[pct-l] fall hiking

[jomike at cot.net]

Any thoughts on what the conditions would be like to hike from Kennedy Meadows southbound to Mexico begining in early October? Is water likely to be in even shorter supply than it is in spring / early summer? Are the caches less likely to be full since there won't be any thru hikers passing through?>

Swiss Miss,
Yes and yes. The springs tend to dry up in the summer (or earlier) and the cache bottles will be mostly empty. You really can't count on many water sources. To make matters worse, we seem to be having a dry winter in SoCal. At best you would be hauling a LOT of water along the trail. Other than that, and some occasional fierce windstorms, October is a delightful time to hike the south.
Ol' George
***************************************

I suspect CA is having it's third year of draught; water will be less available than in a "normal" year. Whatever that might be.

Another "late" post.

are we there yet