View Full Version : Physical conditioning for PCT
I hiked the John Muir Trail this summer and feel like it is the gateway "drug" leading to the Pacific Crest Trail. :) The JMT was easily the best experience I've had in years. I've been off the trail for two weeks and definitely miss it. I hiked about 14 miles per day and took 2 1/2 zero days during my trip and there were three days where I hiked between 17-18 miles. I never felt entirely drained at the end of even the longest days and didn't feel like I "needed" the zeros to continue. They were taken mainly because I started earlier than expected and I had a fixed return airfare reservation. When I'm not hiking I'm usually training for marathons with my next one coming up in a month. My last marathon time was 3:42. I'm 40 years old. Overall I consider myself to be in good shape, probably the best shape I've ever been in, but PCT thru hiker shape? I don't know.
Because of my doubts over being ready for a five month hike averaging 20+ miles per day, I had settled on doing the Colorado Trail in 2014 and then reassessing the PCT for 2015. Obviously the Colorado Trail is much longer than the JMT. I planned to purposely hike it at ~20 mpd with one zero day per week, much like I would plan a five month PCT hike. Basically a dry run or "test" of how I would do with something around 1/5 of the length of the PCT.
The thing is, though, that I really want to do the PCT and I'm having trouble getting excited about the CT despite knowing that it is a great hike and reading the guidebook. Although the CT is obviously easier to pull off in terms of impact to my life, I think that I could do the PCT next year if I commit to it soon and start planning.
Any tips on how I can determine if I'm ready physically for 22 weeks of demanding hiking? Or IS there any way to really know other than to show up and start walking? I have to say that walking 20+ miles per day six days per week, with one zero per week, for 22 weeks straight is very intimidating. Any input would be appreciated and pull no punches if my entire line of thinking makes no sense.
Hi RamblingHiker,
Sounds like you're physically fit enough to me. Just go for it, and if you want it (and an important part of distance hiking is mental) then you'll do it no problem.
I hadn't experienced much in the way of hiking at all before my 'thru' but was of good average fitness and found that 'trail' fitness just kept improving as I went along. I was 47 at the time, and there are plenty much older than that who have completed the trail, so don't let 40 bother you if that's a concern. Good luck, give it a whirl. :)
.
Spirit Walker
09-27-2013, 19:37
If you are fit for marathon running, you are definitely in good enough shape to hike the PCT. You'll be in much better shape than the majority of hikers out there. Most people just start fairly slowly and get fit as they go. Starting in late April, you have a lot of daylight to hike in.
When we did the CDT the first time, my husband was 60 with a bad knee. Thanks to work commitments, and the need to pack up our house, he hadn't had much opportunity to train. At best, he was walking 10-15 miles a week. We did fine. We averaged 16 mpd. The next year, we hiked the PCT, starting slow because I twisted an ankle on the first day, and then he broke a toe. We were doing 15 mile days for the first month or so. We got over our injuries, and more fit, and ended up finishing the trail in 5 months, 5 days, averaging 19 mpd.
The PCT is well graded and mostly well marked. Very little of it is at really high elevation, and you've already hiked that part, so you know you can do it. Just work at getting your pack down to a reasonable weight, and you should be fine.
Thanks for these responses, very reassuring.
The beginning 700 miles are far easier then the High Sierra portion where the JMT and PCT parallel each other. Most thru-hikers daily mileage drops significantly when they go through there. Being in good enough shape to do 15 miles/day for the 1st week is all that's necessary. You could start even slower as people have, but that requires really big water carries that causes you to slow even more. I held myself to 15miles/day for the first week and slowly ramped up from there as I've seen too many people start off the PCT doing big fast miles just because the tread seems easy only to get a serious injury 2-3weeks later (stress fracture, pulled tendon, bad shin splints, etc). But someone who actually regularly trains before hand should have no problem doing even bigger miles as the tread does start off pretty easy. You sound like you are already in better shape than many who show up at the Mexican border. Certainly better than I was in 2009 when I started at the age of 39.
You should have more confidence that you can do that trip than 90+% of the hikers. You will be surprised how quickly you will get into trail shape and efficiency. One small tip..... Don't push too hard at the beginning. I suspect you will surprise yourself at the mileage you are able to do at the beginning. I doubt you will have any trouble doing 20 mile days to start. But get used to that sustained for a while before pushing beyond (which you will do!). Have fun, it is a great trail.
garlic08
09-28-2013, 19:18
I'll echo the others--you'll be fine on the PCT. If you can get some desert experience somehow, that'll help but it's not critical. In the months before your PCT hike, ramp up to 50+ mile weeks with a few 20 mile days wearing the shoes and carrying the gear you'll be using, and you'll be in excellent shape to start the PCT. Keep yourself strong and healthy over the winter.
I should have mention..... Keep your feet clean in SoCal. I was conditioned to doing high miles prior to my trip but when I did them in SoCal I got unprecedented blisters due to the very fine sand and dirt. Clean your feet, change your socks and address any hot spots immediately. If you keep your feet in good condition you will have a much better outlook on life.
Thanks, all of this input really helps. I have some other issues to address to determine whether I attempt the PCT next year or wait until 2015 but I feel much more confident that I could be ready physically next year.
I agree with everyone that you should have no worries about fitness. The PCT tread is much nicer and generally flatter than the AT. (IIRC the climbs are never more than 500 ft per mile, while 1000ft/mile is common on the AT.) For me the desert heat was the hardest part, but the trail itself was like a dream to walk on.
SCRUB HIKER
10-02-2013, 17:38
You seem like you're in excellent shape already, and you just did IMO the second-hardest part of the PCT, physically speaking. As others have said, most of the PCT is not nearly as physically demanding as what you encountered in the High Sierra. If you start the PCT at anything close to your current fitness level and don't push too hard at first, and keep your pack weight manageable (i.e. it's not so heavy that it seriously impacts your stride), I don't see how you can lose.
You seem like you're in excellent shape already, and you just did IMO the second-hardest part of the PCT, physically speaking. As others have said, most of the PCT is not nearly as physically demanding as what you encountered in the High Sierra. If you start the PCT at anything close to your current fitness level and don't push too hard at first, and keep your pack weight manageable (i.e. it's not so heavy that it seriously impacts your stride), I don't see how you can lose.
If the Sierra is the second hardest, what would you consider the hardest? (It was by far the hardest in '11 but you have me wondering?)
SCRUB HIKER
10-02-2013, 22:37
The Sierra was hard, but not brutally hard for me this year because there was very little snow unless you came through very early (like May). I left Kennedy Meadows June 12 and only had to cross patches of snow here and there, except on Muir Pass, which had a few miles of mostly snow-covered ascent. I could come close to maintaining my usual 3mph pace through the Sierra.
On the other hand, I got my ass kicked in the Glacier Peak Wilderness in Washington between Skykomish and Stehekin. The elevation profile is bad enough there, but the trail is also in rough shape for long stretches (brand spanking new sidewalk tread for others). Also, it was raining or threatening to rain most of the time, meaning the trail was slippery and puddly too. I never got close to 3mph no matter how hard I tried there.
The other parts of Northern Washington north of Snoqualmie are also physically challenging, equal to the Sierra I thought, but the trail tread is easier to handle. It was specifically the Glacier Peak part where I kept checking my maps/apps and realizing, "Holy s*** I've gone nowhere in the past two hours."
evyck da fleet
10-02-2013, 22:51
Good advice here. Very few people hit the trail in shape to hike 4-5 months. Most take the first few weeks to get into long distance hiking shape. As it's been said 1) keep your feet clean and treat hot spots immediately, 2) increase your mileage slowly, and 3) take zeros when the opportunities arrive. I had to learn these things on the AT last year during the first month but it made the rest of the trip and the JMT hike I just completed much more enjoyable once I did.
The Sierra was hard, but not brutally hard for me this year because there was very little snow unless you came through very early (like May). I left Kennedy Meadows June 12 and only had to cross patches of snow here and there, except on Muir Pass, which had a few miles of mostly snow-covered ascent. I could come close to maintaining my usual 3mph pace through the Sierra.
On the other hand, I got my ass kicked in the Glacier Peak Wilderness in Washington between Skykomish and Stehekin. The elevation profile is bad enough there, but the trail is also in rough shape for long stretches (brand spanking new sidewalk tread for others). Also, it was raining or threatening to rain most of the time, meaning the trail was slippery and puddly too. I never got close to 3mph no matter how hard I tried there.
The other parts of Northern Washington north of Snoqualmie are also physically challenging, equal to the Sierra I thought, but the trail tread is easier to handle. It was specifically the Glacier Peak part where I kept checking my maps/apps and realizing, "Holy s*** I've gone nowhere in the past two hours."
I was thinking Glacier Peak because it would have been my number 2. Makes sense for your year.
I was playing around with the PCT Planner website and found that I could start in mid April and hike around 15 miles per day and still get to Kennedy Meadows by early June which is probably about right based on when I have read about previous thru hikers entering the high Sierra. Of course the timing will depend on the type of snow year. And the 15 mile per day pace might be something wise to continue until Tuolumne Meadows and then pick up to a 20+ mpd pace for the rest of the hike. Given what's happening in Washington state this year, I would have a strong desire to finish in mid September with a couple of weeks of margin of safety to finish before October 1 at the latest. I can't imagine the mental pain of getting that close to the finish and then having to choose between ending the hike or taking risks that might not be wise...
I thought the stretch directly north of Tuolumne until a little after Sonora Pass was pretty rough actually. There is a lot of climbing over crappy ridges and rooty/rocky trail. Worse than the high passes in my opinion! (although this was a low snow year so that part was much easier than usual)
It's good to be conservative in your planning, but I think you are probably under estimating your mileage. I was in much worse shape than you are and I started out doing 18-20. On the PCT, 15 miles per day is really, really low. Even at the start you will likely reach 15 miles by 3 or 4 pm. And water sources are often 20 miles apart, so you won't want to do 15 anyway! (assuming you are talking about average on normal hiking days not including zeros/nearos) What really kills mileage is zero days! Just be careful with your zeros and you will have no problem reaching Canada on time.
The Sierra was hard, but not brutally hard for me this year because there was very little snow unless you came through very early (like May). I left Kennedy Meadows June 12 and only had to cross patches of snow here and there, except on Muir Pass, which had a few miles of mostly snow-covered ascent. I could come close to maintaining my usual 3mph pace through the Sierra.
On the other hand, I got my ass kicked in the Glacier Peak Wilderness in Washington between Skykomish and Stehekin. The elevation profile is bad enough there, but the trail is also in rough shape for long stretches (brand spanking new sidewalk tread for others). Also, it was raining or threatening to rain most of the time, meaning the trail was slippery and puddly too. I never got close to 3mph no matter how hard I tried there.
The other parts of Northern Washington north of Snoqualmie are also physically challenging, equal to the Sierra I thought, but the trail tread is easier to handle. It was specifically the Glacier Peak part where I kept checking my maps/apps and realizing, "Holy s*** I've gone nowhere in the past two hours."
Good pts! People tend to focus on the difficulty of the Sierras rather than those areas. One reason is the snow, which you didn't have to significantly contend with, and number two by the time NOBOers get into WA they are in such prime thru-hiking shape they sometimes discount the difficulty of the areas you mention. Glacier Peak Wilderness with all it's blow downs, challenging weather(I had rain and sleet), and elev profile challenged me too. I would say nearly as much as the Sierras(I had miles of snow travel and several passes under deep snow in 2008 and I had already gone over the PCT tread several previous times so knew my way).
Getting back to your question Rambling Hiker, starting the PCT NOBO from Campo affords a good amt of latitude to hike yourself into thru-hiker shape. You sound like you would do fine but all the better if you can rack up some desert hiking miles previous to a PCT thru.
The CT has an overall higher avg elev than the PCT so you might want to factor that into your hike choices.
smokeybones
12-29-2013, 18:16
my advice... go do the PCT. if i can thru hike the AT with no physical preparation, a marathon runner can thru hike the PCT. its gonna be the exact same as the JMT... only alot longer. stop dreaming and just go do it
the marathoners on the AT I've seen have the cardio for the long days and just need a few weeks hiking time to toughen feet and attitudes.
my advice... go do the PCT. if i can thru hike the AT with no physical preparation, a marathon runner can thru hike the PCT. its gonna be the exact same as the JMT... only alot longer. stop dreaming and just go do it
I ended up deciding on 2015 (as the new screen name suggests!) but in just a few hours, I'll be able to think about hiking the PCT "next year" rather than in a couple of years! Have some fun things planned for 2014 as well so it's all good.
Sasquatch!
01-08-2014, 17:01
The first 700 miles is pretty easy, except for the up and over San Jacinto.
If one starts around mid april, one has to go slow or risk hitting the Sierras too early. If one starts too late, one has to deal with heat, water sources drying up, and the start of fire season in SoCal.