[pct-l] Which section of PCT would be a right choice for 10 days trekking with 13 old child?

[Diane Soini of Santa Barbara Hikes]

A nice one I did summer before last was to head in via Duck Pass to  
the JMT/PCT and hike Southbound to exit at Bishop Pass. Duck Pass is  
a pretty easy pass and it's near the lakes in Mammoth Lakes. A bus  
takes you almost right to the trailhead. I even took a side-trip to  
VVR just to see what I missed. I did that whole thing in 4 days, but  
I was putting in pretty long days of hiking. I exited via Bishop Pass  
then walked a mile down the road beyond the trailhead to Parcher  
Resort where I was able to get a ride into Bishop. They at least have  
a phone if you have someone to call, plus a little store. I was going  
to get a ride with the lady who worked in the store but ended up  
hitchhiking instead. I also got a nice shower there before I left. I  
waited a few hours in Bishop for the bus back to Mammoth.

I would recommend anything all along the JMT stretch. What you can do  
is try and make your best guess as to miles you can do each day and  
then put in a request for a section of trail that will come close.  
Perhaps even err on the side of extra miles. They're going to want to  
know your entry and exit points, but you can always exit early if  
you're not going to make it. The CREST bus along highway 395 can take  
you from any of the little towns along there to wherever you started.  
There's convenient and cheap buses from Yosemite all the way to Lone  
Pine and beyond. Just keep yourself open to your entry and exit  
points and to be open-minded to switch directions if you can't enter  
exactly where you want. I wasn't able to enter at Bishop Pass and  
exit Duck Pass but I was able to get a permit for the reverse.

You can get the permit online and it's pretty easy. Plenty of time to  
get your permit. It's actually the picking up of the permit that's a  
little complicated because you have to pick it up the day you plan to  
start hiking before 10:00AM, or something crazy like that.


On Jan 4, 2012, at 10:00 AM, pct-l-request at backcountry.net wrote:
> Hi,
> In July, I intend to organize trekking on selected part of PCT or  
> John Muir Trail  together with my 13 year old daughter. I would  
> like to ask you which route and which segment of the route you  
> suggest? During the route selection I have to remember about these: \
> - we would like spend 10 days  on the trail
> - my daughter is very fit but day distances should not be too long
> - it would be good if the starting and ending point is easy to  
> achieve via public transportationt (maybe it is good idea to start  
> from Yosemite Valley because I need to borrow bear canister)
> - beautiful landscapes are important for us (and I would like to see
> Yosemity) but we do not want to go in the crowd (we prefer rather  
> remote places to camp)
> - it would be good if the there is one resupply point in the middle  
> of route ? I will carry most of our equipment.
>
> BTW. What are the chances to get thruhike permission for July?