View Full Version : Swapping out gear
On the AT it's not untypical for hikers to switch out winter gear for summer gear around Pearisburg, VA.
I'm wondering.... on the PCT would a likely place be Kennedy Meadows and if so is it via USPS or is there a UPS/Fedex close by (harhar..)?
In my early-early planning stages I'm thinking this is where I'll switch from tarp to tent and to a warmer bag/quilt as well as a clothing makeover.
Dang! I subscribed to PCT-L a few weeks ago and created a filter to sort the messages into a PCT folder. I just looked and there are 1634 messages already - probably everything I'll ever think of has been asked at least twice.
frisbeefreek
04-03-2013, 10:23
Kennedy Meadows is a major gear swap. You get your bear canister, warm gear, rain gear, (crampons/axe if needed), bigger pack to carry it all :( The KM General Store will mail stuff in USPS flat rate boxes. Hikers bounced stuff forward to the end of the Sierra's (I used Echo Lake because I could shop in South Lake Tahoe to buy shoes/socks/etc) where they swapped into lighter equipment.
A lot of people get their wet weather gear at Cascade Locks for Washington. Depending on how late in the season it is, they may also need a warmer bag.
Dang! I subscribed to PCT-L a few weeks ago and created a filter to sort the messages into a PCT folder. I just looked and there are 1634 messages already - probably everything I'll ever think of has been asked at least twice.
Pct-l is a firehose of info.
Like the AT, a NOBO PCT trip has potentially two swap-out points, and like the AT YMMV --- I did just one swap-out on both and that worked fine. I.e., on the AT, I didn't swap out stuff going into the Whites as I was on a relatively early schedule (finished in July). Similarly on the PCT I didn't swap stuff out in WA state because weather wasn't that bad yet and I finished in Sept.
For PCT, the initial swap-out pair that worked for me was Kennedy Meadows and Sonora Pass (Bridgeport). The "other end" of the swapout pair can be important too --- I was really glad to get rid of the bear can, pick up a lighter and smaller sleeping bag, etc.
Get Yogi's guide --- it lays all of this stuff out along with perhaps answering some other questions you're not thinking to ask.