[pct-l] Worried About My Knees

[Maxine Weyant]

I have had 4 knee surgeries, 3 ACL, and can say that using poles has made a huge difference in my ability to hike.  A lot of the PCT is of a grade that is horse-friendly, which makes it more user friendly than much of the AT, from what I understand.  But there are sections where horses are re-routed that are not safe or too steep for horses where my knees were not so happy.  The Golden Staircase (great euphemism) just north of Mather Pass has stair steps that were not "built to code" but blasted into the granite.  I did that section SOBO and had to hoist myself up with my short legs with some difficulty, but I was glad not to be doing them NOBO since stepping down is way more difficult for me.  I probably would have had to do some of them backwards.  Another section that was hard on my knees was the Alpine Lakes District in WA.  A thru-hiker can fly through that section by then, but as a section hiker, I was not so warmed up having had a recent surgery, and recall how hard it was to do 3000 ft up then down, then up and down again, all in one day.  If you're NOBO, you might have a tough time going down the long series of switchbacks into VVR in the Sierras too.  I can't emphasize enough how helpful poles are.