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PCT By the Numbers


Hiking is all about numbers... number of miles, number of hours of daylight, number of days of food left, number of pounds on my back, number of dollars in my bank account... Here is a compilation of the various numbers throughout my journey. Few of these are exact, but after counting and guesstimating multiple times, here is what I have come up with:


Miles of the Pacific Crest Trail: 2650


Miles averaged per day: 20 (averaged roughly 15 in the Desert, 20 in the Sierras, 25 in NorCal and 30 in the Pacific Northwest)


Feet elevation gained/lost: 489,000

Days spent on the journey: 135


Zeros: 10


Nearos (10 miles or less): 8


Longest day: 50 miles


Average pack weight: 26 lbs(varied from 18 lbs heading into towns to 35 lbs in the sierras)


Pair of shoes: 3 (I wore boots in the Sierras and tennis shoes the rest of the trail)


Nights of cowboy camping: 6


Nights I camped alone: 17


Hostels stayed at: 4 (most towns offered free or cheap camping to thruhikers, so I stayed there rather than hostels)


Hotels/cabins stayed at: 6 (because I hiked with a large group, it was often cheaper to split a hotel than to pay for a hostel)


Hitches into town: 10 (3 solo)


Longest water carry: 42 miles (35 miles if I relied on a cache)


Longest food carry: 7 days (in the Sierras)


Days of mist/rain: 12 (2 of these had thunder and lightning, 4 had really cold temps)


Fire Detours: 4


Months of hiking through smoke: 1


Weight loss: 10 lbs


Roadside trail magic: 12 (and a few cooler magics)

Rattlesnakes seen: 7


Podcasts listened to: 150


Pictures taken: 3000


Hours of video: 4


Cost of gear (pre-trip): $225 (I used some of my gear from the AT, but replaced some gear with lighter options)


Cost of hike: $2145



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