[pct-l] recommendations for very small accessible sections for visiting foreigners

[Diane Soini of Santa Barbara Hikes]

While I did recommend to someone else to hike the first 100+ mile  
section of Washington, as it is in my opinion one of the best, I  
think that if you have family/friends joining and they may not be in  
the best of shape, something a little less strenuous might be better.  
I would say have them see you off.

I joined TrailHacker for the first couple of days from the Mexican  
border to Mt. Laguna. What I did was drive him to the trail and take  
his picture, say good-bye. Then I parked the car in Campo, joined him  
on the trail for a couple hours, then walked back to get the car.  
Then I reparked it at Lake Morena and hiked SOBO to meet him on the  
trail and hiked back to Lake Morena with him. I did the same thing  
the next day and then the third day I hiked with him for a few hours  
and said good-bye for good as he continued on without me and I went  
home.

The first few days on the trail are really pretty and varied with  
chaparral, oak woodland, meadows, desert vistas, pine trees and  
wildflowers. The experience is really emotional so it is nice to have  
people you love sharing it with you. The first few days on the trail,  
in my opinion, are really easy, too. I know a lot of people struggle,  
but compared to the rest of the trail, it's gentle and kind and there  
is just so much to see it's breathtaking.

Diane
On Jan 1, 2011, at 10:00 AM, pct-l-request at backcountry.net wrote:

> g'day, my folks are quite keen to join me for a wee bit of my hike  
> - they're
> highly experienced walkers, however mum's hips are starting to  
> restrict her
> distances. they'd be flying over from australia (and doing other  
> things
> while they were visiting north america), so transport is  
> potentially an
> issue - and gear may also determine where they can go. i was  
> wondering if
> anyone could recommend small sections (<120km) of the pct which were
> particularly scenic or spectacular but also relatively accessible?
>
> thanks heaps, skids.