[pct-l] Which book?

[steve_peterson at sbcglobal.net (Steve Peterson)]

Here's something I sent to the list back in August:

Note that although I've spent the last year planning my '05 hike, I
have not hiked the trail, so I'm going by what's been useful to me thus far.

The "guidebooks" people are referring to are  "Pacific Crest Trail: Southern
California", "Pacific Crest Trail: Northern California", and "Pacific Crest
Trail Volume 2: Oregon and Washington". These are the books that describe the
trail and contain the maps most people use while hiking the trail. You should
know that these books are written for people who are not necessarily
thru-hikers, so information in there about water sources and so on is somewhat
general. Also, there is a lot of info on history, geology, and plant life.

Points of interest (e.g. trail junctions) are followed by a pair of numbers like 
(29.2, 5040)
representing the distance from the previous point of interest and the elevation
of the just-mentioned point of interest. These points of interest are sometimes
within a few tenths of a mile of each other. To determine how far apart to
relatively distant points are, you have to add up a bunch of these numbers in 
your head. The trail is over 2600 miles long, so you'll be adding up a lot of 
numbers before you're through. That brings me to...

The Data Book, formally known as The Pacific Crest Trail Data Book. From the
description on the PCTA's website, you will not immediately understand the
utility of this book and may be inclined, as I was, not to order it. Big
mistake! It adds up all those numbers for you and lists each and every point of
interest mentioned in the guidebooks along with its distance from the Mexican
Border (mile 0.0). But there's more: because it's just data, you see at a glance
a summary of about 30 miles of trail (give or take) per page. It lists water
sources and notes how far off trail they are, and resupply points along with
annotations about facilities in the towns (Post Office, lodging, etc.). Finally,
you will find out soon enough that people tend to refer to these milepoints a
lot in conversation ("there's a side trail at about 633.5") so without the data
book you'll have a hard time figuring out where this is.

Most people seem to use both the data book and the guide books while they hike
as well as for pre-hike planning. They (we) rip them up in sections so we only
carry the part we need at any given time (other sections go in resupply parcels
or bounce box).

Buy these books through the PCTA. They give excellent service and need your
business more than Amazon does.

Recently Yogi (a veteran of both AT and PCT) produced "Yogi's PCT Handbook".
This contains a lot of practical information about planning the trip and
thru-hiking the trail. It also contains a section designed to be used while
hiking, similar to the data book, but with some updates and a lot more
information about resupply points and water sources. Since this handbook is
specifically for thru-hikers this compensates for the generality of the
guidebooks.  You can probably
successfully hike the trail without this book, but I suggest you spend the 20
bucks and save yourself a lot of time chasing down the same info.

I'd also recommend, if the book budget allows and you're interested in seeing
the big picture, the Delorme Atlases for Southern/Central California, Northern
California, Oregon, and Washington ($19.95 each). The maps are 1:150,000 and the
large format shows about 70 or so miles of trail per page. The guidebook maps
are 1:50,000 and are fairly small, showing only a narrow strip of terrain each
side of the trail. You could use road maps instead of the Atlas, but the Atlas
has contours and shading and shows the PCT quite clearly. Unfortunately the
contours are in meters and the guidebooks/databook are in feet--a slight
aggravation. You can do the trail without these, and probably no one actually
uses them on the trail, but I've found them useful in planning.

--Steve


Maury Schwenkler wrote:
> Greetings to all. I have been lurking on the list for a while, busy 
> planning to start the PCT in April. I think only one of my major 
> questions has never been addressed here--what information do the various 
> guidebooks have and what is 'essential' to bring?
> 
> I'm referring to the PCTA guidebooks, the data book, and Yogi's handbook 
> (am I missing any?). I have a good idea of what's in Yogi's book from 
> the sample pages. Can anyone describe what the others are like so I 
> don't have to buy them to find out? Any comparisons to the AT data book, 
> Companion, and Wingfoot?
> 
> I really only want my book to tell me about Water, Resupply, and not 
> getting Lost. Everything else detracts from the adventure.
> 
> Also looking for advice concerning maps.
> 
> Thanks, and see you in April,
> Maurice Schwenkler
> 
> 
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