[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next][Date Index][Thread Index]

No Subject

Pgohiker wrote:
>>I read in Backpacker Magazine that no one has ever through hiked the PCT
and AT in one year. Is this an accurate statement?  I am toying with
starting the AT in Jan. 1999 in GA and heading north. Finish in early June
and then start the PCT in the north and head south and finish by Nov. or
early Dec. I've winter hiked/camped along sections of the AT but don't know
what to expect of the weather on the PCT during late fall/early winter. Any
advice/suggestions?<<

Your plan sounds reasonable if you can start your southbound PCT hike in
mid-June or early July.  Actually, the most critical time on the southbound
PCT hike will be getting through the Sierras before the snowstorms begin in
fall.  I figure you would need to reach Tuolumne Meadows in Yosemite no
later than October 1, and then speed over the high passes before the first
big storm.  You would still experience pretty cold temps up that high in
ealy October, and you might get caught in a bad storm, but not likely.

The recent Backpacker article about Namie Bacile states that he was very
close to completing both trails in one year.  Actually, Namie did not come
as close as the article says.  I beleive he skipped parts of northern
California to get down to the Sierras in mid-October, and that's when he got
caught in the snowstorms.  Had he made it through the Sierras, he still
would have had to gone back to northern California in very late season, and
the trails probably would have been impassible that late in the year.  Even
though he started the AT in late January, he didn't finished too late.  I
think Namie could have done it if he had finished the AT on schedule and not
taken so much time off.

This attempt at doing the AT/PCT combo is not easy, obviously. The key is to
stick with your schedule and start the PCT portion early enough to get into
the Sierras before the snows arrive.  On such a long hike, I imagine staying
with it mentally is difficult, given that the journey is over 4600 miles! 

roger carpenter

* From the Pacific Crest Trail Email List | For info http://www.hack.net/lists *

==============================================================================