The Annual Pacific Crest Trail Thru-Hiker Survey (2016)

Check out the most recent PCT Survey results here.

Before getting underway with the results of this year’s Pacific Crest Trail survey, I would like to say THANK YOU to everyone who has taken the time to participate these past four years.

Thank you. You’re all beautiful people.

This is now the fourth year I’m doing this (2015, 2014, 2013) so I think we can skip the small talk and get straight to what you’re here for – the results of the 2016 Pacific Crest Trail Thru-hiker Survey.

As always, the following should be looked at skeptically; there’s nothing particularly scientific about this data. I did my best to remove any obviously fraudulent answers (no, you didn’t hike 156 miles in one day, Respondent 214) and to make sure what’s written here accurately reflects the data collected this year. My hope is that you find it entertaining, educational, and/or interesting.

So here you are, the results of Halfway Anywhere’s 2016 Pacific Crest Trail Thru-hiker Survey:

NOTES ON THE DATA

• This year’s survey saw a total of 381 completed surveys (up from 193 last year).
• The responses to some questions have been sorted and colorized to normalize the results and (hopefully) make them more useful (e.g. northbound vs. southbound).
• Not everyone meticulously documents the stats of their thru-hike (I guess I’m weird). Therefore, the data is not 100% guaranteed accurate. However, I am hoping people gave their best guesstimates when answering questions.
• For simplicity’s sake, I refer to the survey respondents collectively as this year’s “class“. Remember that this is but a percentage of the overall number of this year’s hikers and is not necessarily representative of the entire PCT Class of 2016.
• If you’re that kind of person and you find some small discrepancy in the data, get over it – may I remind you we aren’t dealing in exactness here. However, if you find any large or obvious air-roars (<—-like that!), please let me know.

Here are the labels used to differentiate hiker segments:

• FINISH: Everyone who completed the entire PCT (regardless of direction hiked)
• NOBO: Northbound thru-hikers (all)
• NOBO-0: Northbound thru-hikers who did NOT complete the PCT
• NOBO-1: Northbound thru-hikers who completed the PCT
• SOBO: Southbound thru-hikers (all)
• SOBO-0: Southbound thru-hikers who did NOT complete the PCT
• SOBO-1: Southbound thru-hikers who completed the PCT
• THRU-0: Thru-hikers (all) who did NOT complete the PCT
• PART: Section hikers (all)

If no label has been appended to a data point, then I used all data collected. If a segment is not used in the following data, then it will be used in an upcoming post regarding this survey.

SOUTHBOUND DATA: I only received responses from TEN southbound thru-hikers. An additional TWO section-hiking southbounders responded as well, but their responses are not included in the SOBO-0 and SOBO-1 groups.

DEMOGRAPHICS

To start, let’s take a look at some information that won’t help anyone prepare for their PCT thru-hike, but that is nonetheless interesting: HIKER DEMOGRAPHICS.

• SEX | 67% Male, 33% Female
• AGE | 2% <20, 18% 20-24, 27% 25-29, 18% 30-35, 10% 35-39, 11% 40-49, 10% 50-59, 5% 60-69
• AVERAGE AGE | 34 (σ = 11.8)

• RACE | 89% Caucasian, 3% Multi-Racial, 2% Asian/Pacific Islander, 2% Hispanic, 1% Native American/Alaska Native, 5% Decline to answer
• EDUCATION | 2% <12th grade, 6% High School Diploma, 15% Some College, 7% Associate Degree, 51% Bachelor’s Degree, 19% Graduate Degree

• COUNTRIES | Australia, Canada, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, England, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, India, Israel, Italy, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Poland, Russia, Scotland, South Africa, Sweden, Switzerland, UK, USA (24 TOTAL)
• US STATES | AL, AZ, CA, CO, CT, FL, ID, IL, IN, IA, LA, ME, MA, MI, MN, MO, NE, NV, NH, NJ, NM, NY, NC, OH, OK, OR, PA, RI, SC, TN, TX, UT, VA, WA, WV, WI (37 TOTAL)

THE BASICS

To kick off the beginning of the good stuff, we will look at the DATES for thru-hikes, whether hikers were embarking on the FIRST THRU-HIKE, what trails they may have ALREADY HIKED, whether they BEGAN ALONE, and what they thought of TRAIL EVENTS.

Of the hikers on the trail this year, 73% were taking on their first long-distance trail and 27% had experience on one or more previous long-distance hikes.

The trails most commonly hiked by the “YES” group above were:

• DID YOU BEGIN ALONE? | 69% Yes, 31% No
• NOBO – MONTH STARTED? | 4% March, 66% April, 29% May, 1% June
• NOBO – AVERAGE START DATE | April 22
• NOBO – MOST POPULAR START DATES | April 18, 19, 21, 23 & May 3
• NOBO-1 – AVERAGE START DATE | April 23
• NOBO-1 – AVERAGE END DATE | September 15
• NOBO-1 – AVERAGE COMPLETION TIME | 145 days (σ = 21)
• NOBO – HAPPY WITH START DATE?
  • 68% Yes
  • 19% No, would start earlier
  • 13% No, would start later

NOTES: 30% of hikers who began on or after April 23 said they would have preferred an earlier starting date and 71% of hikers who began before April 23 were happy with their start date.

• SOBO – MONTH STARTED? | 30% June, 70% July
• SOBO – MOST POPULAR START DATES | Not enough data 🙁
• SOBO – AVERAGE START DATE | July 6
• SOBO-1 – AVERAGE START DATE | July 2
• SOBO-1 – AVERAGE END DATE | October 25
• SOBO-1 – AVERAGE COMPLETION TIME | 115 days (σ = 14)
• SOBO – HAPPY WITH START DATE?
  • 80% Yes
  • 10% No, would start earlier
  • 10% No, would start later

This year’s start times don’t reveal too much in terms of who finished and who did not. However, I will be delving deeper into the differences between hikers who finished and those who did not in a future post.

This year I had hikers disclose whether or not they TRAINED for the PCT, and I had them RATE THEIR FITNESS on a scale of 0 (Fat, lazy waste of life) to 10 (Godlike superhuman) with “Average Joe” in the middle at 5.

• DID YOU TRAIN FOR THE PCT? | 58.5% Yes, 41.5% No
• AVERAGE FITNESS LEVEL | 6.39 (σ = 1.67)
• NOBO-1 – AVERAGE FITNESS LEVEL | 6.6 (σ = 1.53)
• NOBO-0 – AVERAGE FITNESS LEVEL | 5.68 (σ = 1.9)

HIKING

How much time did this year’s class really spend hiking?

Here are the HIKING STATS, including daily mileage, the number of zeroes/near-os taken, and whether hikers flip-flopped, hiked Whitney or would consider hiking the PCT AGAIN.

• FINISH – AVERAGE DAYS ON TRAIL | 145 (σ = 18)
• FINISH – AVERAGE LONGEST DAY | 37 mi / 59.5 km (σ = 6 mi / 9.7 km)
• FINISH – AVERAGE DAILY MILEAGE | 18.7 mi / 30.1 km (σ = 2.7 mi / 4.3 km)
• FINISH – AVERAGE ZEROES | 17 (σ = 9.3)
• FINISH – AVERAGE NEAR-OS | 13 (σ = 7.2)
• DID YOU FLIP-FLOP? | 10.87% Yes, 89.13% No
• WOULD CONSIDER HIKING THE PCT AGAIN? | 84% Yes, 16% No
• DID YOU SUMMIT MOUNT WHITNEY? | 83.68% Yes, 16.32% No
• DID YOU HIKE A CONTINUOUS/UNBROKEN FOOTPATH ALONG THE ENTIRE PCT?
  • 17% Yes, and I did NOT skip the fire closures.
  • 48% Yes, but I skipped the fire closures.
  • 18% Yes, but I may have missed a few miles here or there.
  • 13% No, I hitched past/skipped some small sections.
  • 4% No, I hitched past/skipped large sections.

That’s wonderful, but what about the folks who didn’t finish the PCT? Those brave souls who began at one end of the country and didn’t manage to make it to the other. Here’s what happened to them (more or less).

• DID YOU COMPLETE THE PCT? | 76% Yes, 24% No
• THRU-0 – WHY DID YOU GET OFF THE PCT? | 48% Injury, 17% Personal, 11% Weather, 7% Family, 7% Financial, 6% Illness, 4% Other
• THRU-0 – AVERAGE MILES FINISHED | 1,402 mi / 2,256 km (σ = 682 mi / 1,098 km)

RESUPPLY

If you’re planning a thru-hike now, one of the biggest question marks in your plan probably has something to do with your resupply (if this is not true for you, then you’re on the right track – your pre-trail resupply plan will fall apart).

To begin, let’s look at this year’s RESUPPLY STRATEGY, the number of BOXES they sent, and where they would SUGGEST MAILING a box.

• RESUPPLY STRATEGY | 75% mailed some boxes, 16% mailed all boxes, 9% mailed no boxes
• FINISH – AVERAGE RESUPPLY STOPS MADE | 26 (σ = 6.5)
• FINISH – AVERAGE BOXES SENT | 12 (σ = 8.5)

Basically, if you are only looking to send a couple of resupply boxes, the places to do so (according to this survey) would be (in order from Mexico to Canada):

• Warner Springs (Desert)
• Kennedy Meadows (Sierra)
• Crater Lake (Oregon)
• Shelter Cove (Oregon)
• Big Lake Youth Camp (Oregon)
• Trout Lake (Washington)
• White Pass (Washington)
• Snoqualmie Pass (Washington)
• Stevens Pass/Skykomish (Washington)
• Stehekin (Washington)

That’s ten boxes. The average number sent by this class? Twelve. One thing that this class would do differently? Mail fewer boxes.

NOTE: Many hikers simply put down “all of Washington” in response to the “where would you definitely suggest mailing a box” question, since the resupply options along Washington’s PCT are quite limited (think gas stations and small convenience stores). It’s not impossible to resupply at these places, but if you’re picky, tight on cash, or just like sending boxes, then consider yourself warned.

I also asked everyone to list everywhere they resupplied over the course of the trail. I have used the following colors to indicate the popularity of each stop: In geographical order, starting at Mexico, here are the most popular resupply stops (aka everywhere at least 70% of respondents said they paid a visit to): OVER 66%, 33-66%, LESS THAN 33%.

But what about hitchhiking into town? I asked hikers what resupply stops (if any) they had difficulty making it to from the trail. The top responses were:

1. Etna (Northern California)
2. Independence from Kearsarge Pass (Sierra)
3. Lake Isabella (Desert)
4. Bishop (Sierra)
5. Trout Lake (Washington)

This year I added a question about hikers’ FAVORITE and LEAST FAVORITE resupply points. Here’s what we came up with (for each section):

GEAR

Now to the question of gear.

A divisive subject among hikers, gear talk and gear questions plague hikers on and off-trail alike (beware the gear circle jerk). Here’s what this class had to say about their PCT outfits.

• AVERAGE BASE WEIGHT (START) | 19.57 lb / 8.88 kg (σ = 9.4 lb / 4.3 kg)
• AVERAGE BASE WEIGHT (END) | 16.51 lb / 7.49 kg (σ = 6.4 lb / 2.9 kg)
• AVERAGE AMOUNT SPENT ON GEAR | $1,647.35 (σ = $1,245.86)
• FINISH – PAIRS OF SHOES USED (AVERAGE) | 4.2 (σ = 1)
• FINISH – AVERAGE AMOUNT SPENT ON ENTIRE HIKE | $6,053.75 (σ = $2,573.66)

For more on PCT costs, check out How Much Does it Cost to Hike The Pacific Crest Trail?

• AVERAGE SLEEPING BAG TEMPERATURE RATING | 15°F / -9°C
• AVERAGE BACKPACK SIZE | 60.1 L

This year I collected a lot more information on the gear hikers used. Here are the MOST COMMONLY USED “Big 4” items: PACKS, SHELTERS, SLEEPING BAGS, and SLEEPING PADS (I know it’s the “Big 3”, but I like to include sleeping pads). Now you know where to invest those 1,626 dollars and 93 cents.

But in addition to the big-ticket items, hikers also need to consider what they’re bringing in the STOVE, WATER TREATMENT, and BEAR CANISTER departments.

Since 73% of this class were on their FIRST long-distance hike, it’s safe to say that a lot of them had no idea what they were doing (because nothing, including this survey, can prepare you for the trail).

In light of this, many hikers end up dropping gear from their packs as they realize they don’t really need all the things they at one time thought absolutely necessary (as evidenced by the 3.06 lb / 1.39 kg average drop in base weight between the start and end of the hike).

Here are the top things it took hikers the longest to get rid of (and things you may want to think twice about bringing).

When asked about what gear they would have liked to UPGRADE during the hike and what ADDITIONAL COMMENTS they had on gear, here is what this class had to say.

For more on gear, check out my Ultimate Pacific Crest Trail Packing List.

HEALTH

The question of water treatment and hygiene is something that people worry a lot about before hitting the trail (and is typically something you find yourself worrying less about as the trail goes on).

Here’s some information on hiker HEALTH and WATER TREATMENT.

• DID YOU FILTER WATER? | 56.46% Yes, 41.42% Sometimes, 2.11% Never
• DID YOU GET SICK? | 10.29% Yes, 89.71% No

Here’s a detailed breakdown of whether or not people filtered their water and got sick as a result (sick defined as three or more consecutive days of digestive issues, or a diagnosed case of giardia).

• 5% Always treated, got sick
• 51% Always treated, never got sick
• 5% Sometimes treated, got sick
• 36% Sometimes treated, never got sick
• 2% Never treated, never got sick

In total, a reported 10% of hikers came down with something akin to giardia, and a mere 2% never filtered (those who don’t filter are typically quite staunch in their commitment to their strategy; read: I’m not sure they would admit to becoming sick as a result of their decision not to filter).

LIKES AND DISLIKES

I asked hikers what PCT RESOURCES they found the most and least valuable when planning their hike. If there was an overlap between resources (it was listed as both a “most” and “least” valuable) I took the difference.

*I just want to thank everyone who supports the site and encourages me to keep doing what I’m doing – so THANK YOU!

REGRETS AND ADVICE

Now for some Class of 2016 wisdom: What would you have DONE DIFFERENTLY before starting your hike (or during your hike)?

1. Trained more (more on PCT training here).
2. Taken more photos (especially of people, towns, and campsites).
3. Researched gear more/gotten lighter gear (more on PCT gear here).
4. Had more time allotted to complete the entire hike (to not have to rush at all).
5. Eaten better and more healthy food during the hike (more on PCT food).
6. Planned less (more on your useless PCT plans here)

I also asked this class what ADVICE FOR FUTURE PCT HIKERS they had.

Since this information is diverse, thought-out, and useful for PCT hikers, I plan to include ALL (some) of the responses in an upcoming post.

For now, here are a few of my favorites:

• Always keep in mind that everyone deserves to hike their own hike without people imposing their goals on others. You don’t have to like everyone you meet, but respect everyone’s differences. And smile every day. 🙂
• Backpack as much as possible before. Expect 90% of the trail to be uncomfortable and suckery but for the 10% to be so magnificent that none of the bad stuff matters. Go in with realistic expectations.
• Be disciplined with what you bring. Not only is it less painful, but it’s also kind of fun to make things work with as little gear as possible. Makes for good stories. You can always pull the ultimate ultralight move – bum equipment or food off of other hikers.
• Budget your time. Don’t get too caught up in the vortexes because you’ll pay for it later. And take more pictures.
• Do not listen to the rumors of doom and gloom.
• DO NOT PLAN ANYTHING! I am a total obsessive so tried to plan loads but it was all a waste of time.
• Listen judiciously to what’s ahead on the trail, then go check it out yourself. Don’t underestimate the mental challenge.
• You do NOT need to go to Lake Morena on the first day. Unless very well trained, this is begging for injury. Also, don’t be afraid to take a day or two off and let your body recuperate. This will more than pay off in the long run. A thru-hike requires sustainability.

CHANGES FROM LAST YEAR

• This year, I have made clear distinctions between the data collected from thru-hikers and section hikers.
• I broke up the age ranges into a few more brackets.
• ADDED QUESTION: If this is not your first long-distance thru-hike, what other trail(s) have you completed?
• ADDED QUESTION: Which tent did you use?
• ADDED QUESTION: Which backpack did you use?
• ADDED QUESTION: Which sleeping bag did you use?
• ADDED QUESTION: Which sleeping pad did you use?
• ADDED QUESTION: Which water treatment system did you use?
• ADDED QUESTION: Which stove did you use (if any)?
• ADDED QUESTION: Which bear canister did you use?
• ADDED QUESTION: Which was your favorite/least favorite trail town?
• ADDED QUESTION: Did you skip miles to avoid some sections, how many?
• ADDED QUESTION: If you didn’t finish the trail, where did you get off?
• ADDED QUESTION: What was your trail name? Optional

CHANGES FOR NEXT YEAR

Here are the changes that I’ve already decided on for next year’s survey. If you have any suggestions, I would love to hear them – leave a comment below to let me know.

• ADD QUESTION: Why did you decide to hike the Pacific Crest Trail?
• ADD QUESTION: Were you happy with your water treatment system? If no, what would you change?
• ADD QUESTION: Was there ever a time you felt unsafe on the trail? If yes, what were the circumstances?

And finally, another BIG THANKS to 13, 2%, 360°, A-Game, Action Jackson, Airzone, All Smiles, Amoeba, Animal, Aphrodite, Arrow, Autumn, BackTRACK, BAM!, Bare Bones, Bat Girl, Bean-o, Beans, Bear Tripper, Beardoh, Beer Canister, Big Mike, BigMac, Biscuit, Blackout, Blondie, Blue, Bojangles, Boy Scout, Braveheart, Breakpoint, Breeze, Brightside, Brownie, Bud, Bundlesticks, Butt Wipe, butters, Captain, Centerfold, Cheese, Cheeseburger, Chipotle, Chiseled, Chocolate Milk, Chopper, Clinic, Colorado, Corkscrew, Corky, Cougar, Cowboy Jim, Cruise Control, Cyclops, Daddy Long Legs, Dairy Queen, Data, Daveg, Dawg whisperer, Delta, Deluxe, Detail, Deuce, Dilly Dally, Disco, Dizzy, Doin’ Stuff!!, Doublecheck, Downtime, Dr. Feelgood, Dr. Rachel, Drag’n’fly, Dreamcatcher, DustBuster, early, Earthcake, Egsy, Evac, False Alarm, Feather, Fed-X, Finn, Fire Ant, Fireman, Firestarter, Flashback, Flavor, Flyfish, Flyy, Focus, Fool, fresh sip, Freyja, frost, Fuck-it, Full Rabbit, Fun Size, Fury, Garfield, Gazelle, Genie, Gladiator ,GoalTech, Goat, Goldie, Gone With The Wind, Goodwill, Greenbean, Grocery Store, Guac, Hammer, Hans, Happy Snatch, Hawkeye, Heaps, Heartbreaker, Hiccup, Hodge Podge, Hokey Jebediah Pokey, Hollywood, Hummingbird, I, Robot, Icky, Incline, Indie, Ireland, J.I.F. ,Jackrabbit, Jesus, Joe Dirt, Juice, Just Will, Kickass, Kingbird, Koba, Koolaid, Left Foot, Lift-off, Little Ant, Lo Flo, Loopy, Low Key, MacGyver, Machine, Macro, Mad Max, Magical, Marynbow, Maverick, Mayfly, Mighty, Mimbo Jimbo, MissGuyver, Molson, Moonshadow, Moonshine, Morning Glory, Mountain Man, Moxy, Mozart, Mr. Clean, Mr. Tree, Mud Guts, Muffin, Mystery, Nanna, Nemo, Nightmile, Nips, Nobi, Ohm, Oilcan, On Point, One Funny, Oolong, P-Dog, Patches, Peace & Quiet, Peeps, PEPE LE PEW, Permasmile, Peter Pan, Phantom, Phillip, Pick-Up, Pinki, Pinky, Pirate, Professor, Proton, Rafiki, Rambler, Ranger, Rant, Really Sorry, Red Flash, Red Riding Hood, Rest Step, Ripsnorter, Roadrunner, Rockbiter, Saunter, Savage, Savior, Schweaty Balls, Scorpion, Scrambler, Shadow, Shaggy, Shake’nBake, Shaq Diesel, Shepherd, Sherwood, Shiloh, Shortcut, Shuffles, Shutterbug, Signs McDryFeet, Simba, Siri, Skinny Thor, Slide, Slo-Mo, Smiles, Smooth, SnackMan!!, Snuggles, So Hard, So It Goes, Soccer Dad, Socks, Sommelier, Sonic, Sour Cream, Sour Patch, Spaceman, Sparkles, Spears, Spicerack, Splitter, Spreadsheets, Sprout, Squatch, Squints, Squishy, Starburst, Stitches, Stoick, Stonewall, Stopwatch, Storm, Straight Fire, Stripes, Sugar Rush, Super Man, Swag, Sweet Cheeks, Sweet Pickup, SweetPea, Swissmiss, T-Rex, Taz, Tea tree, Tenure, Tequila John, Terminator, Terrence, Tesla, Texas Tracker, The Big Pooper, The Candy Man, The General, The Graduate, The Lobbyist, The Prince, The Prodigy, Tindy, Tip Toe, Toe Touch, Tongue Punch, Top Nach, Tortoise, Town Food, Treetop, Trigger, Triple Creme, Trips, Tripster, Troubador, Tuff Broad, Tumbler, Ultra, Unbreakable!, Van Go, Vertigo, Wahlberg, Walking Olive, wang, Weta, What About, White Cloud, Wildfire, Wisecrack, Wrong Tent, Yoda, Young Blood, Zippee, Zolt, Zucchini, and all the other hikers who helped with this year’s survey.

I spent a lot of hours putting this together and would appreciate any feedback, comments, questions, appraisals of my chances at turning statistician, or whatever else you can think of. Please leave a comment or get in touch to let me know what you think!

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