Attempting a thru hike next spring and considering my tent options. I’ve read the blogs I’ve looked at the gear sites etc etc. I have a Durtson 2P now which I love but am thinking of buying another tent for my thru. My biggest concern is mostly the footprint of the 2P being so large and making it harder to find a site - I also just don’t need that much room. For those that have hiked the PCT, do you think the larger size will be much of an issue? Will it be fine to run w the Durston 2P and save the money or is it worth it to spend more on a new tent? If new tent, which ones are you liking these days?

Hi all, I'm planning to secrion hike Section K from Stevens Pass to Rainy Pass the last week of August (approximately August 22-30). I am obviously concerned about fires, but have had my eye on this section for awhile and that is the best time for me from a work perspective.

Where can I get the best information about potential fires leading up to (and during) my hike?

I’m planning to LASH Washington this year (NOBO) and have been doing research, but have a few questions.

With limited service in Stehekin this year, are most people skipping it and adding an extra day to resupply in Mazama? I don’t like sending resupply boxes, but could send a box to Stehekin. However, it would be tougher logistically as I would need to be there on weekdays to pick it up from the post office.

How are the blowdowns? Mainly worrying about Stevens Pass upward. My pace is around 15-18 miles a day and I'm wondering if the blowdowns will slow me down drastically.

Lastly, how is the weather from early August to mid-September? I’m hoping I won't need heavy cold weather clothing yet (I have rain gear and lightweight puffy).

Thanks!

I'm planning on doing the PCT next year and am having a hard time deciding on a sleeping bag.

I have a 20 degree EE quilt which I like but I know it won't be the sleeping bag I take for the entire hike.

I generally sleep pretty cold. For reference, I remember being really cold when it got down to the low teens one night with a sleeping pad with a 4.something rating, an outdoor vitals 0 degree bag (I don't think their warmth ratings are super accurate), and a 22 degree bag stuffed into the other bag.

I've slept pretty well the 0 degree bag I have if it's around freezing, but that's about the limit and I'm planning on selling it regardless. With the EE quilt, I've slept fine at a little above freezing with a liner.

I've been thinking about a 10 or 20 degree women-specific FF bag (Petrel), a 0 degree EE Enigma, or one of the katabatic gear quilts (either 15 or 5). I'm ok with having the warmer bag for some sections and swapping with the cooler one at other times.

In your experience, how cold did it get on he trail? Would the FF be worth it or overkill?

I'm thinking that it might be best to make the purchase once I have my start date also but wanted to get some thoughts beforehand.

It would be a 300 acre limestone quarry on a 400+ acre site, the "Lone Pine Canyon Quarry," located right on the north side of Lone Pine Canyon Rd, which is the road that goes southeast out of Wrightwood toward Cajon Junction. The PCT parallels this and Hwy 2 for most of the way between Cajon Pass and Vincent Gap / the foot of Mt Baden-Powell.

The mine would be licensed to operate for 150 years. Sounds like plenty of Wrightwood locals aren't very happy about it, for a variety of reasons.

The PCT is just up the ridge to the south of the road, less than a mile crow distance. The proposed site is about 1.5 miles northwest of where the PCT crosses Swarthout Canyon Rd. Here's a Google Map with a pin at the coordinates from one of their government filings. The quarry would be on the north side of the road on that ridge.

For maps of the proposed surface mine site, see pages 7-9 from this planning document (PDF), also part of their government filings, which are linked from this ca.gov site: https://ceqanet.lci.ca.gov/2026030881

Here's the page for organizing against the mine (also linked above): https://www.lonepinecanyonprotectionalliance.org/

According to that .org, the next community meeting about this is on August 6 in San Bernardino at 385 N. Arrowhead Ave. Thanks to u/Meant4the60s for mentioning it in this comment.

May or may not end up impacting the PCT directly, but worth being aware of. Copying in the text of my post on r/PacificNorthwestTrail:

• https://app.watchduty.org/i/109195

• https://caltopo.com/map.html#ll=48.94682,-120.60904&z=14&b=mbt&a=mba%2Cmodis_mp

• Lengthy USFS OWNF fb post: https://www.facebook.com/OkaWenNF/posts/pfbid025o63LdtH2HMCksJZ8G75RNnMEjs1r923sZDSv7YN4MRCHatWkcGtXGHts3Gf26X8l (text is in a comment below for those who would rather not load a fb link)

Thanks to u/Final_Parsnip1822 for posting about this two days ago when it was still a VIIRS hotspot.

Update from the Watch Duty page as of 7/18 at 9:21 pm:

The Ptarmigan Fire is being monitored by aerial resources and will be staffed as resources become available, per the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest on Facebook.

Trail closures are being initiated in the western Pasayten due to the Ptarmigan Fire. Most notably, the Pacific Northwest Trail (Boundary Trail No. 533) is closed from the PCT/Castle Pass east to Quartz Mountain near Pevee Pass. There is a re-route noted on the map and we’ve also let PNTA know.

Also note this closure affects the Buckskin Ridge loop Trail No. 498. Hikers will not be able to travel north of Buckskin Lake.

The northern portion of the Robinson Creek / Middle Fork Pasayten Trail No. 478 will also be closed at the junction to the turn off to Fred’s Lake on Trail No. 474 (Fred’s Lake is still accessible for now). Several other trails or portions of trails are also closed; the full list will be posted online in the Closure Order soon.

TLDR: Go in Settings > Privacy in the Farout app and turn OFF Facebook Analytics

This is what the app says:

“Facebook Analytics
We use Facebook conversion tracking for statistical and market research purposes and to help us measure the return on investment of Facebook Ads by reporting on the actions people take after viewing those ads. The collected data is anonymous. We may use this technology to serve you with advertisements on Facebook or Instagram that may be relevant to you and your interests.
You may opt out of use of Facebook conversion tracking in this app by toggling to off (grayed out) the switch above.”

Sounds pretty sketchy to me. Not happy this has been silently enabled for the past 1800 miles of my hike.

Interested in replies from PCT thruhikers of other recent years also.

The PCT has certainly gotten more expensive, both due to the extraordinary price increases across the economy in the past ~6 years, and probably from the PCT becoming more popular and resupply towns consequently raising their prices for various things.

But otoh, this is the internet, and I feel like sometimes how expensive things are gets exaggerated. Also, the "$10,000 for a PCT thru" figure from the HalfwayAnywhere survey frequently gets quoted out of context: it includes airfare, initial gear purchases, gear replacements, etc, which can easily run $3k, sometimes more. That puts average on-trail expenses closer to ~$7k or less, for hikers that aren't especially focused on budget and savings. Tbc, still very easy to spend $10k+ on a PCT thru, just doesn't have to be nearly that expensive.

So, about how much is an average grocery store resupply costing this year? And what are the typical motel room costs and restaurant costs?

Thanks!

Hi everyone.

First time hiking long distance in the U.S.
I planned to hike Chinook Pass to Stevens Pass (NOBO) from the 24th of July to the 4th of August with a friends but he’s become ill within the last few days.

I may have someone to accompany me from Snoqualmie Pass onwards, but from Chinook to Snoqualmie it’s looking like I’m by myself.

Anyone know of any groups passing that way on those dates I could tag along with, or any other apps that link up hikers? I appreciate it’s a bit last minute and my dates aren’t too flexible.

Thanks

Hey.

Any advice? Ive got an 8 week window in 2027 for a PCT LASH. Was looking at a NOBO desert (less Tehachapi to KMS) and Sierra to Yosemite plan. But am now considering a SOBO down to Cascade Locks then from Sth Lake Tahoe to Kearsage Pass. Male 55 experienced backcountry hiker.

All (constructuve) input welcome.

Thanks

I know it can vary a lot, but if you have a camping zone defined on you itinerarywhat hour do you usually plan to arrive there and why?

I’m a beginner so i’m taking notes jeje 🫶🏻

Gumboot Lake is at PCT mile 1527. Hikers are asked to avoid the area through Friday. While the suspects appear to be in custody, it would be wise to exercise caution on that stretch of trail for a little while.

Crazy incident. You never know who you might meet on some of those FS roads. 😬 Reminds me of when a SAR team were robbed at gunpoint by "bandits" while helping a hiker near Kelso Valley Road in 2017.

Hey everyone, I'm planning to thru-hike with 5k (not including flights and gear: my gear should be around 1.2k and flights about 700-1000).

This thru-hike won't be super comfy, but it's all I can swing. I'm looking for people who did the PCT with 5k-6k or less to give me some advice.

hello! i’m hiking Section J in Washington on July 25th, I know this section has lots of water, so I was wandering how much water do you usually carry in these type of places (i’m a beginner jeje 😅).

Do you usually carry 2 liters ALL the time?

I know the last 11 miles (SOBO) are pretty dry and it doesn’t have any water sources, so I will carry my full two bottles of water for those miles, but I don’t know in the other sectionssss

thanks a lot and sorry if this is a dumb question lol! have a great day 🫶🏻

edit: thanks a lot I appreciate it 🩷

I am doing a 2.5-week section hike in the State of Washington that begins on August 1st. I am wondering about overnight temperatures. I am trying to decide between bringing my 30F or 10F quilt. Thanks in advance.

Hey guys, gals and non-binary pals!

I'm a San Diego native who's done half of the Appalachian trail and has fallen in love with the thru Hiking community! One thing I've always loved was trail magic especially on long, hard and hot days. While I know the PCT goes through Mount Laguna into Julian and beyond inside San Diego county, where are places you got trail magic or wish you had trail magic? Until I get back on trail after college, id still want to be part of the community and give back!

What would you like? I have done trail magic for 5 years, helping an older friend who has for 15 years. We go to Tacoma Pass a short day south of Snoqualmie Pass. The date is one week after Trail Days at Cascade Locks. Last year we had 49 people on one day.

We can make pancakes. One year I had home made chili. We have sodas, beer. Chips and salsa. Costco Muffins. Also a stand for washing hands.

I am thinking of trying fruit smoothies using frozen fruit like strawberry, banana, blueberries, and cream. We have Jackery power supplies (for charging phones), and I'm thinking of getting a hand immersion blender for the smoothies. A regular blender would not work, it takes too much power and needs too much water to rinse out.

I've heard that hamburgers are sort of the Holy Grail for trail magic. Is that correct?

Any advice is very much appreciated, especially from folks who have hiked or are hiking the trial!

I'd like it for old time's sake since that's what I had on trail and to have as a free resource since I just snagged a JMT SOBO permit somehow! Not super interested in buying Guthook for such a well marked and traveled trail. I don't think it's possible, but maybe one of you is smarter than me (not the highest bar)!

Hey y’all looking for some advice and maybe a little encouragement.

I was diagnosed with a midfoot sprain at the ER in Leavenworth (they were wonderful there and even asked me my trail name). X-rays were normal. At the start of Section K I had some mild top-of-foot discomfort, but by the end of the section I was limping out and genuinely thought I had broken my foot.

The ER doctor was fairly confident it wasn’t a fracture and was more likely a sprain. I’m still trying to get an MRI, though my doctor may not order one because the foot has been steadily improving.

The hard part is that, as a SOBO, my timeline was already pretty tight. I’ve now taken about two weeks off trail. The sprain is definitely getting better, but I still don’t think I’m ready to head back out at the end of this week, and I’m thinking I may need another week of rest.

I really don’t want to skip sections, but I’m starting to realize that my idea of a thru-hike may need to change this year (HYOH). Part of me is even considering bailing on the attempt entirely and trying again next year rather than risking turning this into a longer-term injury.

Has anyone been in a similar situation? Did you take extra time off, skip ahead, or call it for the season? I’d appreciate any advice, perspective, or encouragement. I’ve already talked with Blaze about shoes and that was helpful, but I’m still wrestling with the bigger decision.

Weather forecast was looking promising for a good sunset, so I added on a ton of elevation to get up here by sunset. Absolutely worth it - double rainbow, mountain shadow being cast, and sparse lightning in the distance.

Loving my time on PCT so far! ​

edit: thanks to everyone for the suggestions, I’m feeling much more confident in giving this a go next summer :) happy trails!!

Hi! Thanks in advance for reading, I (22yo F) am seriously considering doing the Washington section of the PCT next year. I live near lots of trails and I’m planning on doing a lot of trail running for training/personal enjoyment, as well as backpacking trips to get my bearings before taking on this level of an experience. I know that seems naive but I think like so many others my motivations for wanting to take this on come from wanting to prove myself and do something unlike anything I’ve done before, and I’d like to think that if I do it while I’m still on my parent’s health insurance and while working job that lets me choose my hours (substitute teaching) I could plan for it effectively without nuking my life over it.

Anyways, my biggest questions are:

• what permits/passes do I need for this hike? Especially since its just the one state. I’ve read multiple official websites and they’ve all made my head spin so I don’t really know what to look into.
• Do I have to do the hike in the middle of summer? I don’t want to undercut personal safety in the mountains, aka not being snowed-in but I find hiking in hot weather miserable and climate change is only making every new summer here more miserable, would it be possible to do August-September?

Thank you and I’m sure I’ll be back with more questions throughout my planning/preparation journey, happy trails!

About to head south on the sierra section (starting near echo lake) going until cottonwood lakes. This is my trip this long, so I haven't had to deal with mailing resupply boxes before.

Normally, my backpacking meals are fairly reliant on cheese and tortillas. The cheese is an important source of calories for me because I'm vegetarian. I'm not sure how to include or replace these items in my resupply boxes.

I have to ship out a couple resupply boxes (tuolomne and MTR), and I don't expect that I will get to them for 3-4 weeks. Is including a hard cheese in my resupply a crazy idea? Have no idea how it would hold up unopened. Also wondering if tortillas would stay edible for 3-4 weeks. If there are other non-meat fats that I should think about (besides peanut butter of course) I'd be all ears. I am including a bunch of dehydrated refried beans in my resupply (home-made) so I'm hoping for a fat I can easily add to them. All ideas welcome! If you think I should go into yosemite valley instead of relying on a resupply box at tuolomne, well I'd love to hear that too.