[pct-l] Resources for Sub 4-Month Thru-Hike?

[Eric Lee]

Josh wrote:
>
I am planning a thru-hike this summer and hoping to accomplish it in under 4
months.
>

A four-month hike is somewhat aggressive but doable if you're motivated.
There isn't a lot of special planning involved other than, "Walk more and
goof off less."  The big question will probably be whether your body will
hold together with that kind of pace.

Here are the typical "gateway" dates that will control your itinerary.  You
can work out a four-month plan that fits these constraints.  There are
people who hike outside these constraints, of course, but it typically
becomes more difficult when you do so.

Start: traditionally end of April, +2 or -3 weeks.
Entering the Sierra: traditionally early June,+/-2 weeks.
End: traditionally mid-September, +2 or -3 weeks.

The low snow levels in California this year may allow an earlier start and
earlier Sierra entrance than normal.

A four month schedule means about 660 miles per month.  You probably want to
start with a little slower pace and ramp up.  If you start in early to
mid-May, that would put you in Kennedy Meadows and the start of the Sierra
around mid-June which should be about right this year.  If you're trying to
do a fast hike then you don't want to wrestle with a lot of snow because it
just slows you down.  From there you'd hit the halfway point close to
Chester in mid-July, the 3/4 point in the Three Sisters wilderness in
mid-August, and Canada in mid-September.

Remember most people find that zero days are really important to allow the
body to heal all the repetitive-motion damage that accumulates.  You should
figure out roughly how many zero days you plan to take, then figure out how
many days of walking that leaves you with, divide that into 2650 miles, and
that's your target daily mileage.

Also remember that plans are all well and good but flexibility on the trail
wins the day.  Don't spend too much time plotting exactly where you'll be
each day because I promise it won't work out like that.  Just go into it
with a general idea of the pace you need and you'll know whether you're
ahead or behind it.

A typical thru-hike is more along the lines of 5 to 5.5 months and people
just start earlier (say mid-April) and end later (say end of September) to
accommodate that.

Eric