Sierra High Route Part 5: Tuolumne Meadows to Twin Lakes 2015.09.04 Hiking, Pacific Crest Trail, Sierra High Route This 23-mile stretch of the Sierra High Route took me almost three days. I left Tuolumne Meadows Saturday June 13th at 7am and came out at Twin Lakes on Monday the 15th at 4:30pm. Granted, I’m usually able to hike 23 miles in one day, that’s when there’s a trail and I don’t have three unusually steep mountain passes to get over. Over three days I had my ass handed to me by this route and once finished, tentatively decided to not continue hiking it. Day 1: Tuolumne Meadows to Cascade Lake June 13th. I was originally set to leave on June 5, and was posted up in Tuolumne acclimating to the elevation, but rain came in and wasn’t letting up so I postponed. I’m actually glad […] Read more
The Best Ultra Lightweight Sleeping Bags 2015.01.07 Bikes, Pacific Crest Trail, Sewing Ultra lightweight sleeping bags are purpose-built for long-haul treks where space is at a premium and weight is counted in grams, but they can also be used on your ordinary family camping trips. I call that win-win! The sleeping bag is part of “The Big Three:” These three items comprise the most weight, and take up the most space of all your gear. Also, they are items (aside from food and shoes) that can make–or break–your hike or bike tour. Be prepared to shell out good money up front (and not have to re-purchase something better later). This is an investment you’ll be putting to very good use. A sleeping bag is a camper’s best friend! Considerations For Choosing a Sleeping Bag Sleeping Bag Comparisons These comparisons […] Read more
Backpack Choices for a Thru-hike 2014.12.29 Pacific Crest Trail (UPDATE 2023) I realize these days all the “cool” kids want a tissue-thin artisanal custom sub-2-lb backpack for their thru-hike. If that’s you, maybe you don’t need this article. If you’d prefer to carry something sturdy that can actually handle water carries, snow gear carries, and possible longer stretches, then this post is for you. (UPDATED 2019) Here is a run-down of all the popular backpacks on the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT). Also included are a couple pack comparison charts for you, looking at a range of the most common and reasonable packs for normal people. I hope this helps your selection. Please correct any mistakes or omissions in the comments below. Index Common Packs Outliers Other Ideas Considerations 55-60L Comparison Chart 65-70L Comparison Chart Common Backpacks […] Read more
My Portraits of the Pacific Crest Trail 2014.12.07 Pacific Crest Trail I was super excited to find this excellent photo gallery of PCT hiker photos over at Outside Online today (thanks Pacific Crest Trail Association for the link). How cool is it that an unwitting trail angel became a documenter of some of the 2014 personalities? I met a few of those hikers (Justin, Blanco, Far Out, Sarah!, Namaste) , and maybe met a few others before they got their trail names, and got teary-eyed looking at their beautiful portraits. But it made me remember that I took some 2014 PCT portraits myself, and still haven’t shared them beyond the ephemeral Instagram base. So here you go: Hiker Apache. Now I’m partial to this guy because I hiked a few miles with him in 2013, and he’s just […] Read more
Foot Care for Long-Distance Hikers 2014.11.17 Nursing, Pacific Crest Trail Shit isn’t easy on the PCT, and I’m writing now to share things I learned about feet for those of you considering your first long hike. The PCT was my first long hike, and I had my fair share of feet trouble, but I made it. And I learned a lot. And I'm going to share it all with you here. Read more
PCT Gear Review 2013.10.23 Bikes, Opinion, Pacific Crest Trail I was really comfortable with my gear along the Pacific Crest Trail, so I thought I would share it with you, and explain why it worked. Please note beforehand that I purchased all these items with my own money after carefully researching them, and was not given anything for review. The following are my opinions. If you look at this photograph with me, I will talk about the items shown, left to right, one row at a time. Click a link to skip forward to that gear item. Read more
The Wall of Snow 2013.10.09 Hiking, Pacific Crest Trail We started hearing horror stories about the snow on the trail while in Stehekin 9/28-9/29, but by the time we got to Mazama and Winthrop 9/30, the stories had whipped into a terrible tale of impassable “walls of snow,” irreconcilable avalanche and hypothermia dangers, etc. etc. There’s a great blog post that talks about the chaos on the PCT during this time and about the ill-fated group that headed north one day ahead of us (October 2). I decided to ignore the stories and see for myself. By then I’d learned that fear-mongering was really shit-thick on the trail, and that it did me no good. I formed a team of four for safety (including a South African who had never seen snow before), and waited for […] Read more