Hello all, I’ve been thinking on doing a thru-hike on the PCT for sometime now. Is it possible to hike the PCT starting at Campo and finish back here in Canada in the early season before all the big crowds start? I’m thinking last week of Feb or March 1? Thanks… Dave.
DaveCan
What is your snow travel and navigation experience? You will be needing exceptional skill for both.
Marcia
Not much experience in high snow country… Now that I asked the ? I kind of feel stupid… Looking around some at other posts ,it’s pretty clear you can’t really start early from either end and go ‘thru’ without by-passing etc, or many would I guess… I’m more a off season hiker, and not into the big crowds or touristy type things that come with peak times so I just hoped it could be done… I guess if I had more mountain snow experience then I’d go for it, but I’m not about to kill myself by taking to big of a risk on bad snowy terrain.
Dave 
DaveCan
As far as crowds go, if you try, you can avoid them, even starting in the ‘prime’ thru hike season.
Heading out of Wrightood, only 350 or so miles into my 06 hike, smack in the middle of the ‘wave’, I left with a few other people a bit later than most others. We hiked together that first day, but the 2nd day out, I kicked it up a notch compared to them. Not enough to where I caught up with the crowd that left Wrightwood earlier in the same day as I did. I ended up camping solo for 3 nights on the way over to the Saufleys. I only saw one or two other people during the days. When I got to AD, it turns out I was 4 to 8 miles behind a big bunch of folks, and about the same in front of another group. The key to this bubble was just being slightly out of phase with what the bulk of other folks were doing.
I was in a similar bubble north of Sonora Pass until nearly Tahoe. Camped alone and saw, at most, one or two people a day, for several days. Turns out there was a couple of other thrus that were seeing me for a few days - they’d see me cresting the next ridge. I had no idea they were there (didn’t look back), even though they were only, at most, an hour or two behind me for several days.
Another option to avoid other people is to night hike, or hike only in the pre-dawn, hole up for the day just a bit off trail, then hike again, not long before sunset into the night for a while.
As fast as ‘touristy’ types - you’ll only see the masses on weekends near roads. On touristy things or towns - I’d say that there aren’t too many on the PCT. Mammoth, S. Lk Tahoe and Sisters are the only ones come to mind that might qualify as ‘tourist’ or resort type towns. And Mammoth qualifies, to me at least, as a REALLY cool town stop - it was quite hiker friendly to me. Ditto Sisters - a great town stop. Both can be avoided quite easily if you so choose.
As far as the Feb / early March start date: Ditto what Marcia said…
Token Civilian
Thanks TC , lots of good info…
If I end up doing the PCT, I thought of carrying 7-10 days grub at a time, so that would keep me on the trail most of the time at least… I’d mostly do that till I got the feel for the place and what I could expect etc… I know the PCT has a great social aspect and many do the kick off event just for that experience etc, but I’m more the guy that never goes to parties or big gatherings and keeps to myself mostly or just with one or two friends… Anyhow thanks for the responses and advice…
Dave
DaveCan
We started the PCT a week ahead on the kick-off and missed the crowds. There were lots of other hikers in town in the south (10 or so at a time), but we rarely camped with anyone. Once past Kennedy Meadows the numbers really decreased - though then we started running into more short time (weekend) hikers. Because you don’t have shelters on tyhe PCT, hikers only really clump together in towns – on the trail you can camp where you want so you get plenty of solitude. The kickoff people didn’t start catching up with us until Ashland, except a few speed hikers, and by then they were all spread out.
So don’t worry about it. Unless you start within a couple of days of the kickoff, you won’t be part of the herd.
Ginny
Thanks Ginny… I actually would be able to do it in 2009 if I wanted… I guess it all depends on the amount of snow cover this winter as to how much earlier a person could start before the kickoff… Things that make ya go hmmm… Dave:)
DaveCan
I hiked pretty much in the thick of the so-called herd. I almost always hiked completely alone. The few times I hiked with people, I usually hiked alone and leap-frogged them for a few days before I fell out-of-sync again. For the first 700 miles there was always another person camped near me. That was the nature of the trail having so little water so spread apart. Nobody ever kept me up or bothered me in any way. After the first 700 miles I almost always camped alone.
I enjoyed meeting people and spending time with them on or off the trail. I never found it overwhelming. If you really hate crowds, just do your resupply quickly and get back on the trail. You’ll have plenty of solitude.
Piper
I snowshoe and camp in the Cascades Alpine Wilderness on a regular basis. I have pioneered snowshoe routes for Tubbs snowshoes and you can review one of mine on their website. This year the snow depth was enough to obliterate any sign of a trail and that is typical of any year. You may as well be going cross country. Ten miles a day average is what you can expect on snowshoes with a full load of winter gear. While a Cascade crossing is possible… I wouldn’t do it and I am as experienced as they come.
jeff hersey
Thanks Piper… It’s not so much complete solitude I’m looking for, just not big crowds at every supply stop etc… I look forward to meeting some new people and just having a great hike, so if I time it right then should be ok…
Jeff… Thanks for the advice and your experience…I will heed your warnings, as I’m not fool enough to ignore them…Venturing on to a snow covered mountain range with my inexperience, and maybe solo even,is not a plan I want to undertake. If I end up being able to hike the PCT I surely want to be able to make it back home one day, and not become a permanent fixture of the trail somewhere…
Dave
DaveCan
People sometimes bunch up in the southern desert because of water sources - you’ll see the same people every night (though you can almost always hike alone during the day) because you’ll be at the only logical water source. If you want to camp alone, just grab a bunch of water and hike another one or two miles and camp. As long as you don’t mind carrying a lot of water for a mile you’ll be all on your lonesome.
But really, there aren’t that many crowds, even if you leave at kickoff. You can find whatever level of solitude you like. While I fell in with a bunch of great people, I could easily have taken a few simple steps to get more solitude.
Haiku