[pct-l] The Herd is a FACT...

[Eric Lee (GAMES)]

Scott Parks wrote:
>
The Story of a Thru-Wallet (The ADZPCTKO accepts payment by Paypal and Visa
for this FREE event)
>

Come on, people.  This is a hot topic and there are passionate opinions on both sides and that's ok, but let's stick to facts, not fiction.  The ADZPCTKO is *FREE* for current thru-hikers.  The ADZPCTKO organizers *refuse* to accept money from current thru-hikers.  The event is not without cost; the web site says it will eat about $6000 this year.  All of that money is raised by donations from non-thru-hiking attendees.  I attended a couple years ago (not as a thru-hiker) and made a substantial donation to help support the event and I was happy to do so.

I do think the herd effect is a long-term problem.  The cause is less clear and I'd bet money that it's not just one factor.

First, we do have more thru-hikers starting each year.  Every venue that allows people to discover the trail and learn about this crazy idea called thru-hiking contributes to that.  More bodies means a bigger herd, period, even in the absence of any kick-off party.  There's a limited range of feasible north-bound start dates and everyone's got to squeeze in there somewhere.  Books, trail journals, trail guides, email lists, web sites (like, ahem, http://postholer.com) all contribute to raising awareness of the trail which directly raises the number of people who try to thru-hike it each year.  If everyone would just shut up and go dark about the PCT then we wouldn't have this problem.  But of course we love to talk about the trail we love.

Second, I agree with Yogi's observation that people naturally *like* to clump up and tend to get more clumped, not less, within a few hundred miles of the start.  Big groups are big fun for a lot of people, and this becomes more true as the PCT gets more publicity and attracts more hikers outside the "hardcore wilderness freak group".

Third, I agree that the ADZPCTKO has some effect by encouraging more people to start on a specific weekend than otherwise might.  However, the word about "the herd problem" does seem to be getting out and this year's thru-hiking class seems to be taking pains to minimize it.  We'll see how it actually works out in practice.

Eric