The BIG Question
Everyone asks, "Will you be going with someone?" The answer to that question is complicated.As my geocaching name might suggest, I'll be hikingsolo. This name came about while exploring the High Sierra near the family cabin over the last 20 years. While I like to hike with others I've always had a hard time finding someone willing to spend long hours on arduous hikes. It's not that I hike difficult trails; it's just that I haven't found many people who have the same desire to spend all day sweating in the July sun to get views that few have experienced. Besides, I like challenging myself to do more and more and more.
Hikingsolo will be my trail name until someone decides that it needs to be changed.
But that's not the full answer to the question. I'll also be hiking with 1500 to 2500 of my best friends: other thru hikers. This year the PCT will experience a huge influx of hikers out to experience the glamour of the movies. Wild and A Walk in the Woods are two movies that glamorized the thru hiking experience. To help limit the impact of large numbers of thru hikers the Pacific Trail Association has limited permits to 50 per day starting mid-February through the end of May. Do the math! If 50 hikers start out every single day there will be more than 3000 hikers on the trail. I don't expect that many to start out on the day I'm there since I'll be very early in the season, but I expect the total number of hikers on the trail after May 15 to reach close to 2500. Last year there were 2486 North Bound Permits issued. 615 individuals finished a complete thru hike (self reported).
Other questions people ask are:
- Will you carry a gun? NO
- Will you carry bear spray? NO
- How will you recharge your phone? See my Gear list
- How much will you carry? Depends on the availability of water and how long between towns. At least 18 pounds and sometimes more than 35.
