A 4:30 a.m. alarm, a graupel storm at 13,153 feet and a plaque honouring an 18-year-old trail builder who died a century ago — that's day five on the John Muir Trail, as recounted by one hiker in a detailed journal of the push over Forester Pass.

Forester Pass is the highest point on the entire Pacific Crest Trail and the highest pass on the John Muir Trail, sitting at 13,153 feet in the Sierra Nevada. The account describes a steady uphill grind followed by a near-vertical rock face, crossed via zigzag switchbacks cut into the cliff in 1930. That construction came at a human cost: a young worker named Donald Downs, just weeks shy of his 19th birthday, was killed during the build, and his crewmates left a plaque at the site in his memory.

The logistics of the crossing are a lesson in Sierra weather strategy. The pattern that week was clear mornings and stormy afternoons, so an early start was essential — though the writer's camp still didn't break until 6:30, and a trail sign revealed the pass was five miles away, not four. At around 10 a.m., the clouds arrived on schedule, pelting the pair with graupel — those odd soft pellets that are neither snow, hail nor sleet — which later turned to snow and then steady rain on the descent. Thunder rumbled as they topped out, so the summit celebration was brief before a long downhill above the tree line toward Vidette Meadow, the day's camp.

There are a few practical gems buried in the trail talk. A silk sleeping bag liner, weighing almost nothing, turned a freezing night into a toasty one — the writer calls it a favourite luxury. The route also passes hikers heading to and from Independence, California, where the Mt Williamson Motel and Basecamp caters specifically to High Sierra trekkers. And for anyone finishing the trail nearby: the recommended celebratory steak is at The Seasons restaurant in Lone Pine, with trail exits possible via Onion Valley, just a couple of days' walk past the pass.

The journal is also refreshingly honest about the less Instagrammable side of long-distance hiking: a lingering respiratory infection, a sleepless night, gear management in the rain, and the mental fog that comes from altitude and exhaustion. It's a useful reality check for anyone dreaming about the JMT — the pass is very doable, but it rewards early starts, warm layers and a flexible attitude about weather.

For travellers, the takeaway is that Forester Pass isn't just a checkbox on a famous trail. It's an engineering landmark with a tragic backstory, a gauge for reading mountain weather, and a gateway to the resupply towns of the Eastern Sierra, where motels, burgers and real beds wait at trail's end.