[pct-l] March 1st

[Eric Lee]

Michael wrote:
>
I need to finish mid August.what are the chances I start March 1st?  I am
flexible to dates but mid August is my deadline as I have to get back to
work Sept 1st.
>

That's really early.  Probably not a good idea unless you're super-confident
about a lot of snow/ice travel and all the complications that brings.  You'd
almost certainly hit serious snow in the San Jacintos and the San Gorgonios
within the first couple weeks.  You'd also probably wind up at the southern
end of the Sierra very early, long before the melt begins.  This year is
shaping up to be a pretty high snow year as well (though it's too early to
say for certain).

The very earliest "reasonable" date to consider is probably around April
1st, but even then you'll probably be forced to road-walk around certain
dangerous sections in southern California.  April 15th is better, though
might still involve some road-walking, and of course the end of April is the
traditional starting date for a reason - it works the best with the average
snow melt.

Another alternative is to start around April 15th and just walk quickly if
you're athletic and driven - the leaders usually finish around mid to late
August most years.  Maybe you could be one of them.  For this plan it would
help if you had previous long-distance hiking experience.

A third alternative is to start around the end of April, walk normally, and
just resign yourself to not making it all the way to the Canadian border in
one season (or skip a section in the middle, probably northern California
and/or southern Oregon, so you can make it to the border).  Look on the
bright side - that means there's still more awesomeness for you to partake
of later.  The PCT doesn't HAVE to be an all-or-nothing proposition.  You're
still talking about an epic 3.5 month trip on the trail regardless of where
you end up.  That's worth doing.

Eric