IG: @tylerhikes
Numbers never lie. I have compiled all of the interesting statistics that I could think of regarding my thru-hike. These are objective facts based on my 2015 SOBO journey. Use this information at your own risk, and by that I mean get outside into a park near you pronto!
2,650.1 - Total distance in miles of the Pacific Crest Trail according to the Halfmile maps. (Slightly longer than 101 marathons, and you all remember your first marathon!...)
488,411 - Total PCT vertical gain in feet while trekking those 101 marathons southbound to Mexico. (Equivalent to nearly 17 ascents of Mt. Everest if starting from sea level.)
This number is also from the Halfmile maps. https://www.pctmap.net/2014/03/elevation-gain-on-the-pacific-crest-trail/
I only saw 2 PCT trail markers during the first 60 miles of hiking.
122 - Number of days that it took me to hike from monument to monument, Canada to Mexico. (June 27 - October 26, just under 4 months! The average PCT thru-hike lasts 5 months.)
21.72 - Average number of miles hiked per day including time spent in town. Honest math.
4,003 - Average vertical ascent in feet per day. That's a lot of climbing!
3 - Pairs of Vasques boots used on the entire Pacific Crest Trail. I also used 6 pairs of socks.
5 - Number of trail names that I gave to other PCT hikers. I was hoping to report back with 6 but "Talent Boy" didn't want to keep his name.
6 - Age of the youngest person to complete the PCT, "Buddy."
76 - Age of the oldest person who I hiked with this year. Hiking is a great lifetime sport!
27 - Number of towns that I visited in order to resupply myself with provisions.
101.1 - Miles from Barrel Spring to the Mexican border. This would be the longest natural-source waterless stretch for southbounders on the Pacific Crest Trail. This is one of the main reasons why going northbound is so popular — more streams are running from snowmelt in the early Spring. Don't worry, there are spigots and water caches along the way, but this trail would be extremely difficult without these luxuries. Another daunting natural waterless stretch for southbounders was from Spanish Needle Creek to Robin Bird Spring, 67.9 miles. Yes, Joshua Tree Spring is in-between, but that water is laced with uranium. These desert distances make Oregon's 33.1-mile stretch between Thielsen Creek and Lightning Spring seem easy! I also once thought Washington's 12-mile dry stretch around Grizzley Peak was tough! Look how far I've come! Rule of thumb: Fill up when water is available. Hiking southbound was nice because by the time I got to the long waterless stretches down south I was in the best shape of my life.
54 - Longest hiking distance in miles that I hiked in one day. This stretch was from a site just south of Tehachapi Pass to Pine Canyon Road over the L.A. Aqueduct with the Wrong Way Gang. This was one of my two double marathon days.
14,505 - Highest elevation in feet reached on this trip. This was an 16-mile detour to climb Mt. Whitney, California's highest peak. The highest point on the actual PCT is Forester Pass at 13,200ft.
140 - Lowest elevation in feet reached on this trip. This was in Washington State near the Columbia River.
2 - Number of "zeros" that I took while hiking the PCT.
3,500 - Cost in USD of my thru-hike, not including the plane tickets. The average thru-hike costs between 4k-6k. I would attribute my below average total to three things: the low number of zeros that I took, my completion speed, and having already owned hiking equipment. New gear along the trail, resupplies, and town expenditures add up! The secret to saving money... Don't spend the night in a town. You already have your sleeping bag, and outside is free. An overnight in town inevitably results in additional restaurant bills. Save some cash and donate to the lovely Trail Angels along the way instead!
8 - Weight loss in pounds after completing the PCT.
23 - Number of bodies of water that I swam in along the PCT. This includes the three deepest lakes in the United States: Crater Lake, Lake Tahoe, and Lake Chelan. I didn't count anything less than full submersion as a legit swim.
5 - Number of black bears that I saw on the entire thru-hike. All of the Bears ran away from me as fast as possible once they saw me. There is no need to view this beautiful creature as an antagonist. Bears are awesome, and I'm so happy that I saw them.
48 - Number of Wilderness areas along the PCT. These places... Wow!
7 - Number of National Parks along the PCT. Have you been to any of them?
2.7 - Remaining percentage of the continental U.S. protected as wilderness. Hopefully you agree that this is a shockingly low percentage, considering that this country was nearly 100% wild a short time ago. Check www.wilderness.net
20 - Degrees Fahrenheit that my down sleeping bag was rated for. I was too warm most nights, but glad that I had it during the desert where I experienced the coldest temperatures. I know, right?! "Don't you know the desert is hot?" said everyone.
9 - Instances of precipitation while walking across Washington, Oregon, and California combined! I imagine that total rainfall would be less than 3 days out of 122 days of thru-hiking. I was told that this was the fourth terrible drought year in a row. I'd expect more rain next time, especially if I went NOBO (it rains a lot in the Cascades come September).
90 - Number of nights spent cowboy camping under the stars. (The other nights: 1 in a hammock, 2 in tepees, 7 in a tent, 22 days under a roof!)
1,052.1 - Number of miles hiked without carrying a tent. I shipped it from Cascade Locks, OR, to Echo Lake, CA to save on weight. This was very foolish, but I just assumed it would never rain! This means I hiked 40% of the PCT without a precipitation backup plan. I was rained on twice during that tentless stretch — including the first night without my tent!
29 - Days that I hiked solo on the PCT. People always ask me, "Were you alone most of the time?" Nope, I hiked with others 76% of the time, which is probably a very high statistic for a southbound thru-hiker! I also saw at least one other human being every single day during this thru-hike... Maybe the trail isn't as Wild as you would hope?
56 - The highest number of northbound hikers who passed me in one day. Everyone always wants to know where the dreaded NOBO herd is. I encountered it on August 10th just south of Crater Lake. I met my first NOBO July 9th ("Magic," a super nice guy) in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness. I was shocked to meet the last alleged NOBO thru-hiker on Septwmber 9th in the Carson-Iceberg Wilderness. I hope he makes it! My friend Half Jesus is still out there on his SOBO journey. Just like what Billy Goat says, "The last one to the border wins! If you go fast, you get to the monument and say, 'Well I guess I'll go home now...' People forget why they left their job to be out here in the first place!"
1,998 - Number of miles that I carried my bear canister... From the Canadian border to Walker Pass! You need this piece of equipment in the High Sierra.
0 - The number of times I went to dig a 6-8 inch cathole and accidentally dug up NOBO poop. Phew!
10 - The number of Keystone Lights I consumed before throwing in the towel during the 24-24-24 Challenge. Groucho was able to actually complete this mythical hiker quest. I am still amazed.
If you liked this Numbers post, you'll tolerate this Pacific Crest Trail Finale video... Look how far my beard has come! http://youtu.be/VUmAUZ2sWI8
Enjoy the monument celebration at the end :)
I'll admit that I got lucky with an unseasonably warm June, I got lucky with weather, and I was lucky to avoid most forest fire issues. Next year might be totally different, so please go forth prepared. Please follow all Leave No Trace ethics on your future hike, no matter the distance. Let's do our part to keep our trails awesome!
- Future Dad
