outcome, rather than explaining why I failed again.

I’m working on a detailed write-up, which is quickly expanding to book-size length, adding to a great mountain of material that awaits the light of day.  For now, this post contains links to a number of short videos I filmed while walking down the trail.  You can also access these videos on my YouTube channel. Continue reading “Barefoot on the JMT – 2022” →