In Town Motels

[moocow]

What am I expecting to spend at hotels/motels in California? On the trail on the AT, it seemed rooms averaged 40-60 a night. Is there a culture of splitting rooms on the PCT like the AT?

[leaftye]

From what I've seen, more. 2-3 times more.

[fiddlehead]

Depends on the town.
You can't expect to find a cheap motel in Mammoth or Big Bear, but you can in Tehatchapee or Mojave.
More expensive than the east but, not as many towns. So, your spending might stay about the same if you were going to town every 3-4 days on the AT (won't have that option on the PCT)

[Coffee]

Motel 6 in Mammoth is around $60.

[garlic08]

There's definitely a culture of sharing rooms. The first room I saw, at Warner Hot Springs, hikers were pairing up with perfect strangers while standing in the lobby, and the management was very cool with that and even seemed to encourage it. I was stuck in a storm at Snoqualmie Pass in WA and the management there was doing everything they could to keep hikers from heading out into the storm for cost reasons--pairing people up, offering work for stay, credit, etc.

The only town I really remember really high prices ($100 in 2004, split three ways) was in S Lake Tahoe on a weekend. Otherwise they were just slightly higher than "normal", and not much more than on the AT in New England.

[frisbeefreek]

There are fewer towns and some of the towns have hostels (Etna/Big Bear/VVR/Ashland come to mind) or hosts (Dinsmores, Sauflys, Brattens, and others). Off-hand, I'd say motels were about $20/night more expensive, but not overly so. We had 4 random hikers in the Motel 6 in Mojave (right across the street from a grocery and a pizzeria, plus it had a pool).

Only other comment I'd add is that there is less of a need to stay in Motels on the PCT. I found the primary reason for a motel on the AT was crap weather (mostly needing to dry out my gear). You simply don't get that on the PCT.

[Mountain Mike]

PCT also has some nice CA state campgrounds with showers that have a cheap "Hike & Bike rate" Idyllwild, Burney Falls & Castle Craig. Many resuply stops have a camping option. Kennedy Meadow, VVR, Tuolumne Meadows, Seid, Sierra City, Beldon, Hat Creek, Cascade Locks, the OR "Resorts" White pass, WA. Like frisbeefreak said weather normally isn't much of a factor.