Pacific Crest Trail

Template:Trails The Pacific Crest Trail is a long-distance mountain hiking and equestrian trail that runs from the United States border with Mexico to its border with Canada and follows the highest portion of the Sierra Nevada and Cascade Range which parallel the Pacific Ocean by 100 to 150 miles (161 to 241 km). The Pacific Crest Trail is 2,650 miles (4,240 km) long and ranges in elevation from just above sea level at the Oregon-Washington border to 13,153 feet (4009 m) at Forester Pass in the Sierra Nevadas.

It was designated a National Scenic Trail in 1968, although it was not officially completed until 1993. The Pacific Crest Trail, the Appalachian Trail, and the Continental Divide Trail form the Triple Crown of long distance hiking in the United States. The PCT was conceived by Clinton C. Clarke in 1932; however it was not given official status until the National Trails System Act of 1968.

Route

PCT trail overview from Forest Service brochure (click to enlarge)

The route is mostly through National Forest and—where possible—protected Wilderness. It avoids civilization preferring instead scenic and pristine mountainous terrain with few roads. It passes through the Laguna, San Jacinto, San Bernardino, San Gabriel, Liebre, Tehachapi, and Sierra Nevada ranges in California, and the Cascade Range in Oregon and Washington states.

Thru-hiking

Each year, about 300 people, commonly called thru-hikers, attempt to hike the entire trail from end-to-end. The trip usually takes between four and six months. Around 180 complete the hike each year. Most thru-hikers start from the Mexican border and reach the north end of the trail before the first hard snow. Picking up supplies along the way, usually packages sent to them via mail, most hikers cover about 20 miles (32 km) per day.

The trail may have been first thru-hiked in 1970 by 18-year-old Eric Ryback. Wilderness Press, the publisher of Ryback's 1971 book The High Adventure of Eric Ryback, later claimed that Ryback had "cheated" by accepting rides for part of the distance. Ryback sued for $3 million, but dropped the suit when the publisher produced statements from people claiming to have given Ryback a ride. The truth of Ryback's claim is still debated.

The first person confirmed to have thru-hiked the entire PCT, as well as the first person to hike from south to north, was Richard Watson, who completed the trail on September 1, 1972. The first woman was Mary Carstens, who completed the journey later in 1972 accompanied by Jeff Smukler.

The first person to have thru-hiked the entire PCT both ways in a single continuous round-trip was Scott Williamson, who completed the "yo-yo" circuit on his fourth attempt in November 2004. Williamson traveled a total of 5,300 miles (8529.5 km) in 197 days, covering an average of 35 to 40 miles (56.3 to 64.4 km) per day when not in snow, wearing an extremely ultra-lightweight pack, which "without food, weighed about 8.5 pounds" (3.864 kg). Williamson then went on to complete a second round trip on November 28 2006, cutting two weeks off his 2004 time.

Locations of interest

The following areas or points of interest are found along or adjacent to the route of the Pacific Crest Trail. They are listed from south to north to correspond with the itinerary typically followed by through hikers to take advantage of the best seasonal weather conditions. The numbers in parenthesis correspond to the numbers on the PCT overview map above.

Vasquez Rocks	Kings Canyon National Park
John Muir Wilderness	Ansel Adams Wilderness
Devils Postpile National Monument	Tuolumne Meadows, Yosemite National Park
Lassen Volcanic National Park	Castle Crags Wilderness
Crater Lake National Park	File:Oregon jefferson park 20060805-0940.jpeg Mount Jefferson and Jefferson Park
Mount Hood Wilderness	Bridge of the Gods
Glacier Peak Wilderness	North Cascades National Park

California

• Campo, California, near the trail's southern terminus at the U.S.-Mexico border
• Anza-Borrego Desert State Park (41)
• Cleveland National Forest (40)
• Big Bear Lake
• Cajon Pass
• Angeles National Forest (35)
• Vasquez Rocks
• Agua Dulce, California
• Walker Pass
• Owens Peak Wilderness
• Kings Canyon National Park (33)
  • Forester Pass, highest point on the trail
• John Muir Wilderness (31)
• Ansel Adams Wilderness (30)
  • Devils Postpile National Monument
• Yosemite National Park (29)
  • Tuolumne Meadows
• Sonora Pass, Ebbetts Pass, Carson Pass
• Desolation Wilderness
• Lassen National Forest (22)
  • Lassen Volcanic National Park (23)
• McArthur-Burney Falls Memorial State Park (21)
• Shasta-Trinity National Forest (19)
  • Castle Crags Wilderness (20)

Oregon

• Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument (17)
• Rogue River National Forest (16) and Winema National Forest (14)
  • Sky Lakes Wilderness
• Crater Lake National Park (15)
  • Crater Lake
• Umpqua National Forest (13)
  • Mount Thielsen
• Willamette National Forest (11) and Deschutes National Forest (12)
  • Diamond Peak Wilderness
  • Waldo Lake
  • Three Sisters Wilderness
    • McKenzie River
  • Mount Washington Wilderness
  • Mount Jefferson Wilderness
• Mount Hood National Forest (9)
  • Olallie Scenic Area
  • Warm Springs Indian Reservation (10)
  • Timberline Lodge
  • Mount Hood Wilderness
    • Lolo Pass
• Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area (8)
  • Mark O. Hatfield Wilderness (formerly the Columbia Wilderness)
  • Cascade Locks, Oregon, lowest point on the trail
  • Bridge of the Gods (links Oregon and Washington, crossing the Columbia River)

Washington

• Gifford Pinchot National Forest (7)
  • Indian Heaven Wilderness
  • Mount Adams
• Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest (5)
  • Goat Rocks Wilderness
  • Norse Peak Wilderness
  • Alpine Lakes Wilderness
  • Henry M. Jackson Wilderness
  • Glacier Peak Wilderness
• Mount Rainier National Park (6)
  • Chinook Pass
• Snoqualmie Pass
• Stevens Pass
• Lake Chelan National Recreation Area
  • Stehekin, Washington, last town along the trail, 10 miles (16 km) from PCT by NPS bus
• North Cascades National Park (2)
• Boundary Monument 78, at the U.S.-Canada border

British Columbia, Canada

• E.C. Manning Provincial Park, the northern terminus of the trail. (1)

External links

• Pacific Crest Trail Association — Non-profit that maintains and promotes the trail, and provides advice to hikers
• Mailing list for prospective thru-hikers
• General long distance hiking tips
• Tell It On The Mountain - Multi-part television series-in-the-making. Follows hikers as they make their way along the trail
• PCT Trail Journals— Read on-line journals of PCT hikers.
• Hiker Heaven in Agua Dulce
• PCT Snow Page Snow/Hiker Information & Journals
• John Muir Trail Guide to the most popular, and highest, part of the PCT
• PCT Trail Maps and Beta PCT Beta for maps, info, and links