1)When do hikers typically begin their PCT thru hike?
2)I’m also trying to get an idea of how long a PCT thru would take. For those of you who have hiked both the AT and PCT, how does average daily milage compare? When I thru hiked the AT I averaged around 20 miles/day, should I expect the milage to come harder or easier on the PCT? Thanks!
Jersey Joe
#1. Plus or Minus two weeks of April 23rd.
#2. Mileage is supposedly faster on the PCT. SoCal because the water sources so far apart. Howver, don’t arrive at KM too soon or you wait…after that you can do what you want.
#3. Never hiked the PCT before, just the AT.
Ganj
Jersey Joe,
If you need a ride at the end drop me an email, or anyting else in Washington State. I need to return some AT magic and since I’m in Washington State it will have to be done on the PCT.
casey
Many hikers start at the Annual Day Zero PCT Kick OFf Party (ADZPCTKO) at the end of April (see the PCTA Website for details). It’s a good way to meet other hikers, get information on trail conditions and water staches, meet some of the trail angels, etc. The crowd thins out quickly, but most are aiming to reach Kennedy Meadows, 700 miles up the trail, around June 15th. Any earlier and you spend more time dealing with deep snow and snowmelt, which will slow you down and can be dangerous.
The trail itself is built for horses, wide and gently graded. It switchbacks endlessly up and down the hills. It is very easy to do big miles, if you choose to. We did the trail in 5 months, 5 days, and we are far from speed hikers. We were actually trying to slow down because we wanted to attend the ALDHA-West Gathering in October. My AT average was about 12 mpd (though I did 20’s, I also did a lot of zeros and short days into or out of town). On the PCT my average was 19 - we did a lot fewer town days and many 20-25 mpd days.
Ginny
#1 Island mama and i started on May 17th. I would NOT advise starting that late! It was SO HOT. But, it was only like that for 700 miles;)
#2 Daily mileage is indeed higher on the PCT. I would not use the word EASY, however. That’s like saying VA is easy. The “tread” surface is less obstructed, and has a lower grade, but heat, cold, elevation, snow, dryness - all the extremes are represented. Plus there’s not a store to rest at every forty miles.
#3 You can probably count on 22-26 miles average. I would say higher, but there are only so many daylight hours. If you get up early every day, you could do 30’s. We didn’t. We were lazy I guess
:lol
Tha Wookie
Thank you all for your responses. I did not even know about the “Annual Day Zero PCT Kick OFf Party”. I’m surprised that there isn’t a “kickoff party” for the AT.
It seems the time frames for the PCT are a lot more rigid because of weather.
Jersey Joe
The party came out of PCT-L several years ago and has proved to be quite a success. The PCT has the advantage of a large public campground at Lake Morena, 20 miles up the trail. A lot of hikers are picked up at the airport, dropped at the border at dawn, then hike the 20 miles to Lake Morena where they spend the evening being pampered by trail angels. There are gear contests (make your own?) and lots of food and fun – or so I hear. Some then slack the next 20 miles, returning to the ADZPCTKO for one more night. Some just pass through, accepting food and drink and good wishes as they go. It’s up to you. The AT doesn’t have the facilities quite as easily and as close to the trail - but it does have trail days, which is a celebration of hiking in its own way.
We were a week too early for the kick off party, but stopped at the campground cafe at Lake Morena simply because it was a cold wet foggy morning as we passed through (we made the mistake of camping 5 miles before by Hauser Creek - watch out for illegals passing by). They made a good breakfast. It was only .5 from the trail - great for the ADZPCTKO.
Ginny