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  1. #1
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    :banana PCT section hike

    Hi

    I read many PCT...everyone always talk about thru hike.

    But is there no one who just do a big section?

    I plan to quit job, and sell most of my property soon and do a big hike. I need to sell my house first...but I heard is seller's market...so should be quite easy and fast.

    I want to do PCT...because I like the wide openness of desert and hiking on top of mountain ridges. I don't like to be in dense jungles.

    So lets say I quite in April and put my house up for sale...and can start hiking in beginning of June and have unlimited time frame to hike as long as possible (until my foot is blistered to much?)...what should I do?

    I have small experience hiking in Big Bend Texas...but I have already most of ultralight hiking gear purchased already...just need to sort out things like find a PCT approved cooking stove, figure out what to eat, snow hiking, and how to hang food CA style. But I'm not athelttically gifted...so I probably will be hiking slow pace. I know that'll be tough because water refill require you to hike fast sometimes. Walking slower means carrying more water, which slow you down even more...like a vicisous cycle. I don't know if what permit I need. I don't know how to resupply...hoping to just buy food at towns along the way.
    Last edited by engineer19; 02-21-2019 at 18:50.

  2. #2
    Registered User Venchka's Avatar
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    You have until June to improve your speed.
    June is too late to start in the desert.
    2019 is starting out to be a high snowfall year in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. In late May determine where the trail is passable north of Lake Tahoe. In early June start hiking south from maybe Lassen National Park. Aim to get to the Sierras in July after the snow is mostly gone and the streams are safe to cross.
    All of the above could change for better or worse by June. Except the part about not starting at the border in June.
    Good luck!
    Wayne

  3. #3
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    I would serious look at a SoBo hike. Watch the snow level and maybe push until July if it’s a big snow year up north. Your only challenge if you have a desire to do a thru is that you need to do almost 30mpd to be able to make it through the Sierra without a large chance of major snow. Go as far as your blister allow, Washington is drop dead gorgeous.
    enemy of unnecessary but innovative trail invention gadgetry

  4. #4
    Registered User Venchka's Avatar
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    “I want to do PCT...because I like the wide openness of desert and hiking on top of mountain ridges. I don't like to be in dense jungles.”

    You also described the Continental Divide Trail.
    It’s much closer to you. The mountains are Drop Dead Gorgeous. You can bypass the southern half of New Mexico and avoid most of the desert. If you only want a long section, Northern New Mexico and Colorado would be ideal. Hike northbound to Breckinridge/Frisco and catch an airport shuttle to the Denver Airport. Probably the easiest and cheapest long trail airport access in the USA.
    Zero Jungle!
    A 2018 CDT hike videos.
    https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=TdMa0rrlIhM

    Wayne

  5. #5

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    I've under my belt a PCT NOBO, another PCT completion doing LASHes, and several other PCT LASHes. LASH - long arse section hike. Some PCT segments I've done more than 10X. It's not always about "thru hikes." Personally, I've found worth in every one of those PCT hikes with the LASHes no less in value than the PCT NOBO. I feel the same about the CDT which I'm tackling again in LASHes after a SOBO CDT. Same with the Colorado Tr, JMT, SHR, BMT, AT, Hayduke, Grand Enchantment, etc. I recognize great value in hiking north with spring on an AT NOBO but see it equally as valuable doing AT LASHes. Indeed, as Tipi Walter and others have forcefully but accurately stated thru-hiking is definitely not the only valuable backpacking approach. Why I choose to go back to these places is because they provide different valuable perspectives experienced under different scenarios and seasons. FWIW, I once mistakenly thought since I experienced Crater Lake NP on that PCT NOBO that was it for Crater Lake NP. WOW, was I wrong. Being there in later fall, early spring and snowshoeing around the Crater Lake with snow covering everything has for me enriched my life. OMG, I've been to GSMNP upwards of 50 times. each time was a new experience even if doing some of the same trails. At one time I didn't get it why someone would return to the same hikes repeatedly. Now, I see value in really getting to know a place under different seasons and scenarios. Meese a groin' opp.


    We don't need another thread about WB purity or rehashing definitions of "thru hikes," but for me any hike can be labeled a thru hike if you're hiking through from a planned start to a planned destination. Many if not most trails don't magically end anyway at official termini despite that's how they are most often perceived. They can continue. The AT does not truly begin or end at Springer Mt or Mt Katahdin's summit. The CDT does not have to magically truly end or begin at Waterton Provincial Park/Glacier NP. The PCT does not truly have to end at the Can/US border. All these trails could be continued. If we enjoy hiking without having to make it about ego we will hike. We can have satisfaction and value in completing something by completing the hikes we set out to.

    jus my 3 cts.

  6. #6
    Registered User Venchka's Avatar
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    This is a better link to the CDT videos.
    https://m.youtube.com/playlist?list=...5iabB1ECXtec-x

    Wayne

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    i heard Cdt is the most difficult hike of the 3.

    i aint 20 or 30 something anymore
    ...i dont know if i it will be over my head.

  8. #8

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    Quote Originally Posted by engineer19 View Post
    i heard Cdt is the most difficult hike of the 3.

    i aint 20 or 30 something anymore
    ...i dont know if i it will be over my head.
    During typical thru timeframes the CDT is the most difficult of the TC trails. i.e; length, some route finding, not as well blazed as the AT or PCT(it's gotten better recently), much fewer thru hikers, higher overall elev, more constrained/narrower window for thru traveling, less support of trail angels, more remote, MANY acceptable alternates so choosing a route can be daunting alone which impacts resupply, MPD avgs, etc. Of course, many hikers do cookie cutter here's the route, here are the water locations, CS's, resupply pts, etc this is how it's done hikes. However, that hasn't stopped some who've completed the Triple Crown from tackling the CDT first or second rather than last of the TC trails. And, they were not all 20 or 30 something. One reason why some including myself strongly attest that being adaptable, sometimes serendipitously, is a trait hikers and perhaps LD hikers particularly need to possess. Again, that's all assuming a "thru hike". I'm of some other savvy experienced LD hiker's opinions that the CDT with all it has to scenically offer of the TC trails there're great benefits doing cherry picked CDT LASHes. There's so much to experience. The CDT doesn't take in the BEST IMHO of Yellowstone NP for example. Just as the PCT does not take in the BEST of Mt Ranier NP or N. Cascades NP or AT the diversity of Shenandoah NP or GSM NP. For some like myself who recognize thru hiking as much more than always backpacking with a willingness to perceive a "thru hike" as more than a 30" wide single track turn the mind off and jus walk it is even more logistically daunting. But like any hike of any length it's step after step after step, day after day after day much like life where we accomplish things. This includes during pre hike prep. Again, everyone does not need to "thru hike" to enjoy and gain high value from hiking/backpacking. If one does one might want to make an honest inventory of why one wants to backpack and why it has to be a "thru-hike."

    As mostly a LD hiker/"thru-hiker" unequivocally I gain value and provide value on every hike of any duration. Attaining "XYZ thru hike" acronym accolades is not why I hike.

  9. #9
    Registered User Venchka's Avatar
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    Don’t believe everything you read on the internet.
    New Mexico affords a good way to get in shape and work up to Colorado.
    Southern Colorado through the South San Juan and Weminuche Wilderness Areas offers a mountain experience beyond compare. On well maintained, well marked trails with convenient and plentiful water.
    I’m way older than you are. I live in northeast Texas. I have driven to the South San Juan Wilderness Area allowing 2 nights along the way at altitude and parking at the Three Forks trailhead, 10,500’, on Day 3 from home. Day 2 I camped on the CDT at 11,100’. Day 3 I hiked from 11,100’ up to 12,100’ and camped on the CDT at 11,800’. Day 4 I was back at the car by mid afternoon and having a great dinner in Chama, NM before dark.
    AND. I didn’t have to ask anyone for permission to hike and I camped where and when I wanted to.
    The GUTHOOK CDT app running on your phone in Airplane Mode will guide you. Backed up by FREE topo maps from the CDTC website.
    It’s a no brainer on my book.
    Wayne

  10. #10
    Registered User Venchka's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by engineer19 View Post
    i heard Cdt is the most difficult hike of the 3.

    i aint 20 or 30 something anymore
    ...i dont know if i it will be over my head.
    That myth is perpetuated to keep people from turning the CDT into the PCT or AT.

    I’m kidding!
    Seriously. Give it a try. There are many places to access the trail that aren’t too hard to get to.
    Wayne

  11. #11
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    yeah...im invested in the pct now. bought all the Wilderness Press books...read Wild and watched the movie. i will have to start over for the cdt.

  12. #12

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    Given limited experience and a late start, consider starting in the middle, north of the Sierra's. That way you won't have to worry about the dessert, snow or permits. And maybe you can stay ahead of the forest fires, which will start burning a little later in the summer.
    Follow slogoen on Instagram.

  13. #13

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    Quote Originally Posted by engineer19 View Post
    yeah...im invested in the pct now. bought all the Wilderness Press books...read Wild and watched the movie. i will have to start over for the cdt.
    The WP Press PCT books are a great resource. I still refer to them despite our culture's increasing desire for a comprehensive understanding arrived at through soundbites.

    Although you'll gain some feel for the Mojave Desert and central Cali scenery as well as the struggles of some PCTers from the movie Wild and Cheryl Strayed understand they were PCT outliers. She wandered in from a fog into backpacking unprepared being irresponsible in several ways which impacted others and the environment negatively. That impact continues. This is not an elitist statement. I'm merely reporting observations. I wonder what else was intentionally omitted from the book and movie that Cheryl did that resulted in negative impact as she hiked with a self concerned mindset. That's the way Cheryl has repeatedly historically behaved which got her into so many questionable situations.

    Despite romantic thru hiking backpacking and hiking perspectives as depicted in the movie very little of Cheryl's PCT hike is similar to how most PCTers approach their hikes. Despite so much hoopla about thru hiking, which garnered added PCT hiking interest, and increased ticket and book sales, Cheryl spent 93 days on the PCT and went some 1000 miles of the PCT's 2670, less than half. She didn't complete California. Just stating what she did. No judgements about that other than some implications in the book and movie that referred to thru hiking. Hmm, why do that? Maybe, it makes for a better story, more interest, more ticket and book sales, book signings, speaking engagements? Where I will judge her is she left discarded garbage and defecated on trail which is increasingly becoming greater issues when one embarks unprepared and acting ignorantly irresponsible. Although, some will say it's only a story or a movie there is no denying some certainly have been influenced to embark as Cheryl, ignorant, unprepared and self absorbed. In short time, there would be NO AT, PCT, CDT, NP's, SP's, CP's National Monuments, Marine Sanctuaries, Wilderness areas, Wildlife Management Areas, BLM's, clean air, clean land, clean water, clean CS's, trail angels/trail support, trail maintenance, monies to protect these areas, etc if we all acted self absorbed, self concerned, and only responsible to oneself. Cheryl could have come clean about the negative impacts she had on others and the environment but she's publicly been defensive about it ignoring much of the mindset she hiked while complicit in ALL what she did was being promoted which wasn't only positive but negative too. She could have used her platform to publicly voice that backpacking with a responsibility to only self is no way to backpack! To my knowledge she has never admitted that.

    Cheryl had a good story of some personal triumph that translated to the written word and screen. She used backpacking as a vehicle to gain some closure, to come to terms with herself...and used money made through the story. Great! Nothing wrong with that in itself. BUT, that's not how or why most PCTers approach their hikes. All of us have a responsibility to be aware of the impacts we can leave. Wilderness and NP's don't exist without being aware of more than ourselves! This is what might be taken from Cheryl's PCT account. * It's become an increasingly larger problem when outdoor's people including backpackers hit wilderness and NP's with only a responsibility to themselves! NO ONE hikes within an alienated bubble!

  14. #14

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    Quote Originally Posted by Slo-go'en View Post
    Given limited experience and a late start, consider starting in the middle, north of the Sierra's. That way you won't have to worry about the dessert, snow or permits. And maybe you can stay ahead of the forest fires, which will start burning a little later in the summer.
    If camping within the other PCT NP's you need a permit. That's the advantage of the PCT LD Permit. It enables not having to obtain all those permits separately. It's a convenient luxury. The AT and CDT doesn't have one.

  15. #15
    Registered User Venchka's Avatar
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    The OP is looking for a LASH. If the PCTA can’t accommodate that, shame on them.
    The 500 mile permit might work.
    If 2019 proves to be as bad as 2017, or worse, the OP won’t be alone trying to piece together a LASH starting in June.
    Good luck!
    Wayne

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    Quote Originally Posted by engineer19 View Post
    yeah...im invested in the pct now. bought all the Wilderness Press books...read Wild and watched the movie. i will have to start over for the cdt.
    Hope your joking.

    Ive only done about 500 mi of pct so o far, but plenty of people section hike it. Just dont talk about it here. Chunks might be better term than section.

    I got a friend in WA that lives near it thats invited me to do that region with him, so well see when can find time. Northern pct is still on my short list.

    I get 10 scheduled holidays off per yr
    26 fridays working 9-80 schedule
    And 33 vacation days

    Youd think with 69 working days off (almost 14 weeks) thered be more time to hike....
    Last edited by MuddyWaters; 02-24-2019 at 05:09.

  17. #17

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    Maybe I missed it. Did you apply for a PCT permit and were denied?
    Last edited by Nanatuk; 02-24-2019 at 19:09.

  18. #18
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    No. Never applied. The job situation is still fluid.

  19. #19
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dogwood View Post
    The AT and CDT doesn't have one.
    I'm going to start researching AT. The reason I never considered AT before was because of ticks. I don't like em. I read ticks are really big problem in Eastern US.
    And I had a bad experience one time with tick here in Texas...my pants were covered with 'em when I got home after a day hike and some crawled onto my back...luckily I didn't get symptoms of Lyme disease.

    And I read West Coast has no ticks.
    Last edited by engineer19; 03-05-2019 at 19:25.

  20. #20
    Registered User Venchka's Avatar
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    Stop reading. Go hiking.
    Wyoming. CDT. Rawlins to West Yellowstone, Montana Airport.
    Desert. Mountains. Yellowstone National Park.
    YouTube. Homemade Wanderlust. Dixie. 2018 CDT. Find her videos of Wyoming.
    I’m old. I’m slow. I can backpack on the CDT in Wyoming. The trail is well marked. Plenty of water.
    Just do it!
    Wayne

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