Southbound - Pacific Crest Trail

imported
#1

In the Northwest we are snow free to almost 4000 feet with warm and dry weather predicated for the rest of spring. The snow pack is furthest below normal in Washington allowing Oregon to melt out a little before you hit it.

We are leaning towards a May 1 start from Manning. Basically it isn’t a snow issue in Southern Cal. but a “when else could you go South so early” issue. Regardless of the low snow pack in Washington going North I think you are going to run into worse or just as bad snow as you would in the Sierras.

I think the main argument going South Bound is that the Oregon and Washington could be on fire at an unheard of level. We are already having burn bans and the forests are dry.

If anyone is even considering going South Bound I believe it is a very real option. I will continue to throw out information as things change and we spend time out on the PCT in Oregon and Washington.

David

#2

The idea of switching directions to avoid fires could be wise. One thing to consider though is that you will have quite a different experience as a southbounder. You won’t be running into other thru-hikers in every town, sharing info, stories and good times, hearing about who’s up ahead, who’s off, etc. That’s a big part of the joy of the experience, being a part of that community.

Bears in the Sierras are more active/agressive in later summer, and what about water and heat all through california in late summer? There’s also been plenty of bad fires in California in recent years later in the summer, no?

Things to think about anyway.

Cheers,
Paul

toes

#3

Part of the reason is to avoid the folks–we want to do the PCT for a wilderness experience. The community would be a nice bonus but if that was our goal we would be on the AT.

Also if you take it slow enough you should hit the heat in mid-September. Hot but doable? And wildfires are a problem regardless but I think the wildfire season in the North will be the worst in years—this is fourth driest year on record in the PNW!!

As for water–just think about it as many Hat Rim days. And remember Oregon will be very dry this year. Again it is a very real choice but one which will have to wait a bit.

Fun to think about

David

#4

Yeah, it wouldn’t be the same if you were running into dozens of people on trail every day, but luckily there’s not that many people hiking the PCT each year, and the farther you go the fewer of them are still on trail. There’s plenty of alone time in the wilderness when northbound hiking and hopefully it will stay that way, but I value the few friends I made on trail and some of the times we got to hang out and celebrate the experience. I wouldn’t want to hike with a crowd, but I’m curious if a southbound hike wouldn’t be too lonely an experience?

Uhg, I’ve got to stop thinking about trail life and get back to work! 06 hike is still 13 months away.

toes

#5

David, I take it you’re in the northwest currently?

You’re considering a MAY 1 start??? Wow! Are you an experienced snow traveler or is there so little snow that that’s unnecessary even on May 1?

Eric

#6

Community is my only deciding factor. I’m not looking for crowds, but rather to develop contacts for a possible 06 CDT hike. SOBO has always appealed to me, but so has a pre June 15 sierra hike in a heavy snow year like we currently have.

How many 05ers out there are still on the fence for SOBO/NOBO?

How many SOBOs can we expect this year?

Nathan

#7

If you want to hike the PCT sobo, I wouldn’t recommend changing your plans so that you could meet contacts for a 2006 CDT hike. The reality is that most hikers don’t hike back-to-back years. Also, once you start planning your CDT hike, you’ll probably be active on CDT-L. That’s where you’ll find out what dates other hikers are planning to start their CDT hikes, and you could all start out around the same date.

The CDT is not the trail to pair up with someone, even it it worked for you on the PCT. Since there are very few hikers on the CDT, hiking with a partner — even in a very loose partnership — can be trying. I would recommend starting your CDT hike around the same time as others, hike with them with no committments, and move on if you need to.

Only 9 thru-hikers completed the CDT in 2004. There was one guy who I simply could not shake. He kept showing up. Aaarrrggghhh! On the other trails, there are enough other hikers that you can easily avoid people if you want. On the CDT, there are few hikers and the ones who want company will find it.

yogi

www.pcthandbook.com

yogi

#8

I wouldn’t be so fast to proclaim this a south bound year.

  1. You will still have to deal with forest fires at the end of the hike. Only, rather than dealing with them in the northwest, you’ll deal with them in SoCal. It looks like the PNW will burn hard this year. But, SoCal always burns, so you’ve got your choice.

  2. End your hike by traversing 700 miles of SoCal at its very worst. No flowers, miserable conditions. Or, end at one of the most beautiful places in the world.

  3. The mosquitoes are going to be absolute hell on earth if you do a SOBO hike. And, they’ll probably be bad for 1000 miles.

  4. With all the water, this may be one of the great years for desert wildflowers. 2003 was, and I’m very, very glad that I got it in. SOBO hikers will miss this completely. Moreover, there is a significant chance of missing alpine flowers in the PNW as well.

The reasons people give for not going NOBO seem to be:

  1. There is a lot of snow in the Sierra, and you can’t hike on snow.

  2. The PNW is the best, so let’s get it out of the way first before it burns.

I can understand (2) as it really might happen. However, (1) is, to me, a non-issue. Start a bit later than the rest of the pack. Don’t rush it to KM. Take some time off there if the snow isn’t good. Hike in when your skill level allows it.

What is more problematical is river fords. There are a few nasty ones in the Sierra (and a host of less nasty ones). The fords are really very dangerous (or can be). With massive snow melt comes big, fast fords. Those are dangerous.

If it were me, I’d plan on leaving Campo are May 15 and on going into the Sierra around June 15. If you are not comfortable on snow, put off going into the Sierra until something like June 25.

Some people have mentioned the flip-flop. I think that makes a lot more sense than going SOBO (as you avoid both fire seasons, get both flower seasons, and end after the Sierra), but I still wouldn’t do it, though only for aesthetic reasons.

Suge

#9

Good Summary Suge.

I agree, snow in the Sierra is essentially a non-issue for now. Obviously we are a bit above average, but nothing that a slight delay (or a warm spring) won’t take care of.

For me, it’s all about the NW snowpack. As a skier, an aspiring thru-hiker, and a general weather geek, I have been following the situation closely since November. The pattern has been AMAZINGLY consistent all winter (REAL dry North, REAL wet South) and there is still no change in sight. The class of '05 has a historical situation at hand.

I’m going NB to start because I want to see the South in bloom, but will be watching the NW weather in May and June carefully. Don’t want to flip-flop for aesthetic and transportation reasons, particullarly with a dog…Oppps, did I mention a dog ;-)…but will seriously consider it out of fear that Northern OR and WA could be unplesant at best and shut down at worst. Detours or flat out no-go in WA would really be a bummer; I think this is a real possibility. Flipping from Lone Pine and ending on Mt. Whitney would lessen the aesthetic pain for me.

Mostly, I’m just getting freakin’ pumped to live on the trail and will take whatever comes…it’s all just fun conjecture for now, including wether or not my body will even get me to WA, but there no longer can be any question…we have a VERY unique situation at hand. Pray for spring rain in the evergreen state.

Hans Berg

#10

I most say that Suge is the other voice in my head–we still flip back and forth. And he could convince me otherwise–especially the mosquitoes. Who knows what will happen!!

As for the other question–I am comfortable on the snow and the weather is really that freaky. You need to go out to truly appreciate how bizarre this year is in the PNW!! For better or worse I won’t be doing this alone but my wife is dragging me along—it was her idea first (gotta love that).

We will be heading into the Goat Rocks from Stevens Pass in the next two weeks to see what it looks like a little higher.

Now which is better Southern Desert in full bloom or the high Sierra in full bloom at the end of August—assuming it will bloom out late?

David

#11

I was up in the Olympics two weekends ago. Not much snow below about 3500 ft. I ran into a ton around 4500 ft. See pics at:

http://www.pierce.ctc.edu/faculty/cwillett

Look under Local Trips, and then the First Divide hike.

Snoqualmie Pass is almost snow free as of last weekend.

Suge