My PCT journey was so much more than the numbers, but as an analytical person, I like the numbers too. They are another lens I can use to process the experience. A graph provides a succinct visualization of a very complex 2,655 mile journey. It certainly doesn’t capture everything, but it gives my brain a …
We did it! On Monday morning my tramily and I arrived at the northern terminus of the PCT. It was a glorious moment, touching the Canadian border. The preceding three weeks in Washington had been a long difficult slog. In these remote, rugged, cold and wet North Cascades, we were pushed to our limits. The …
Day 130 Current Location Bend, OR Miles Hiked 2,001.9 Miles to Go 653.3 Percent of Trail Completed 75.4% It was bound to happen sooner or later. Multiple wildfires are devastating all three states on the PCT this summer. Despite these fires, my tramily was lucky to be able to walk through all of California without …
Day 120 Current Location Ashland, OR Miles Hiked 1,718.7 Miles to Go 936.5 Percent of Trail Completed 64.7% I’m in Oregon! It was a big moment when CamelDown, Analogue, and I crossed the border yesterday. The three of us had walked the entire length of California, maintaining a continuous footpath from the border of Mexico …
Day 99 Current Location Chester, CA Miles Hiked 1,332.4 Miles to Go 1,322.8 Percent of Trail Completed 50.2% At 7 am this morning I passed the small concrete post that marks the official halfway point of the PCT. The marker is surrounded by trees as black as tar, burnt to a crisp during the Dixie …
Day 89 Current Location Truckee, CA Miles Hiked 1,154.5 Miles to Go 1,500.7 Percent of Trail Completed 43.5% Cleaned up in Tahoe I hardly recognized myself in the mirror. Clean face, fresh haircut, crisp white dress shirt, and to top it off, bleached hair. After several weeks of tough hiking, my friends and I splurged …
Day 78 Current Location Kennedy Meadows (North), CA Miles Hiked 1,018.1 Miles to Go 1,637.1 Percent of Trail Completed 38.3% I heard clapping. Strange. I looked up to see what was going on. A dozen people were sitting on the porch of the Kennedy Meadows General Store cheering. Why were they all looking at …
Day 43 Current Location Tehachapi, CA Miles Hiked 566.5 Miles to Go 2,088.7 Percent of Trail Completed 21.3% The giant blade of a windmill whooshed over my head as I stopped to check the time. 11 pm. Way past my bedtime. Still another five miles to the campsite. I clicked my headlamp back on, but …
Day 29 Current Location Wrightwood, CA Miles Hiked 369.3 Miles to Go 2,285.9 Percent of Trail Completed 13.9% In the first few weeks of the PCT, I wanted to ease back into the hiking life. Not wanting to stretch my body too hard, I aimed for a moderate 15ish miles per day. Now …
Day 18 Current Location Banning, CA Miles Hiked 209.6 Miles to Go 2,445.6 Percent of Trail Completed 7.9% My alarm went off at 4:30 am and I felt great. My hiking group of six had decided to get up early to get as far as we could while the snow was still cold and firm. …