Sharing my opening plan, which may stick for 1 to 5 days and then will continuously adapt until I finish, or the trail wins. Overall this is a Flip Flop permitted PCT full Thru Hike, covering all 2,650 miles mixing north and south. I’ll use this page to share what actually unfolds as well.
THE PLAN:
Sunday March 19: Start at PCT Southern Terminus at the US-Mexico Border, Campo, CA. Ashley joins for the day and then returns with the car to Palm Springs
March 19 to 23: hike north 77 miles to Scissors Crossings as of 3/17, a new wave of storms and snow above 5,000 feet and cold rain below predicted)
March 24 to March 27: Ashley picks me up and 4 days to rest and reset gear. We meet both daughters in Las Vegas and then a surreal 48 hours. I attend the Taylor Swift concert there Friday and join friends on annual guys trip for the second weekend of March Madness, a tradition 2 decades on. The streams must not cross, no mixing family and friends… And Vegas is the antithesis of wilderness, balance.
March 28 to May 13: Daughters fly home and back to school. Ashley drives me north 4 hours to Kennedy Meadows at the southern terminus of the High Sierras. Begin solo hiking southbound from mile 702 starting in the Mojave and Tehachapi. Wind through San Gabriel’s, San Bernadino’s, and San Jacinto’s back to Scissors Crossing, as snowmelt allows. For the first two weeks of April, Ashley transits to SF for the week to work, meets me on the weekend to say hi and resupply. Some friends will visit during zero days and a day hike. Then my car is stashed somewhere in SoCal with base gear in the trunk. Ashley flies back home with Aspen after 2 weeks, and then returns to pick up my car and pick me up May 13 where I am (?Palm Springs) and we drive north to Ashland/Siskiyou Summit (and Ashley continues home and returns the car to Washington).
May 15 to July 7: Begin leg 3 hiking southbound from mile 1,719 in Ashland. Resupplies will be in town or Ashley will send packages to designated post offices. Friends may visit at resupply/zero days, but nothing confirmed at launch. Ashley and 14 year old daughter Whitney meet me on July 7 at Tuolumne Meadows in Yosemite and we drive south to Cottonwood Pass to begin the 212 mile John Muir Trail (JMT) northbound, from PCT mile 750.
July 8 to July 30: Leg 4 is hiking northbound on the JMT which coincides with the PCT through the High Sierra’s. The state of snowmelt will have a significant impact on how this goes. Ashley and Whitney do the full trail and 19 year old daughter Isabella and friend Jesse join for the last 7 to 10 days. I catch a ride back to Ashland again with Ashley and Whitney on July 31 for the final stretch.
August 1 to October ?: The final two months are Oregon and Washington, about a month each (approximately 900 miles total), crossing Columbia River around August 26th and spending the day of my 50th birthday (September 3rd) in the Goat Rocks. Many visits with friends and family expected around Stampede, Snoqualmie, and Stevens passes and I may be spend some nights at home at attend one or two of the Husky football home games coinciding with a rest day.
So….. now that it’s written, publishing from the final base in Palm Springs Saturday March 18th, let’s see what actually happens.
WHAT ACTUALLY HAPPENS:
LEG ONE, Section 1
Sun 3/19: Departed the Southern Terminus, Mile 0 as planned! CHECK. Ashley joined, leaving the car at mile 2.5 on the Highway. Set up camp at dark as the drizzle started, mile 8.0, elevation 3,200 on a slab of granite.
Mon 3/20: Ashley backtracked 5.5 miles to the car, I continued forward in a steady rain, under big transmission power lines and down 1,500 feet to Hauser creek, and up Morena Mountain. 12.0 miles to Morena village, 20 total. Ashley walked up the trail 1.5 miles and we made a weather assessment, pulling off the trail with the storm forecast the next 2 days and a sopping wet tent already.
Tues 3/21: Back in Palm Springs base pouring rain and gray all day. Head cold in full force, body joints and muscles beaten. Sad rest day.
Wed 3/21 to Thur 3/30: An 8 miler on Murray Hill in Palm Springs while still sick, then Thursday to Saturday off to Las Vegas for family, friends, and T Swift as planned. Back to Palm Springs Saturday and then more storms early in the week. Training hikes in the wash and Long Valley from the tram. Finally able to return south after Ashley finished work Friday afternoon.
LEG ONE, Section 2
Fri 3/31: FINALLY, back to the trail, returning to Morena and deciding to continue northbound as long as possible. Hiked 6.5 miles from Morena to Boulder Oaks campground where Ashley had the tent.
Sat 4/1 & Sun 4/2: Continued 7.5 miles to Cibbets Campground also with Ashley and Aspen and then 10 miles to Mt Laguna booking 2 nights with intense cold winds for Monday
Mon 4/3 to Sun 4/9: Storm shelter day in Laguna and Ashley back to work in Palm Springs. I covered 60 miles Tues to Fri through Anza Borrego and San Fellippe Hills, Ashley picking up Fri at Barrel Springs/mile 101. Easter Weekend in Palm Springs
LEG ONE, Section 3
Mon 4/10 to Mon 4/17: Return to Mile 101 7:30am Monday, 8 miles to Warner Springs, then winding up to Lost Valley. Drove to cover 51 miles in 3 days through fabulous desert bloom to reach Mile 152 and the Paradise Valley Cafe Wednesday evening to meet Ashley and Aspen who came over from their San Diego AirBnB. Continued Thursday towards San Jacinto, cutting off at mile 163 to Cedar Springs. Gambled on descending into Palm Springs via the abandoned Jo Pond trail to Indian Canyon, stumbling to the gate at last light where Ashley picked me up. Spent 3 final days at Tri and Asher’s awaiting arrival of my 1 lb Durston X Mid Pro tent, able to have a FaceTime call home to wish my Dad a Happy 80th b day Monday.
LEG ONE, Section 4
Tues 4/18 to Sun 4/23: Returning to the trail finally at 5pm on a Tuesday, about 36 hours later than planned. Managed 3 miles after saying farewell to Ashley and Aspen as they returned home and now will support remotely. Rejoined at mile 210, made 3 miles doing a cowboy camp in the Mesa Wind Farm.
Pre 6am start on Wednesday and the first really difficult river ford through the Whitewater and a beautiful camp at mile 224 with views of San Gorgiono and San Jacinto. Met Quaking Leaf and Just 15 here, QL about my age from Renton and this is where the trail name Black Hole was bestowed
Thursday was the difficult 28-time crossing of Mission Creek, running fast. Never more than knee deep, but wet feet, camping at 4,800 feet, mile 233.
Friday and Saturday were high country San Gorgiono Wilderness, with snow on north facing slopes, needing the ice ax and spikes before Coon Creek Cabin, descending the last 8 miles to mile 266 and a ride with trail Angel Gina into Big Bear for a huge meal and beer!
LEG ONE, Section 5
Mon 4/24 to Sat 4/29: Monday was a failed zero day, walking all over town to resupply food, cobbling together meals from the supermarket Von’s.
Returned to the trail Tuesday walking through Big Bear Lake and to the Cougar Crest trailhead, rejoining the PCT at mile 277, having walked the same distance as the missing link. Back into the snow Tuesday and 13.5 miles to camp at mile 283.
Wednesday covered 13 miles to mile 396 and fords of fast moving Holcomb Creek ending at a flat sandy unofficial campsite with fabulous sunrise and sunset views. Thursday was a long down along Deep Creek and an amazing visit to Deep Creek Hot Springs for a late lunch, then continuing to the Mojave River Forks dam by Hesperia (and a trail guarding rattlesnake) and camping in the dirt lot by the Joshua Inn at mile 314.
Friday and Saturday wound by the Silverwood reservoir, a camp at mile 330 and then on to Cajon Pass and McDonalds at mile 342, two brutally hot upper 80’s days with most hiking mid day. Then an Uber to the Marriot 20 miles down I-15 in Rancho Cucamonga for a double zero.
LEG ONE, Section 6
Tues 5/2 to Wed 5/10: The Lytle Creek Fire (small fire, but first of the season) closed the miles north of I-15. So I took the Uber back to Lone Pine Canyon Road, a 10 mile road walk to Wrightwood vs. the 20 miles of trail. After declining several offers, accepted a hitch for the last half.
One last gasp of winter struck while in Wrightwood, waiting out the day at a hiker’s lodge with a group of other PCT hikers and 4 inches of snow on the ground in town! Returned to the PCT on Friday May 5 up the Acorn trail on a sunny day, but in heavy snow. Walked 15 miles in snow and camped with a large group at Vincent Gap where CA Hwy 2/Angeles Crest Highway is closed for 40+ miles from the winter now.
Walked the apocalyptic Hwy 2 high point 12 miles to Islip Saddle, again camping in a parking lot. The road walk continued another 7 miles past another trail closure or endangered frogs, then rejoined the PCT around mile 400. Epic desert view campsite at 6,000 feet in the Pleasant View Wilderness on May 7th. Continued 40 miles over the next 3 days, including a beautiful sky forest and camping just above the Mill Creek Fire Station. The last night was 11 miles shy of Acton, pausing to watch power transmission line maintenance and C-130 test flights around the ranger station. A very cold last night, dipping to near freezing at 5,500 feet on May 9th! Was generously hosted by the Marquez family in Santa Clarita, and Ashley came for a visit for a couple days after Tableau Conference in Las Vegas.
LEG ONE, Section 7
Sun 5/14 to Fri 5/19: Returned to the trail at Acton with Ashley, who hiked the first couple miles before driving back to John Wayne/OC to fly home. A short first day as the weather turned HOT, getting to Serenity Oasis in Aqua Dulce, PCT mile 455.
Continued through much hotter temps above the Mojave desert and electing to return home after 2 months in SoCal. Logan Marquez drove the 90 minutes from Santa Clarita to give me a ride for one more night at their home and flew home via Burbank airport on Saturday May 20th, hitting 500 miles on my penultimate day in SoCal.
LEG TWO, Section 1
Thur 6/8 to Sun 6/11: A road trip with my parents back to Chester, CA to start my NorCal section. First section was through the remnants of the 2018 Dixie/Paradise Fire and then through Lassen Volcanic National Park, impacted by an intense 2021 forest fire and still with a lot of snow in the middle of the park.
LEG THREE, Section 1
Tues 7/4 to Fri 7/7: Joined by Ashley, re-starting in Ashland, Oregon and heading to Lake of the Woods.
LEG THREE, Section 2
Sat 7/8 to Tues 7/11: Lake of the Woods to Crater Lake, a scheduled shuttle ride back
LEG FOUR, Section 1
Wed 7/19 to Fri 7/21: White Pass to Chinook Pass with Ashley and Whitney
LEG FOUR, Section 2
Sat 7/29 to Tues 8/1: Chinook Pass to Snoqualmie Pass solo.
LEG FIVE, Section 1
Fri 8/11 to Fri 8/18: Back to Oregon, resuming at Santiam Pass and heading to PCT Trail Days in Cascade Locks with Ashley and Whitney
LEG FIVE, Section 2
Mon 8/21 to Wed 8/23: Ride from PCT Trail Days back to Bend, stay with Lisa and Tim, solo leg from Elk Lake to Santiam Pass (picked up and dropped off by Ashley)
LEG FIVE, Section 3
Thur 8/24 to Mon 9/4: Ashley brings me back to Cascade Locks for walking north to the Goat Rocks, with a resupply half way of this 160 mile section in Trout Lake, WA
LEG SIX, Section 1
Mon 9/11 to Fri 9/15: My Dad gives Ashley and I a ride back to the home crossing at Snoqualmie Pass and we set out for a 70 mile week on the trail, departing Monday evening, arriving at Steven’s Pass on Friday evening.
LEG SIX, Section 2
Sun 9/17 to Wed 9/20: The final push. Skipping fire closures and short on time, Ashley’s Dad picks us up at Steven’s Pass and drives us up to Rainy Pass off Highway 20. We arrive at Hart’s Pass 2 days later and then 2 more days for a push to the border and on to EC Manning Park in BC, Canada where my parents meet us to take us home!