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Fortunately you don't have to carry all your food and fuel with you for 220 miles. There are several notable places along the way to replenish your supplies. If you look at our meal plan, you can see the places we have designated to supply.
The first one is at Tuolomne Meadows. We come from the Tioga Pass into Yosemite, so it is an easy thing for us to stop in the large parking lot by the Wilderness Permit Office and put our supplies in a bear locker. We have done this many times, and never have had our food taken by another hiker, though it is possible. I like to think that people don't want to carry any more than they have to, so they leave your stuff alone. On the negative side of this, most of the bear lockers are in the sun, so your candy bars might melt. If you are arriving at Tuolomne on a weekday, you can mail a package to the Tuolomne Meadows Post Office, keeping in mind that they close around 5pm. Here's the info:
Your Name
c/o General Delivery
Tuolomne Meadows Yosemite National Park, CA 95389
Business Hours:
Mon-Fri 9:00-5:00pm
Sat 9:00-12:00pm
Sun closed
Next stop is Mammoth. From your arrival at Devil's Postpile Campground, you can take a shuttle bus to Mammoth Lakes. In town there are grocery stores, drug stores, sporting goods. You can also mail yourself a package here. If you don't want to get off the trail, you can send yourself a package to Red's Meadow Resort, of course, for a fee.
From Mammoth, the next easy resupply is Vermillion Valley Resort. They cater to Pacific Crest trail and John Muir Trail through-hikers. Leaving the JMT/PCT at Quail Meadows, and continue to the Edison Lake/Mono Creek ferry pick-up point. They have an extensive website which will give you updates on their fees. At Vermillion Valley Resort you will find an amazing array of conveniences, from hot meals to showers and laundry facilities. Be sure to look in the trail log, segment 3, day 12, to see a description of our experience there.
About 22 miles down the trail is Muir Trail Ranch. They will hold a package for you for a significant fee ($45) with some very specific instructions for packing and mailing. At the ranch, right by where you pick up your package, there were about fifteen 5 gallon cans, just packed with food that others had left to share. If you weren't picky about what to eat, you could do a free resupply out of those bins. Across the river from the backpacker's area there are hot springs to enjoy, so plan to spend the night. You have to search for one that isn't muddy, but it's there, and it is pleasantly hot. See also the trail log, segment 4, day 15.
From here you will have to carry food and fuel for 100 miles, so depending on how fast you are hiking, that could be significant. We like to take our time, so we had a plan to do some food drops over passes on the Eastern Sierra, when some friends volunteered to meet us at 2 spots along the way. If your friends live far away, that is not likely to happen for you. We had planned to hike over Bishop Pass, and cache some food in LeConte Canyon, which is a 12 mile hike from South Lake, near Bishop, Ca.
The next "easy" access is from Independence, Ca., over Kearsarge Pass, a 8 mile hike from Onion Valley to Charlotte Lake. Caching is pretty safe, just remember to put it in a bear-proof cannister or bear locker, label when you are planning to pick it up, and take some detailed notes about where you cache it.
updated December 14, 2008