Pacific Crest Trail: visitor guide

Decide first whether you are thru-hiking or walking a section. A thru-hike takes four to six months and needs a permit, a start date and a resupply plan. A section hike takes a long weekend to two weeks and needs only a trailhead, a shuttle and a weather window.

The trail runs 4,265 km (2,650 mi) from Campo, California, on the Mexican border, to Manning Park in British Columbia. It crosses desert, the Sierra Nevada, the Cascades and old-growth forest. Most readers should pick one section and treat the rest as a separate trip.

The route runs north from the Mexico border near Campo, east of San Diego, through the Laguna Mountains, the Mojave, the Sierra Nevada, Lassen and the Cascades, ending at Manning Park, British Columbia. Major trail towns include Julian, Idyllwild, Big Bear Lake, Tehachapi, Kennedy Meadows, Mammoth Lakes, South Lake Tahoe, Belden, Ashland, Bend, Cascade Locks and Stehekin.

Coordinates below are approximate trail-town or trailhead points, not the exact trail line. Use official trail maps and a GPS app for navigation; the route is not signposted at every junction.

The trail is usually described in five broad stages. Distances and times below are for a thru-hiker walking 20–30 km a day; a section hiker will cover far less.

Timing is the single decision that makes or breaks a PCT trip. The desert is dangerous in midsummer heat and pleasant in spring and autumn. The Sierra holds snow into June in a normal year and longer in a heavy snow year. Washington's Cascades are often snow-covered until July and can see early snow in October.

For a thru-hike, the standard plan is a late April to mid-May start at Campo, reaching the Sierra in June or July and Canada before mid-October. For a section hike, July to September is the safest window for the Sierra and Cascades; March to May or October to November suits Southern California.

There is no accommodation on the trail itself. Hikers camp on public land, in designated campsites or in the occasional hut, and resupply in trail towns. Camping rules differ by land manager: national parks and some state parks require permits or designated sites, while national forest land is generally more open.

Trail towns have motels, hostels and campgrounds, and many accept walk-ins. Book ahead near popular trailheads in July and August. In the backcountry, plan your resupply stops around post offices and general stores that accept hiker boxes.

A long-distance permit is required for trips over 500 miles on the PCT, and the quota is limited, so apply early in the year for a thru-hike start date. Shorter trips may need a separate permit from the national park or forest you enter. Check the rules for each section before you go.

Carry the essentials: water capacity for desert stretches, a filter, layers for snow and cold, a navigation app plus paper maps, and a personal locator beacon. Snow skills and an ice axe may be needed in the Sierra in a high-snow year. Cell coverage is patchy; do not rely on it.