Hiking - 2016 PCT - Stats and Post Hike Thoughts (inc PCT Expenses)

Now that the hike is over and I have (mostly) returned to 'normal' life lots of people have been offering their congratulations and catching up with me about the hike. Unlike many of the people I had the pleasure of hiking the PCT with, I was afforded the opportunity to extend my travels post hike rather than returning to/looking for work straight away. I think this has really helped me 'wind down' from the hike and avoid some post-trail depression that is often talked about. 2 weeks down time though and I am starting to feel some of the pains (such as sore feet) that others have described.

My post hike thoughts are similar to Lisa (a fellow hiker) who summed it up nicely in her post-trail post;

Day after day I log onto Facebook and see posts from my PCT friends about a few things: post-trail depression, trouble assimilating back into the real world, how much the PCT changed their life. Here’s my confession: I feel none of those things. I am happy to be at home. [. . .] I have more or less the same attitude about nature as I did before we starting hiking, in that I am very happy in it and it’s great and wonderful and I belong there. [. . .] I seem to be in the minority of post-trail feelings of “that was really cool, but now it’s over and I’ve moved on”.

I'm happily (for the most part) back at work and found it surprisingly easy (maybe even scarily so) to get straight back into the routine of things. One of the few stark differences is my sleep pattern. I'm still waking up with the Sun (which is ~5am here at the moment) but rather than going to bed with it, enjoying the modern conveniences... such as electricity... keeping me up. I should really go to bed earlier...

Plans are already in motion for the next camping trips and even another hike so everything just seems 'back to normal.' The workplace is much the same too. Sure there might be one or 2 new staff, a few new hair styles and some new process but my work is the same. Home life is just as I remembered it; chores, errands, cleaning (who would think you would consider a hole in the woods the easier option?) I talk with family and friends as if there has been no gap, the only hurdle is my young niece not enjoying my new long beard.

I have also been hit with a lot of questions; From shoes used, Bears seen, Food eaten and How much it all costs. I've semi organised a bit of the information below and hopefully made it fairly comprehensible at a glance.

Wildlife;

One of the main topics is wildlife;
What did I see? Did a bear steal my food? Did I ever feel in danger?
Lots,                  No                                     Not for a second (on trail).
 
I was pretty 'lucky' (unlucky if you ask me) with Snakes on the trail. I didn't see any Rattlesnakes at all! Not ONE! People less than 1/2 an hour away from me saw plenty, so either I was completely oblivious or really unlucky. Other hikers told tales of coiled up rattle snakes right on the trail hissing and shaking their tail to ward them off, and plenty under rocks/bushes just on the side of the trail. Despite my efforts keeping an eye out (and of other hikers near me, such as RedHawk) I saw none. None under rocks and certainly none mid-trail in displays of aggression. Over the hike I did manage to lay eyes on 32 snakes, of which 5 I could positively identify as venomous, but not the famous Rattler. There was also plenty of lizards and other small creatures scurrying about.

Bears. Yes, I saw 2 black bears. Unfortunately both took off faster than I could get my camera out. The second was just a cub, with no sign of mum. So I bunched up with other hikers (Burrito, Snacks and Moonshine) who were close by for a mile or 2 just in case. There were a few hikers that had their camp raided and needed to scare off black bears and at least 1 hiker I heard of that lost their pack. For the most part wild rodents gave the most trouble to hikers. Nibbling through tent walls or food bags. Burrito had a marmot eat half the material of his hat (to get at the salt rich sweat) while he left his gear to make the final push to summit Mt Whitney. After the PCT when I headed to Yellowstone I also saw a Grizzly bear, however this was only through a telescope as it was very far away. Good way to see a Grizzly i guess!

Despite my 'luck' with Rattle Snakes I was in the vast minority that got to see a Mountain Lion. Again, sadly, it disappeared quicker than I could reach for my camera and I was only offered a glimpse before it was out of sight. Others that saw one had them in view for a good amount of time, and others still were followed for a while. I think I'm ok with just the glimpse.

The only two instances I was a little uneasy/panicked had nothing to do with wildlife and were both related to hitching. One hitch down a mountain I wasn't sure if the driver was a little drunk, or just a bad driver. I was definitely glad when that trip was over. The other time I had my gear in the boot and when I hopped out the driver started to take off, with my gear. Luckily they heard me holering and stopped, but my heart was beating out of my chest at that point.

Distances;

How far? Longest day? Average pace? Lots of people on trail talked about distances as well. Some able to hike far faster and others who hiked longer days (sun up until sun down). Some hiked slower and shorter days (sleeping in), but also skipped over town stops saving a lot of time. Two 'short' 15 mile days is longer than a 25 mile day and a Zero. My total recorded distance is 2,635 miles or 4,241 km. Though I was relying on my GPS watch in power save mode so many switch backs or sharp bends in the trail were ignored and omitted. This total also doesn't include 'Town Miles' which in places like Tehachapi alone was probably a good extra 12 miles. Some sections were closed due to past fires, and other sections I went off trail on alternative routes (San Jacinto, Crater Lake and Oregon Skyline trail come to mind) but with GPS constantly rounding down I estimate I walked well over 2,800 miles in my 5 months on trail.

My total average for 'Trail Miles' came in at 17.6 mi (28.3 km) a day. This includes my 22 Zero days (5 of which were double days off) and 9 Neros. 'Hiking days' (including the 9 neros) averaged out to 20.6 miles a day.

My longest day was 36.9 miles (59.4 km) which was in Oregon, the day after Shelter Cove. Easier terrain and plenty of shade from trees made for the bigger distance. As well as being pretty hike fit by then, not having a huge food carry, plenty of water sources and hiking from sun up right through to sun down. For this distance I knew i was up there so I used the HalfMile App to get a better judge of trail miles covered. Many people cracked 40 mile days, some quite often. Had I been paying more attention at the time I might have hiked another 600m to make it a nice even 60 km day. There was 39 days where I hiked further than 40 kilometres (25 miles.)

Camping;

The majority of my nights were spent on trail. A lot of potential or establish campsites are marked (either on the HalfMile maps or Guthook app) which made for good camping. Majority of my nights were also spent close to water sources, which saved having to cart water consumed for dinner and over night. In total I had 26 nights off trail, while not necessarily in a bed. Some of these nights I was still in my tent on the back lawn of a Trail Angels house. Other nights we had 6 people in a 4 person hotel room, and often shared a bed with another hiker. Once was spent in a hammock at a Trail Angels place in Cascade Locks. I only spent 14 nights under the stars without my tent (Cowboy Camping or Cowboy camps), significantly less than many of my hiking friends. I liked the comfort and warmth of the tent most nights, also the barrier from bugs didn't hurt. There were 15 nights where I was by myself, not being able to see/hear another hiker from my camp. There was plenty of opportunity for more solo camps, but I liked the company for the most part.

Trail Angels and Magic;

A rather amazing aspect of the PCT is the vast support network that helps you along your way. This isn't limited to the great work of field crews, PCTA and towns getting behind hikers (like Idyllwild who had big "Welcome PCT Hikers!" banners in their main street) but also Trail Angels and past hikers. Sometimes it was as simple as a cold can of soft drink, other times people were opening their houses to dirty hikers. Beds, Showers, Laundry and often a feed. In total I was the recipient of 133 offerings of trail magic. On one lucky occasion there was 7 in 1 day!

The best I can remember was at Walker Pass where 2 former hikers (Coyote was one and I'm really sorry I can't remember the name of the other) arrived the night before under darkness and allowed me to awake to the smell of bacon cooking on a stove. They also had beer, Whisky, Gatorade, Eggs, Water, Snack foods. The perfect start to a hikers day. I would also be amiss to not mention Copper Tone. He followed the hiker herd in his Camper Truck  stopping at ~200 mile intervals. Seeing his sign on the path "Copper Tone is here" always made your pace just that little bit faster. Fresh fruit, biscuits, cakes and of course Ice-cream Spiders! (Root Beer/Creaming Soda Floats.) I have to also give a massive shout-out to Devilfish who maintained some pretty significant water caches this year. Including Cache 22. As well as giving hikers a lift to help with the Fire Closure before Big Bear.

Gear;

Luckily most of my gear held up fairly well. I had all of it (excluding Down jacket) before the trek so it was all used. My Tent zipper failed days after the hike (while using it touring the USA) which seemed to be a common theme on trail. I had to replace the tips on my trekking poles, as time and granite had worn them down.

Socks and Shoes; I used a total of 5 pairs of shoes and 8 socks. I seemed to replace them sooner than some. The grips and mesh still looked fine on my shoes but I felt the sole padding had compressed too thin. I know that at least three of the four pairs I placed in the hiker boxes were picked up and used by following hikers.
Andrew only purchased 1 pair the entire trip, the ones he started in. The rest of his shoes came from the hiker box. Some were a size or 2 too big... others only lasted until the next town/hiker box but they worked for him and he made it the distance. I went through socks a little faster as I prefer thin socks, thicker socks would have lasted longer but make my feet too hot.

The only significant gear failure I had was the aluminium stay in my SMD backpack. I purchased an Osprey (which I didn't enjoy) while getting in contact with SMD who were great and happily sent out a replacement part to the next town.

I also picked up a fleece vest and some warmer gloves in Washington as I started to feel the cold.

Favourite Part;

It was all pretty awesome to be honest. Though to list a top 5 I would pick, in order;

• Half Dome Summit - The awesome feeling of sitting on the edge and having to world in front of me. And the gasps from people thinking I was crazy ;) Easily my favourite location on trail, though technically off trail.


• 'Section J' Alpine Lakes Wilderness - Mt Rainier in the background and beautiful alpine lakes and mountains. As well as some nice cliff drops right on the path. Definitely a more challenging section of the PCT but I really enjoyed it.


• San Jacinto - I was lucky and got there the day after a fresh dump of snow. The mountain covered in snow was very scenic and vastly different to the hiking I'm use to in Brisbane. Had I done this after the Sierra Mountains it might not have had the same impact.


• Crater Lake - Awesome blue water and brilliant view. Spoiled a little as it was also one of the more crowded sections.. and a long dry stretch despite brilliant water being in view the entire day.


• Mt Whitney - Highest mountain in the continental USA. I checked;

Trail Logistics / Food;

I pretty much followed my "Craigs PCT Planner" plan, not quite to a T... but close.;
http://www.pctplanner.com/v.php?g=pvM9qPnnv5A4
Disregard all the 'extra miles' though (except Half Dome) I had them in when I didn't have that much confidence in Hitch Hiking and thought I would have to walk to towns. (Hint: You don't)

Logistics mostly centre around food but also sometimes spare gear. Spare gear (Milo, First Aid, Laptop etc) for me was handled in a bounce bucket. I had 5 locations on trail where I had my bucket dropped. Mainly it was for the Milo, but I also had my laptop so I was able to download stats off my GPS watch and backup photos from my Phone and SD card. There were 15 different locations that I mailed food to as well. I thought it was worth it for most of them, though some I could have resupplied from the towns in store. If there is a next time I would try to avoid post offices as well, as open hours sometimes dictated my hiking time.

This is what I generally eat;

• Breakfast; Honey Bun / Poptart / ChocChip cookies / Anzac Biscuit / Cinimon Roll / Cheese & Vegemite roll + a Milo
• Trail nibbles; Skittles, More skittles, Trail Mix, Muesli Bars, Cliff Kids Z bars, Chocolate Bars (Snickers, Milky Way, Three Musketeers), Roll-ups, Jerky, Nuts, Pringles, Reese's Pieces, Random Dried fruit, Pringles, Brownie, Nutter butters
• Lunch; Wraps, Cheese, Salami, Summer Sausage, Tuna or Chicken Pouch, Twiggy Sticks, Cliff/Luna/Power Bars, Bagels w/ Nutella or Peanut Butter
• Dinner; Knorr pasta side (with added meat), Mash Potato, Moutain House/Backpacker pantry, Ramen, Oatmeal, Mac n Cheese
• Night time snack; Dried Apricot, MnMs

My Stove is a BRS3000. No wind shield although I often hide behind my tent/tree/log/rock.

• 1x 110g lasts me ~10 days with Breakfast coffee (not quite boiling) and Boiling water for dinner.
• 1x 260g lasts me ~25 days

I'm usually attentive and don't let it over boil. With Ramen/Potatoes and Oats it's rare you'd need to get it to a point where it was boiling violently. Just starting to bubble would be more than enough.

Advice: One 260g gas Canister. Float it in water and mark a 'Full' line. After the trip refloat and take note of where 'Used' line is. Use the remainder of the gas and mark an 'Empty' line. Also weigh before and after.

Now you know how much gas you have used /7 for average daily use and in the future you can test how much gas you have left. Rather than just shaking it and thinking 'yeah, it has some gas left.'

If I had my hike over again I would still do this (AFTER confirming they're still open);

Mail from San Diego day before I leave;

• Warner Springs (SoCal)

Mail from Big Bear;

• Acton KOA
• Kennedy Meadows South (Sierra)

Mail from Tehachapi or Bishop;

• T.Mead

Mail from Echo Lake;

• Belden (NorCal)
• Burney Falls (NorCal)

Mail from Ashland;

• Shelter Cove (Oregon)

Mail From Sisters/Bend;

• White Pass (Washington)
• Snoqualmie Pass (Washington)
• Stevens Pass/Skykomish (Washington)
• Stehekin (Washington)

If you need gear/new shoes; Big Bear Hostel (Big Bear), Mellow Mountain Hostel (Echo Lake), Hiker Hut (Etna) (Hiker Hut closed :( ) and Cascade Locks Ale House (Cascade Locks) are good places.

You can 100% definitely resupply from trail. Many people do. I personally would send some boxes from trail.

I would advise against taking a Bounce Bucket. I liked having the Milo/spare FAK, but it was an unnecessary distraction. Unless you have prescription meds (fine to be stored at room temp) or something absolutely critical you're probably better off without one.  

Expenses;

Trail expenses will be different for everyone. Some people need to purchase more gear. Some eat cheaply, others buy dehydrated trail food. International hikers (like me) also have increased transport costs simply getting to and from the trail. Bounce bucket added to my Postal costs too, as did the expensive (~$80) shipment back home when I had my pack woes. I didn't shy away from town comforts including accommodation, food and drinks while others chose to pass through towns as quickly. Moving on as fast as possible, with maybe only 1 meal.

That said, my total 'PCT expenses' were $9,132.53. All prices listed are in USD.

• You can see that Food makes up a fair wack of it, over 40% of my total expenses.
• Sorry for not splitting out the difference between Town and Trail food Figures. Town food was definitely expensive.
• Gear is dominated by replacement shoes (5 pairs total at ~$120 each. I bought a new pair 2 weeks before I set off which I have included as they're a 'consumable')
• Remainder was for a replacement Pack - Though I ended up fixing my original SMD Fusion and sending the Osprey home.
• Travel includes flights from Brisbane, which I actually got fairly cheap on a good sale. Train costs and some shuttle expenses to/from trail towns is included in that too.
• Accommodation is mainly hotel/motel rooms, split with other hikers (though I did get my own room twice) 
• It also includes the 'donation' usually suggested for enjoying the hospitality of Trail Angels private homes. It's really worth it, cheaper than some campgrounds and usually a free shower/laundry!
• Cough America might have some pretty decent Micro-Brew Beers too... once I learned to stay away from those awful IPAs.
• Entertainment was only 2 movies at the cinemas along the way and some money sent down the drain via a Casino (South Lake Tahoe)
• ~$690 of the 'other' is Trail insurance. Remainder is Pre-paid mobile phone
• For insurance you should ensure they cover you for the Top of Whitney. A solution is to get regular travel insurance for the majority of the hike, but the 2 weeks near when you hit Whitney get Trekking Insurance (like World Nomads)

Any hiker could significantly reduce the cost of their hikes fairly easily. As I mentioned before someone taking shoes from hiker boxes to save $400. I also met many hikers (Genie, Fury and Left Foot come to mind) who spent very minimal time in towns and avoided accom costs which quickly added up for me. Resupplying entirely on trail is possible and would (from the quick head calcs I did on trail) work out a bit cheaper. Though sacrifices would be made to your sanity by way of limited diet options at some stops. Choosing to make a sandwich instead of heading out for steak dinners may have saved some money too...

Random Stats.

Just a bunch of random things I tracked;

Liters of water filtered:	Lost count
Water given to others	27 lt
Resupplies mailed:	15
Beers consumed:	Lots
Snakes seen:	22
Rattlesnakes	NOT ONE!
Bears seen:	2
Mountain Lions seen	1
Zero days	22
Double zero	5
On Trail Zeros	1
Nero days:	9
Nights off trail:	26
Cowboy Camps:	14
Solo camps	15
Rainy days (light):	8
Rainy days (heavy):	5
Socks destroyed:	4
Shoes destroyed:	5
Trail Magic:	133
Trail Angel:	7
Water cache used:	9 lt
Offers of weed	46
Hiking Dogs	76
Hiking horses	3
Day horses	18
Mule pack trains	6

What's next?

A very common question is "So, what's the next adventure?" and well.. it looks like it might be a Kilimanjaro summit mid 2017. A friend is heading up and suggested I might like to come along! Other than weekends away I also have a longer dive holiday booked on North West Island for 2 weeks in April and I'm going to try organise a 4 day hike for the Australia Day long weekend. Happy to take on any more suggestions/invites...