540 miles of hiking from Canada to Oregon. I'm basically walking home. There are snacks at home.
I started preparing for this hike three years ago when I set my sites on the PCT. By preparing, I mean slowly acquiring gear, making spreadsheets of miles and re-supplies, and dreaming of cold rehydrated mashed potatoes. No, seriously, I like the taste of rehydrated mashed potatoes, at least for now.
The Plan
Mileage
Most folks shoot for lower miles/day in the beginning before they get their trail legs, usually something around 15-20 miles/day. After three weeks or so, once their tendons and ligaments have grown accustomed to the all-day pounding of the trail, their miles increase to somewhere in the 20-25 range.
In my case, my target mileage is dictated by the spreadsheet that I made to plan my food. It would have taken an additional modicum of excel work to allow for an increase in mileage, so I just picked 20 miles/day. I may curse myself for that decision when I'm rationing out my Fritos, but at least it's easy to remember!
food
I'll be stopping in small trail towns or post offices every 3-7 days to restock food and other consumable supplies. My itinerary below is broken out by each of those stops.
The main food decision that I made in preparing for the trail is to go "no-cook", meaning I'm not bringing a stove/fuel or any other heating device to cook my meals. Apparently it's becoming more popular among thru-hikers. It's absolutely the decision that has made the most people say to me "what the f are you thinking?!" BUT it has two major advantages: reducing pack weight, and simplifying daily chores. By going no-cook, for breakfast and lunch (ex: tortillas with salami and cheese) I just reach into a bag and eat it. No prep. No clean up. The most complicated a meal can get are a few of my dinners of ramen or dehydrated mashed potatoes which I'll load into my screw top container (actually just an empty Talenti Gelato pint) with water about 30 minutes before I want to eat it, continue hiking with it shaking around in my pack, then eat up all that cold, salty goodness.
Re-Supply
I only sent re-supply packages to locations along the trail where I really have no other option. I want to play it by ear as much as possible and I'm sure that my appetite and cravings will change as I progress along the trail. Though my seven pre-mailed re-supply boxes are far apart, I was compelled, as a Frenchman, to include blocks of fancy cheese (ex: aged Manchego) in each box. "That's a bold move, Cotton. Let's see if it pays off for him." Best in Show
Itinerary
Hart's pass to Canadian Border back to Hart's pass
I'll hike north to the border, touch Canada, and back to Hart's pass. It's not recommended for southbounders to cross into Canada to hike the 8 additional miles to the official northern terminus of the PCT since it's illegal to re-enter the US via the PCT. We'll see if I can talk some of Trump's border guards into a bit of leniency.
60 miles
3.0 days
Hart's pass to Stehekin
Shuttle into Stehekin from the trail to pick up my first re-supply package. The freshest cheese of the trip!
61 miles
3.1 days
Stehekin to Skyhomish
107 miles
5.4 days
Skyhomish to Snoqualmie pass
71 miles
3.6 days
snoqualmie pass to white pass
Re-supply package #2! Second freshest cheese of the trip!
99 miles
5.0 days
White pass to Cascade locks
This section is a doozy. I'll be carrying my heaviest load of food to kick off the long stretch. Luckily, I'll have about 400 miles under my belt before I begin, so I should be starting to feel those trail legs that I've been promised. Right? Right??
In good news, this section includes the Goat Rocks wilderness which is a major Washington highlight. Psyched for that. Google "Goat Rocks Wilderness Knife Edge." Can. Not. Wait.
@Portland homies: Cascade Locks is the closest spot on the PCT if you want to say "what up."
148 miles
7.4 days
END OF WASHINGTON / BEGINNING OF OREGON
Cascade Locks to Timberline Lodge
Just climbing Mount Hood up to Timberline Lodge.
49 miles
2.5 days
Timberline Lodge to big lake youth camp
102 miles
5.1 days
Big lake youth camp to shelter cove resort
Re-supply box #3! Definitely rolling the dice on that cheese at this point.
Also, I realized soon after shipping out my re-supply boxes that I mis-read my spreadsheet and shorted myself on food in this box. Instead of budgeting enough food to reach Shelter Cove Resort, I gave myself enough food to reach a tiny store at the Elk Lake Resort that was not recommended as a re-supply stop.
This is definitely the point in my hike with the highest probability of me subsisting entirely off of vending machine food and the goodwill of others for several days. Or I could hike 40 miles/day! Such adventure!
Also, Emily went to summer camp in Burney Falls State Park once, so I'm basically doing the same thing. Have camp songs, will travel.
89 miles
4.9 days
Shelter cove resort to mazama village
This is a major milestone: the Crater Lake section! Even though my first visit to Crater Lake wasn't until last year, it's the image on the Oregon State quarter, so I've gotta rep.
85 miles
4.3 days
mazama village to ashland
I enjoyed many a childhood visit to Ashland on roadtrips with my mom from Portland to Los Angeles. I'm definitely going to drink the gnarly lithium water from the park drinking fountain and pop into a few the cute shops. This time, instead of being a cute kid dressed up by my mother as a miniature Jacque Cousteau, I'll be a large, smelly, unshaven hiker grinning at strangers and pawing at knick-knacks. What a treat!
48 miles
2.4 days
Ashland to Seiad Valley
Farewell, Oregon. Hello, Keeyahliforneea.
63 miles
3.2 days
END OF OREGON / BEGINNING OF CALIFORNIA
Seiad Valley to Castella
Big miles, baby.
154 miles
7.7 days
Castella to burney falls state park
69 miles
3.5 days
Burney falls state park to belden
This is the one other re-supply box that I shorted on food. Luckily, Burney Falls State Park is supposed to have a small store. Otherwise, in classic adventurer fashion, I'll be begging campers for their pizza crusts.
133 miles
7.7 days
Belden to Sierra city
89 miles
4.5 days
Sierra city to south lake tahoe
104 miles
5.2 days
south lake tahoe to tuolumne meadows
Though I have no idea to pronounce "Tuolumne Meadows", this is a major milestone since it's the stop that's closest to the latitude of SF. I declare that this is my official "I've walked to work" milestone! Good ol' Two-oh-lumb-knee Meadows.
148 miles
7.4 days
tuolumne meadows to vermillion valley resort
68 miles
3.4 days
vermillion valley resort to kennedy meadows
If I make it this far in my timeframe, it'll be a major feat since it's a ton of miles and I'll have completed Washington, Oregon, and all of the Sierras. This is basically my "best case scenario" destination for my hike since I'll have hit most of the major highlights of the PCT.
173 miles
8.7 days
kennedy meadows to lake isabella
No flavor text for the stops from here on out since I'm not going to hike that far, but I planned them all just in case so here they are nonetheless!
50 miles
2.5 days
lake isabella to mojave
86 miles
4.3 days
mojave to agua dulce
112 miles
5.6 days
agua ducle to wrightwood
85 miles
4.3 days
wrightwood to big bear city
103 miles
5.3 days
big bear city to idyllwild
87 miles
4.4 days
idyllwild to warner springs
69 miles
3.5 days
warner springs to mount laguna
68 miles
3.4 days
mount laguna to campo
41 miles
2.1 days