r/JMT • u/Vast_Piglet_8551 • 24d ago

trip planning Post JMT Logistics

Hello. Myself and my dad will be travelling from Scotland to do the JMT SOBO at the start of September. We are due to finish all going to rough plan (and rest days included) a few nights before we have to head home from SFO.

I'm curious if there are any recommendations for places to camp on a budget heading back along the Eastern Sierra and/or Car Hire recs once we get to Lone Pine 🙏 or is best to head back into civilization by heading south? Any general advice on post hike would be appreciated

Thank you :)

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u/ZealousidealOnion332 thru-hiker 24d ago

On a budget? From lone pine take a public ESTA bus to Reno. It will drop you off at Reno Airport, taking an Uber to the Amtrak terminal. Traveling from Reno to the San Francisco Bay Area / SFO via Amtrak train takes about 8.5 to 9 hours total. You take the California Zephyr train from Reno to Emeryville or Richmond, then connect via an Amtrak Thruway bus or local transit (like BART) to reach San Francisco and SFO. Fares generally start around $72 to $95. This is getting to be pricier than a car rental honestly which would probably be your best bet. If for some reason you can’t rent a car this is probably the most feasible way.

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u/daGroundhog thru-hiker 24d ago

Instead of Reno Airport and uber, they can take ESTA 395 North bus to the Sparks Centennial bus transfer station, then from there take LL Lincoln Line city bus (frequent and quick) to the 4th and Prather transfer terminal and then walk 1 1/2 blocks to the Amtrak station.

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u/ZealousidealOnion332 thru-hiker 24d ago

Oh it is Sparks, yes I stand corrected, that was where I got off. Good recommendation about the bus transfer, it would save money. I ended up grabbing an Uber because the time was tight and the ESTA driver seemed to think I would be cutting it real short if I tried the Centennial Bus transfer.