Preliminary Resupply Schedule for PCT2009

Below is a basic preliminary resupply strategy for the PCT I put together this morning.

It outlays how we will most likely be getting our food for the trip. Stops where we mail a resupply, we will box up food either before we leave for the trip in May, or on the trail in a town with a large supermarket and easily accessable mail service like Ashland, OR.

Of note is the 8.7 day stretch through the High Sierra after our Kennedy Meadows maildrop. This will include a 1 day side trip to the highest point in the Lower 48 States, Mt. Whitney, and snow travel which may slow us down and often takes PCTers around 10 days to complete. If necessary we will be able to come down out of the mountains during the High Sierra to go to Independence, CA a 9 mile hike off the PCT and a 15 mile hitch-hike from the trailhead (24 miles off the PCT).

Location (PCT Mile, Distance to next, Days to next) Method of resupply

Mexican Border --------------------- (0.0, 43.0, 2.2) Carrying
Mt. Laguna --------------------------- (43.0, 66.6, 3.3) Mail
Warner Springs ---------------------- (109.6, 69.0, 3.5) Mail
Idyllwild via Saddle Junction ----- (178.6, 86.7, 4.3) Buy
Big Bear City via Hwy 18 ----------- (265.3, 104.2, 5.2) Buy
Wrightwood via Hwy 2 ------------- (369.5, 84.9, 4.2) Buy
Saufleys ------------------------------- (454.4, 103.9, 5.2) Mail
Mojave via Willow Springs Rd. ---- (558.3, 144.5, 7.2) Buy
Kennedy Meadows ------------------ (702.8, 174.4, 8.7) Mail
Vermillion Valley Resort ----------- (877.2, 65.5, 3.3) Mail
Tuolumne Meadows ---------------- (942.7, 151.8, 7.6) Buy
South Lake Tahoe ------------------- (1094.5, 103.1, 5.2) Buy
Sierra City ---------------------------- (1197.6, 91.7, 4.6) Buy
Belden PO ---------------------------- (1289.3, 88.4, 4.4) Mail
Old Station --------------------------- (1377.7, 45.9, 2.3) Mail
Burney Falls State Park ------------ (1423.6, 82.9, 4.1) Mail
Castella ------------------------------- (1506.5, 99.8, 5.0) Mail
Etna ----------------------------------- (1606.3, 120.3, 6.0) Buy
ASHLAND, OREGON --------------- (1726.6, 103.8, 5.2) Buy
Crater Lake Mazama Village ------ (1830.4, 81.8, 4.1) Mail
Shelter Cove Resort ---------------- (1912.2, 88.7, 4.4) Mail
Big Lake Youth Camp -------------- (2000.9, 106.4, 5.3) Mail
Timberline Lodge ------------------- (2107.3, 47.7, 2.4) Mail
Cascade Locks ----------------------- (2155.0, 147.8, 7.4) Buy
White Pass --------------------------- (2302.8, 98.9, 4.9) Mail
Snoqualamie Pass ------------------ (2401.7, 74.6, 3.7) Mail
Skykomish --------------------------- (2476.3, 97.8, 4.9) Mail
Stehekin ------------------------------ (2574.1, 89.4, 4.5) Mail
Manning Park Lodge, CANADA -- 2663.5 Miles

17 Maildrops ------- 10 Resupplies bought along trail

What does this schedule mean????

This is a tool to be used in planning how much food to put into mail drops before we leave for the trail, and a quick and simple list of where we're planning to take time away from the trail to do logistical tasks including resupplying food, updating online journals, sending emails and making calls to family and friends, and keeping bills paid. It also points out a couple interesting aspects of hiking.

This is a no-time off scenario. This schedule lays out a trip of 133 days with no days off... we will undoubtedly take rest days (zero days) which will lengthen the overall time we're hiking the Pacific Crest Trail.

Also according to this schedule, the average resupply will contain 4.8 days worth of food which should weigh about 9.6 lbs. So, on average, every 5 days we will be adding 10 lbs of food to our packs.

Of the 17 maildrops scheduled, it is likely we will only prepare 9 before we leave and pack up the 8 maildrops of Oregon and Washington from Ashland, Oregon. This is substantially different than our AT hike when we only resupplied via maildrops and had packed around 30 of them. This should allow for more variability in our diets and offer more choices while on the trail.