The Pacific Crest Trail stretches 2,650 miles from Canada to Mexico, climbing through the rugged mountains of Washington, the old-growth forests of Oregon and the wide-ranging terrain of California — from desert valleys to the peaks of the Sierra Nevada. Every year, hundreds of hikers embark on what amounts to a multi-month pilgrimage, while others choose to tackle shorter sections of the trek.
This guidebook series is ideally suited for those section hikers. It’s split into four separate volumes, each covering one of the trail’s geographic regions, including elevation graphs, hiking distances, color maps and comprehensive trail descriptions. Each is written by a different, experienced section-hiker, who sprinkles in interesting tidbits of knowledge, ranging from tips on where to find water or harvest berries to how to spot wildlife.
Explore the camaraderie on the trail through a hiker’s eyes in this photo essay.
This article appeared in the print edition of the magazine with the headline Hiking the Pacific Crest Trail Guidebook Series.
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