[pct-l] Pacific Crest defined?

[jeffmoorehead1 at cox.net (Jeff Moorehead)]

I like this idea of creating an alternative trail system to the current So 
Cal PCT. I have a question that may relate somewhat to the motivation for 
establishing this trail. Is there an official geographic definition of the 
'Pacific Crest'? The continiental divide, for example, is precisiely defined 
by the geology, or hydrology to be more accurate. I would be curious to know 
if the Pacific Crest is actually  defined by local mountain topography or 
was it simply given a cool sounding name and the trail was then established 
in places where it required the least amount of infringement on private 
property (i.e. the whole Tejon Ranch/Tehachapi conflict). To me, the Pacfic 
Crest would be something like "the highest point travelling east along a 
parallell of latitude between the Pacific coast and the Great Basin (or 
basin-like areas such as the Lower Colorado desert). With this in mind, 
maybe there are some trail systems that would better define the crest in 
southern California. The Santa Rosa mountains seem to be the crest at that 
latitude (I may not be right about this but I'll throw it out there for 
correction). At least they naturally give way to the Desert Divide on which 
the PCT resides.