View Full Version : Im sure this has been asked
Chaco Taco
12-22-2009, 09:48
Soooooo, All I can think about now is hiking the PCT. I have it in my mind that I want to do it. Now its a matter of if I can do it. Im shooting for 2012 or 2013. My fiance has an idea that thruhiking is in me again. Now just to afford it. I have tried to strategize on how I can swing it, BUT i want to try and have more than enough money to do it. Over the course of the past year, I have been really working on my gear, trying to go as light as possible. I would probably get a new pack between now and then. The question Im asking is that I spent about $3500 on my AT thru, how much is it really going to cost ONCE I get to the trail. I know the travel out west will be costly, but I can deal with that. Mexico to Canada, how much am I looking at spending on the trail???
warraghiyagey
12-22-2009, 09:52
I also have recently been reading about going SOBO on the PCT and I'm definitely feeling like it's in the near future. . .
Chaco Taco
12-22-2009, 10:13
I also have recently been reading about going SOBO on the PCT and I'm definitely feeling like it's in the near future. . .
Lets go!!!!!!
When are you looking at going??
warraghiyagey
12-22-2009, 10:14
Lets go!!!!!!
When are you looking at going??
It's a couple years away likely. . . .
Chaco Taco
12-22-2009, 10:17
I also have recently been reading about going SOBO on the PCT and I'm definitely feeling like it's in the near future. . .
What kind of stuff are you reading about it????
Mags article about the PCT is pretty cool.
We have a girl at the local outfitter that just finished a few months ago. Loved it! WOuld Vonfrick go?????
Im trying to recruit Wak but she may not be interested
Chaco Taco
12-22-2009, 10:17
It's a couple years away likely. . . .
Im looking at 2012 or 2013
Jim Adams
12-22-2009, 11:03
Chaco,
When I was there in 2007 it was more expensive than the AT. There are less towns to spend money in but the cost is higher. Average hotel / motel room was $80-$100 night. Most towns are far enough off the trail that you almost have to stay over. A non-fast food cheeseburger, fries and a drink will cost you $15-$20 no matter where you're at out there. I found tuna in a pouch for $6.50. OTOH if you only eat fast food, McDonalds has pizza, Burger King has tacos.
geek
Chaco Taco
12-22-2009, 11:09
Chaco,
When I was there in 2007 it was more expensive than the AT. There are less towns to spend money in but the cost is higher. Average hotel / motel room was $80-$100 night. Most towns are far enough off the trail that you almost have to stay over. A non-fast food cheeseburger, fries and a drink will cost you $15-$20 no matter where you're at out there. I found tuna in a pouch for $6.50. OTOH if you only eat fast food, McDonalds has pizza, Burger King has tacos.
geek
Did you say TACOS?????
Rockhound
12-22-2009, 11:25
I'd go but I refuse to hike with hippies
garlic08
12-22-2009, 12:17
I agree the PCT will cost a little more. Cost per mile is probably about the same, but you have 500 more miles. South Lake Tahoe, for instance, is a natural place for resupply and a zero, but you're there in peak summer tourist season and it will cost. My wife and I stayed two nights, set up four maildrops, ate a lot, bought new shoes and shirts, and tallied up the bill at about $750! Did it all again in Ashland, OR, a little less but still expensive. If you stop at Vermillion Valley Resort (VVR), be prepared for more hundreds. (I managed to skip that hit.) I never had to spend anything like that in one town on the AT.
My PCT hike cost about $4000, AT about $3000, four years later and similar pace. Much cheaper.
mweinstone
12-22-2009, 13:02
$6,843.87 plus ciggs if you smoke.
My PCT hike cost about $4000, AT about $3000, four years later and similar pace. Much cheaper.
That is the opposite of what I wanted to hear :)
To be fair, I think I was pretty stupid with money on the AT. I'm going to try to defy your odds and spend less money on the PCT. I'm prepared to spend more, but... I'll see how it goes!
warraghiyagey
12-22-2009, 13:06
That is the opposite of what I wanted to hear :)
To be fair, I think I was pretty stupid with money on the AT. I'm going to try to defy your odds and spend less money on the PCT. I'm prepared to spend more, but... I'll see how it goes!
Guthook! What's up brother? . . met you in Maine in 07. . . :sun
Just don't stay in any hotels. Why should anyone pay to sleep when you've been sleeping for free all along the way already?
Jester2000
12-22-2009, 16:28
Just don't stay in any hotels. Why should anyone pay to sleep when you've been sleeping for free all along the way already?
Yes! And why thru-hike, when you can just walk around your neighborhood?
Maybe that's too much of a smartass response.
I'll say you might pay for a room for the bed. And the flush toilet. The shower is nice, and I'm even a fan of the sink. I like the TV, and some of the rooms have small refrigerators. I like those a lot. The room also gives me a place to store all the beer I'm going to drink, which is cheaper to buy and drink in a room rather than in a bar.
Air conditioning. I don't mind paying for that. Fresh towels -- did I mention fresh towels? I like that the rooms have outlets. I can recharge my electronics without having to watch over them. And now that I think of it, the room is a great place to store my stuff, so I can walk around town without carrying all of it.
I'd have to say there are lots of reasons to pay for a room beyond my need to sleep. And every once in a while, I get a room by myself, so I can lock everyone else out.
rasudduth
12-22-2009, 19:12
$4,000-5,000 You are often in out of the way tourist towns where everything is expensive.
If you're hiking with someone else rooms aren't all that expensive and there's a number of "hostels" that are priced similar to the AT, free, or on a donation basis. They have McD's and other fast food places, which are priced about the same as the east.
You can also get free rides to the southern termius from San Diego. Don't talke the bus from Asheville, it sucks and is 65 hours long.
I guess I just slept so much better in my tent that the hotels no longer seemed worth it. I slept in two hostels. I think I got one hotel by myself and shared one. I stayed with trail angels, but if possible, I set up my tent. I also set up my tent near town. I slept in the forest near town, in a vacant lot, near some hot springs near a town, and near resorts instead of at them. I used a pocket shower, I bathed in bathroom sinks, and paid for showers at campgrounds and resorts. I walked almost across the whole state of Oregon before I got my laundry done, but managed to wash my clothes in showers whenever I could. I saved hundreds of dollars over last year's hike by avoiding hotels and I had a much better time because of it.
handlebar
12-22-2009, 22:36
I hiked in 08 and here are the expenses I logged. I got this from pulling together all my VISA transactions and adding in my debit card transactions then putting them up on a spreadsheet. At $2.31/mile these weren't that much different from my AT expenses.
I'm retired and I enjoy some creature comforts. I might have economized a bit more had I realized what was going on with my investment portfoliio while I was hiking :o. I was hiking alone much of the time so I missed the opportunity to split lodging costs, except for 1, night at Warner Springs, 1 night in Idyllwild, 3 nights in Big Bear and 2 nights in Ashland. When I do the PCT again, I'll opt for hostels more than I did the last time, plus I'll abbreviate my town stays and take more neros. Those zeros (23 hotel nights) really jack up the cost. What makes the fuel costs so high is, again, hiking alone, I often had to buy a quart of denatured alcohol and leave most behind since there was no one to split with. Next time I'll see if Yellow Heet is more economical.
The other thing I found surprising was how much I spent on postage. I had a bounce bucket that I had access to about every 2 to 3 weeks. I also sent a lot of used guidebook/map pages home via priority mail that could have gone normal parcel post. Some of the postage was to send packages ahead on the trail (2 places in CA, 4 places in OR, and 4 places in WA) as a resupplied on the trail.
This coming year I'll dump the pocketmail for a smart phone to save some $ there.
Food - supermarket 1360 Restaurants & snack foods 1050 Lodging 1285 Postage 435 Trail Angel contributions 210 Cash - unexplained, mostly food/restaurant 720 Gear/Equipment 485 Fuel 75 Journal - Pocketmail & subscription 265 Other - mostly drug store purchases, drugs, batteries 250
As others have mentioned there is great variance in the amount you can spend on the PCT. I liked motels a lot on the PCT and felt I needed to unwind and rest more than I did on the AT. Maybe it was the strong sun, maybe the intense dust and dirt in the desert or the lack of water, but I almost always was looking forward to A/C, cold drinks and shade.
A lot of people mentioned hostels in this thread and while they do exist, the info provided is a little misleading. There are considerably fewer on the PCT, like around 6 or 7 and if I'm not mistaken, there is no hostel between Old Station and Skykomish, some 1100+ miles apart. And there are 2 kickass hostels 24 miles apart.
There's a hostel in Ashland.
I would always ask what the difference in price was between Priority and parcel and it was always about 5 cents. So I just went with Priority.
Jester2000
12-23-2009, 11:44
There's a hostel in Ashland.
I would always ask what the difference in price was between Priority and parcel and it was always about 5 cents. So I just went with Priority.
Absolutely right on here. Priority is the way to go. Any little bit of savings you might get from PP isn't worth it.
There's also a hostel in Etna, as well as the one in Ashland. So there aren't hostels in every town by any means, but there are enough that if you consistently choose a hostel over a hotel you can realize a significant savings. My favorite hostel is still, of course, the big bear hostel (which is a real hostel and not a trail angel). Grayson's rates are great and the scene there is super fun. Plus it's right next to pretty much everything you need while in town.
And yeah, just get priority. The only time parcel post will save you any significant money is if what you're sending is giant or awkward to box. And there's always problems related to parcel post, since the way they ship it is to load up a truck with everything that needs to go out, EXCEPT parcel post, and then if there's room they throw some of the parcel post stuff on there. So if there's a lot of priority mail coming through a distribution center, your parcel post package can sit in a pile for up to a month before anyone even begins to care. Beware that, for sure.
In 2008 I was a big spender. I took 53 zeros, ate 9 meals a day in town, never looked at the cost of resupply and often stayed multiple nights in hotels by myself. I can't be sure exactly how much I spent but it was at least $7000, and that's just on-trail costs. And I'm pretty sure it's at least a little more.
In 2009, as a repeat hiker, my funds were much more controlled. I spent $3700 and finished in 17 weeks. In the beginning I wasn't very conscious of my money -- I took a good amount of zeros, ate meals without considering the cost, etc. etc. -- but after I got through the sierras I began to realize I was spending too much money. I tried to watch my money after that (skipped bridgeport, only took one zero in south lake tahoe, etc.) but it still went pretty quick. When I got to Etna and checked my balance I had $700 left.
This is when super cheap hiker inside of me came alive. I realized I had to go about a 1000 miles on $700. I didn't zero in Etna, obviously, just resupplied and rolled out. We had been doing 30s daily for a while but now it was kind of a personal requirement. We flew past Seiad, eating only a gallon of ice cream and a 2 liter of soda. I stopped for a zero in Ashland because it was my birthday (July 28th) but we were able to stay at a friend of my hiking buddy's house, so it was cheap. After I left Ashland I did 30-34 miles every day. I did an in-and-out in Bend (enter town and leave on the same day) which is actually pretty impressive since Bend is pretty far from the trail. I resupplied at a Grocery Outlet in Bend (if you're familiar with that). I got 7 days of food for $30!
I hiked super cheap for the rest of the trail. I didn't take another full zero again, avoided expensive restaurants, keeping myself to one good town meal per stop. I tried to find friends to send me boxes (and a few awesome people definitely did) so I could cut costs on resupply.
So that goes to show you the polar opposites. I spent $3000 on 1600 miles. And I spent $700 on a 1000 miles. Either strategy is possible. I would recommend a middle ground, though, obviously.
Jester2000
12-23-2009, 12:53
I think it's possible to go super cheap in Oregon. Stayed at Huff 'n Puff's brother's house in Ashland, which obviously isn't available to everyone. While there I mailed out all of my food for Orgon to the lake resorts and the youth camp, and as a result I didn't go into another town until Cascade Locks.
Paid for a shower at Crater, got a sweet deal with a couple of other hikers on a cabin at Diamond Lake. Cranked mad 30s through the state, and spent very little. As there were many other hikers who shipped food in Oregon, and I was late going through, the hiker boxes were filled to the brim.
So in 500 miles or so:
Two towns, three showers, one cabin, pizza and beer at Diamond Lake, crazy good AYCE at Timberline, flat rate postage for four boxes. And lots of great hiking.
There are considerably fewer on the PCT, like around 6 or 7 and if I'm not mistaken, there is no hostel between Old Station and Skykomish, some 1100+ miles apart. And there are 2 kickass hostels 24 miles apart. Not true. I think you mean there are no trail angel homes between Old Station and Skykomish. Because in Etna there is the Hiker Hut at the Alderbrook B&B (where you are charged money not a donation). There was also that training center in town where hikers could sleep on their floor for free if you didn't want to pay at the Hiker Hut. And lets not forget the Ashland Hostel in southern Oregon which is pretty large and doesn't just have hikers staying there.
I know alot of people call Trail Angel homes Hostels, but for me a true Hostel is a place that charges you money like a hotel and not a private home asking for a donation. I guess this attitude was shaped by my travels in Europe and other places where Hostels mean shared rooms, common areas, and cheap accommodations and not someone who has opened their home up to people for free.
ChacoTaco, since you already have the logistics of one thru-hike under your belt you are in a good place to more wisely budget for the PCT. You'll use what you learned on the AT by applying it to the PCT. I found resupply and town stops to be about the same to slightly more costly for the PCT than the AT. Some of the cost does depend on how touristy the town is. I think the resupply opps on the PCT tend to be fewer however, mostly because you cross much fewer paved roads than the AT. If you have your gear set before the PCT thru-hike start you absolutely can thru the PCT w/ $3500 IF you limit being sucked in by the town vortexes with expensive big bar/herbal supplement(?) tabs, solo hotel rooms stays, and consuming everything in the kitchen at restaurants. No need to drop $80-100 on hotel stays or $15-20 for a burger and fries(a bit exagerrated IMO).
I'm a finicky eater(pesce vegeterian) so I mailed out resupply boxes from NJ to some key places in Cali, where I knew there were not mid-lg. grocery stores. Likewise, I took multiple day stops at inexpensive hostels in Ashland OR($15/day) and Portland OR($16/day) to purchase organic food and mail out some resupply boxes for OR(Ashland) and WA(Portland). Both cities have great co-ops and lg grocery stores. As stated by others, if you cram as much heavy wt. gear and food into a flat rate Priority Box I find that's the way to go! I actually made money in Big Bear by doing a one day paint job for the hostel. Grayson has a great scene and vibe there! Ditto Meta's statement. You'll definitely want to take stops at the Saufleys, Andersons, and Dinsmores. ALL GREAT Trail Angels! There are others! You can stay at the recommended Alderbrook Inn/Hostel in Etna and get bus transportation into Weed or Mt Shasta(cool new agey type town right at the base of looming Mt. Shasta) or stay at the city park for free or the training center in Etna. Yes, Bend has a great outdoorsy health oriented vibe. Supposedly, more Olympic athletes call it home than any other town in the U.S. Everthing is there including an REI. It's a longish hitch though. I also got in and out in one afternoon though.
Some more ways to save: 1) if you elect to stop at Vermillion Valley Resort( I'd recommend it) limit your tab by hiking in over one of the Bear Creek or Bear Mountain cut-off Trails to the Lake Edison Dam(going NOBO), take the ferry back out to the PCT from VVR, have a huge freshly prepared dinner and/or breakfast, enjoy the free one night stay, maybe get some resupply there, maybe hitch down to Mono Hot Springs for a soak(also has a PO to send a package to), and move on(my cost- less than $40 in the middle of the remote Sierras) 2) avoid expensive hotel stays in Lake Tahoe by sharing a campground site w/ friends, there is one within walking distance of the lake that I stayed at w/ several other PCTers w/ showers, laundromat, and nearby grocery stores, bus transportation, and outfitter, cost me my share of $8 for two days, had a great time taking in the July 4 fireworks from the Lake Tahoe shoreline too!
Remember, overall, the PCT is much much drier than the AT, so you may not require as many hotel stays just because you want to get out of those multiple day rains like on the AT.
I did take the Dog from Asheville to San Diego for $98 in 2008. As Sly said, it was a LOOONG trip. I got a ride to Campo via another PCT thru-hiker who I just happened to meet at a San Diego REI(buses are available to very near the southern terminus too). Although there are trail angels in the San Diego area(go that route if it works for you since you are seeking low cost alternatives) I also stayed at a $22/day hostel in the Gas Lamp district of San Diego recooping from the bus ride and chasing the last remnants of civilized nightlife. Spent about $220 total getting from Manning Park BC Canada(northern terminus) to Vancouver Canada via Greyhound, getting from Vancouver to Seattle via Greyhound, and flying from Seattle back to the eastcoast.
It seems you have a real desire to thru the PCT and you are willing to make it happen within the next two yrs. Hope some of this helps.
All the Best. CARPE DIEM!
A note as regards the cost of getting from the end of the trail to get somewhere with an airport / train / bus station, or even just a major road to hitch home on, you can do that a lot cheaper by hitting the monument and turning around and hiking the 30ish miles back to Hart's Pass and hitching down to Mazama and Highway 20 that way. This saves you the cost of Manning, the bus to Vancouver, and the bus/train from Vancouver to Seattle or where-ever in the US you're headed initially.
And if you're down to hitch, you can hitch from 20 to either Seattle or wherever in Washington, or even further. In 2008 I hiked back to Hart's, got a ride down to Winthrop (bigger town near mazama on 20), stayed overnight and then hitched to Sedro-woolley and then took a bus to Seattle and managed to get on a ferry across puget sound to Bremerton in one day. In 2009 I walked back to Hart's Pass and got a ride down to Mazama and then one more ride all the way home to Bellingham (up north of Seattle) before the people who finished with me even made it to Seattle! And Bellingham is really close to Vancouver on the US Side.
so don't ignore the cost benefits of just hiking back to hart's pass! It seems like every year more and more people are doing it, too.
Chaco Taco
12-23-2009, 19:14
I am just starting my education on the PCT. Anyone got any good books to read about it??
I'm going to get up as much of a grub stake as I can and go to the kick off party. But on the way I'm going to vegas, and betting almost everything on one bet, red or balck...it's like almost 50-50 odds...If god wants me to hike I will win, if I'm not hiking I had to go back to work anyway so nothing lost.
matthewski on bfitz
This is your brain on a frying pan.
I am just starting my education on the PCT. Anyone got any good books to read about it??
What ever you do, don't bother with Six Moon Trail. The author went on to be an astronaut but the book sucked.
Another good money saving idea Meta! Of course, by not going into the friendly international artsy Vancouver you will miss out on the Amsterdam Cafe!
Not true. I think you mean there are no trail angel homes between Old Station and Skykomish. Because in Etna there is the Hiker Hut at the Alderbrook B&B (where you are charged money not a donation). There was also that training center in town where hikers could sleep on their floor for free if you didn't want to pay at the Hiker Hut. And lets not forget the Ashland Hostel in southern Oregon which is pretty large and doesn't just have hikers staying there.
I know alot of people call Trail Angel homes Hostels, but for me a true Hostel is a place that charges you money like a hotel and not a private home asking for a donation. I guess this attitude was shaped by my travels in Europe and other places where Hostels mean shared rooms, common areas, and cheap accommodations and not someone who has opened their home up to people for free.
True, 2.5 years and I have forgotten some stuff :) I didn't know if the Campus place was dependable on a year to year basis, tho it was a great place. Everyone was down on the Alderbrook in 07 as the new or temporary owners weren't doing a great job. And no hikers I was around were staying at the hostel as a couple had opened their home for the season.
But I guess my point is still valid that hostels, whether in someone's house or a more official business, are still relatively few and far between compared to the AT. Most hikers will stay in more (and more expensive) motels
Certainly there are not many true hostels, but that doesn't mean hotels are the only alternative. A few hotels are probably desired for the rest and relaxation, but not necessary. You hardly ever get to rest and relax anyway. Trail angel stays cost almost as much as hostels, but they are cheaper than hotels. Still, if you can avoid trail angels, you can save.
Warner Springs is wonderful, but if you didn't want to, you could stay near Warner Springs on the trail and just eat in the golf restaurant. I think it's one of the truly worthy places to stay just because you get to soak in the hot water. It's truly relaxing, unlike most hotel stays.
In Idyllwild you don't have to stay in a hotel. There's a $3 campground to stay in instead. Free hot showers, too.
Cabazon is a hot desert nowhere. Best to pop in and out and get up the trail as far as possible out of the heat. People used to stay at the Pink Hotel, but it's not there anymore.
In Big Bear you don't have to stay in a hotel. You could stay on the trail and just pop in and out of town. Or stay at the hostel, which is nice. The town is surrounded by trees, too, if you catch my drift.
In Wrightwood you don't have to stay in a hotel. The hardware store has a list of people who take in hikers.
I think the next town up the trail is Agua Dulce. Trail angels.
Then the Andersons, which you could skip because it's only a day or two after Agua Dulce.
Then there's Hikertown which you don't have to pay for if you sleep on the lawn.
Then there's Tehachapi/Mojave which you could skip by just popping in and out. Or you could make that your hotel splurge.
Then there's Kennedy Meadows which doesn't cost anything to stay at, but you'll have to exert some restraint over your spending on other things. Just don't start a tab and you'll be much more aware of your spending.
Then there's Lone Pine, if you desire. They have a hostel. You could just pop in and out and sleep at Horseshoe meadows instead.
Then there's the High Sierra spots. My friend stayed at Muir Trail Ranch and did some work in exchange for lodging and food. VVR is reputed to be expensive, but the first night is free. Exercise restraint while you are there. Know beforehand that VVR is going to charge you for every single little thing you do there.
Tuolumne Meadows has a campground. No need to stay there, though, if you don't mind hiking 4 miles away from the highway and sleeping in the forest.
If you go to Bridgeport from Sonora Pass, hike about 2 miles out of town to the Hot Spring. You're not supposed to camp there, but you could stealth camp away from the springs.
South Lake Tahoe has a campground with showers. It is also surrounded by a lot of forest. Who is going to see you camping in the forest? Or, you can get your mail/food at Echo Lake and just keep going up the trail.
Sierra City has a church where you can sleep on the lawn. Or you can just pop in and out of town.
You can stealth camp near Belden rather than pay for a room. There's a horse parking area where I camped. Not really stealthy, but nobody bothered me.
In Chester at some times of the earlier hiking season there may be a trail angel where you can stay. She'll have her phone number on the trail. If not, no reason why you couldn't just pop in and out. Plus the town, which has a public pay shower, is surrounded by trees...
Old Station has a trail angel. But it's also an easy pop-in-pop-out spot.
Burney Falls State Park is $16 I think to camp there. There's a trail angel in the campground. You could pop in and out of there, too, and avoid paying to sleep. Pay showers.
Dunsmuir/Castella are probably best popped into and out if you want to avoid hotels.
Etna has a hostel and a religious place to stay, as has been mentioned.
Seiad Valley has an RV park with pay showers that's not too expensive. Billy Goat sleeps under a bridge in Seiad Valley when he comes through.
Ashland is probably worth a hostel or hotel night. I had to pay $28 for the hostel.
Through Oregon there are mostly resorts. You can camp in the forest near these resorts rather than inside the resort. You don't need RV hookups so why bother?
Crater Lake/Mazama Village is expensive so just camp in the forest instead. Pay showers at Mazama are nice.
Timberline lodge is a great place to stay near, not in. No pay showers, though. Government Camp also has no pay showers. I found "lodging" (ha ha, stealth lodging) in town.
Cascade Locks has a Marine Park campground. The campground host did not charge PCT hikers to stay when I was there this summer. You just have to go up and speak to them. The showers were free, too.
White Pass is surrounded by forest. You could pop in and out easily, too.
Snoqualmie Pass has an expensive hotel. It's also surrounded by forest...
Steven's Pass has access to the Dinsmores.
Stehekin has a campground that's a reasonable price. You could pop in and out, too, if you take the early bus in and the late bus out.
So there you have it. As much of the trail as I can remember. Hotels are hardly a necessity. That "most" hikers stay in them says nothing about what you may decide to do.
Nicely done Sbhikes! I could add at least another 10 other places to stay cheaply or free that you didn't mention. The pt. of all this is that you DO NOT have to spend a fortune on hotel/motel stays on the PCT.
That "most" hikers stay in them says nothing about what you may decide to do. - Sbhikes
Well said!
I think we could all contibute our ideas to a PCT thru-hiking book titled 'The Cheap SOB Way To hike the PCT'. All proceeds of book sales go to trail maintenance!
Johnny Thunder
12-24-2009, 19:06
I'm planning on hitting the PCT as Part 2 of a multiple year hike/bike tour. Leg one is riding from Asheville to Campo. Leg three would be riding from Canada to Leg four (to be determined later). We'd be packing our bikes in a shop in San Diego and shipping them to a shop somewhere North of the border. Which towns near the Northern Terminus (in Canada or US) would be large enough to potentially have a bike shop and be within reasonable hitching distance?
(I travel with a hot chick and have been known to show some leg)
Rockhound
12-24-2009, 19:13
I'm going to get up as much of a grub stake as I can and go to the kick off party. But on the way I'm going to vegas, and betting almost everything on one bet, red or balck...it's like almost 50-50 odds...If god wants me to hike I will win, if I'm not hiking I had to go back to work anyway so nothing lost.
47.37% house has a 5.26% edge. Good luck. You'll need it
(I travel with a hot chick and have been known to show some leg) - JT
LOL!
I met a German couple in Utah this yr while I was doing a 900 mile thru-hike of the Hayduke Tr. I thought I was on a long journey. They were doing a CROSS COUNTRY(more like cross continent) journey to raise money for childhood hunger. They had their BMW motorcycles, which resembled lg. garbage bags w/ tires because of all the gear they had strapped, lashed, and tied onto their bikes, shipped to Rio de Janero from Germany. From Rio, they rode their bikes to the southern tip of S. America, Terra del Fuego if I'm not mistaken. From there, they rode north through all S. America and Central America across the border into the U.S. I met them in Utah. They were finishing up in Anchorage Alaska! Met lots of others doing cross country bicycle trips in Utah. Seems to be a hot destination on cross country trips.
North of the border. Which towns near the Northern Terminus (in Canada or US) would be large enough to potentially have a bike shop and be within reasonable hitching distance?
(I travel with a hot chick and have been known to show some leg)
Hope, BC. You can get a bus (or hitch) from Manning Park. It's 52 miles.
http://www.cheyennesportinggoods.com/index.html
You (I) can cut your cost in half by stop drinking beer!!:)
Actually, a couple of past thru-hikers upon compeletion of the trail, traveled back to Seattle to the REI there and bought a touring bike and rode back to Mexico.