[pct-l] PCT NOBO Campo in August????

Thu Feb 12 07:58:45 CST 2015

Hey Scotty,

As Paint and Marmot have pointed out, you can hike the trail anytime of the
year you're capable of dealing with the weather presented to you.  Heck,
we've got the first winter transit of the PCT coming to a close with two of
the countries greatest hikers in the next several weeks.  You can do just
about anything with the right gear and the right amount of skill and
strength.  But the PCT is such a marvelous trail when you give it half a
chance by hiking in the right season, why sweat the linear progression
stuff.

I had to jump around a bit in 2010 due to heavy snows in the desert
mountains and later because of family obligations, so although I started in
early April at Campo, I had to come back at the end of my hike and finish
300 miles of the desert in late Sept and Oct.  It was gorgeous in very
different ways during both the spring and fall.  Absolutely beautiful with
wonderful hiking conditions which gave me a real love of desert hiking that
later  stood me well in NM and AZ.  I finished at the Saufley's in Agua
Dulce in Oct.  Talk about a special place to end a thru hike.  Even though
it was a calendar year thru hike, I didn't feel my experience diminished at
all by having had things out of sequence.

And the desert is so lovely at the right times of year that it would be a
shame to turn it into a total ordeal just so you can finish a thru hike in
order.  Things may change over the next 6 years for you and you may get
some time to do it at the right time and come to love it too.

Another thing to think about is that if you hike all of the PCT over the
next several years and don't ever finish the deserts, you still come out
way on top!   What you'll gain by hiking some of the most beautiful
mountains in the West, hell on the planet, is incomparable.  You'll love
it!  And it's totally worth doing year after year.  What marvelous summers
you'll have to look forward to.  Don't let whether or not you can ever do
the deserts stop you from hiking the other sections.  They're incredible
all on their own.

The times you have off suggest that you may be a teacher.  If so, I'd
suggest doing other sections of the PCT over the summers during the right
seasons, and then biting off smaller sections of the deserts during spring
break or even over the winter break if the weather is good.  If you're in
shape you can really knock out miles in the deserts during the right
seasons.  Or try to do a month beginning in June which can be a bit better
than August, and plan to bail if it's not to your liking.  Play it by ear
and try to let yourself experience the deserts in all their beauty, not
during the heat of summer when finding shade and water will become
paramount for your life on trail.

You're already flexing a lot to section the PCT over 6 years, so hit the
rest of it first and jump whenever you get the chance to hit the deserts
any time of year except June, July or August.  And the lesson of
flexibility, of being able to change course quickly due to changing
conditions or your own strength, is one of the great lessons of long
distance hiking.  But don't be deterred from hiking the rest of the PCT.
Any time you spend out there is life at its best.  And I guarantee you'll
love it.

Good luck in planning and have a wonderful hike.  August is a great month
in WA, OR or CA, basically anywhere north of the deserts.

Shroomer

On Wed, Feb 11, 2015 at 2:39 PM, marmot marmot <marmotwestvanc at hotmail.com>
wrote:

> I grew up outside of Brawley(it's south/east of the trail)We used to drive
> to Julian to cool off. Usual summer temps 120   Always in the 90's by 7am.
> in Aug. We thought 110 was a cool day. If you choose to do this--Please
> cache lots of water.. At each road crossing. Don't expect any natural water
> sources Don't even think of hiking in the daytime. In the Mojave (in'94) I
> carried 7/8 liters of water and it was not even close to the temps you will
> encounter. Dehydration can make the brain not work properly.  Oh yeah and
> it can kill you.
> Any way you do the trail will be great. A MYTH is wonderful choice for
> doing the trail. Either border will greet you with a smile. Finishing in
> the middle works too. Etna was the border for my MYTH(06-13)
> Marmot
>
>
>
> Sent from my iPhone
>
> > On Feb 11, 2015, at 10:46 AM, Dan Welch <welchenergy at gmail.com> wrote:
> >
> > I like the SOBO idea.  You say it will only delay the inevitable, but if
> you
> > do a SOBO, your desert hike is 5 years off.  A lot can happen in 5
> years...
> > Perhaps you'll have more schedule flexibility then?
> >
> > Timberline
> >
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: Pct-L [mailto:pct-l-bounces at backcountry.net] On Behalf Of
> > imscotty at aol.com
> > Sent: Tuesday, February 10, 2015 12:15 PM
> > To: pct-l at backcountry.net
> > Subject: [pct-l] PCT NOBO Campo in August????
> >
> > I am considering starting a PCT section hike this summer. I would like
> to do
> > the PCT in a linear fashion, probably over six years all in one month
> > chunks. My goal this year would be Campo to Aqua Dulce with a few days at
> > each end to get to the trail and back. The problem? This summer I can
> only
> > get the month of August off.
> >
> > My question is, do any of you have experience hiking Southern California
> in
> > August?  Yes, I know this is a bad idea, that temperatures can exceed 100
> > degrees, and that water resupply will be a critical problem.   But has
> > anyone done this and lived to tell the tale?
> >
> >
> > My plan of course would be to start before dawn, siesta in the heat of
> day,
> > and then hike through sunset. I have not mapped it out yet, but perhaps I
> > could personally cache some water at key points before I start my hike. I
> > certainly would not be relying on trail angels for my water this time of
> > year.
> >
> > If I wait until 2016 to start, I could possibly take June off instead,
> but
> > this would be only marginally cooler.  At no time will I ever be able to
> get
> > the non-summer months off. So, if a summer hike of this section is
> > impossible, my PCT section hike is impossible.
> >
> > I am considering a SOBO to delay facing a summer hike in the desert, but
> > this will only delay the problem.  Constructive comments are welcome.
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