Hey,
my buddy and I are doing a south bound hike this year. We have a start date of july 1st, my question is water in the south. I know there is none, but does any one know any trail angles that will still put water out that late? If any one else that has any info on southbound hikes, I could use it.
Thanks
toastyjosh
hey man … i did a southbound hike last season, and i didnt have trouble with water once … i dont think you will have to be concerned with water at all … some parts of new york/new jersey are dry, but usually there is water to be had … i rarely carried more than 1 liter of water, since water is so damn heavy … only a few times i had to carry more, but the companion and data book are extremely helpful for water sources … any other questions??? feel free to email me … i would love to give you any advice needed … happy trails
waldo “SOBO 4 life”
waldo
Of course Waldo failed to say that it rained almost everyday last year…hince why water was everywhere. I don’t think that I would count on that happening again this year. Just my thoughts
SweetAss
Waldo and SweetAss - You might notice that this thread was posted on the PCT forum - not the AT. Southbound hiking is a very different experience.
This is probably not a good year to go southbound - largely because of the high snow levels this year in Washington and the damage that was done to the PCT there in the flooding last fall. The Forest Service will probably reroute the PCT in some places where the trail was washed away and the bridges are gone. Some of those rivers you really don’t want to cross without a bridge. They won’t even know what parts of the trail are passable until July. They won’t begin trailwork until August - if then.
As to water - the rainy season in southern California is February-March. So it will probably be dry when you reach the desert if you do a SB hike. There won’t be water caches - those are an April-May phenomenon.
It is much harder to do a southbound hike on the PCT than on the AT. Far fewer people finish the trail going south than going north. I think that in part that is psychological - southern California in the fall lacks the splendor of the Cascades in autumn. The thing that made S.Cal interesting was seeing it in spring, with all the desert wildflowers. I think it would be easy to lose motivation while winding through the endless hills. But a few do it.
Try posting on PCT-L and see if you get any responses. I can’t think of any southbounders there, but there may be a few.
Ginny
toast-
I hope you enjoy your thru hike this year. I’ll look forward to seeing you out there. I think this is a great year to do a sobo thru of the pct. Challenging yes, and extremely rewarding. Go for it! July 1 will be a good start date, and you will encounter snow but you will be prepared, right? My info could be different than others, but so far, I don’t see this as a particularly big snow year anywhere on the pct. About average. This could change quickly however. Your reroute around glacier peak is there for you if you look at the map and the scenery will be superb. The bugs will test you but I’m sure you will be prepared for them. If I were giong sobo this year I might now be trying to cultivate relationships with hikers that live in socal. If I where there, I would leave water for you. Hope you enjoy every step.
John
Thanks for the info guys,
Yes we are prepaired for snow and bugs, however the reroutes in washington I am not to aware of. I do plan on contacting The USFS in thouse parts. As far as socal, I have water options in the big bear area, but that is it. I am hoping to find some angles to help me out.
Thanks guys
Josh
toastyjosh