[pct-l] 3 days food?

[pdascalos at gmail.com (Peter Dascalos)]

Before my section hike on the PCT (6/23 thru 6/26) from Route 74 near Anza 
to Gorgonio Pass (I-10), I decided to get a fire permit. I have hiked many 
times through the San Jacinto mountains and ran into Forest Service 
personnel on numerous occasions and thought it best to have the proper 
permits. Up to this point I had not gotten any permits and started doing 
sections from Campo in March. 

In the San Jacinto Wilderness during my hike it was required that you have a 
stove that has an on/off switch, with no open fires allowed in the 
Wilderness or the National Forest, except in yellow staked fire rings. You 
may wonder what a yellow staked fire ring is? I did. This is a metal fire 
ring that has a big 4"x4" yellow metal stake next to it. There was one at 
the campground at the western end of Fuller Ridge near Black Mountain Truck 
Trail. Alcohol or esbit type stoves would not have been permitted, and think 
that is still enforced. So you may want to check the area that you will be 
hiking to see what the current restrictions are. I would hate to get a 
million dollar + fine for starting a fire!

Now on to the important things, eating? I enjoy a hot meal in the evenings 
and a cup of joe in the morning. I carry a Jetboil stove and like it very 
much. I carry a dehydrated meal, vegetable, and dessert for dinner each 
night and find it very satisfying. I would try the meals before taking them 
on the trail, I have had some that were not very good! I am not much for 
morning meals, so I munch on a protein bar throughout the morning as I am 
hiking. Then continue to munch on trail mix and beef jerky for lunch and 
afternoon snack. This works well for me.

If any section hikers are out there, I will be hiking from Gorgonio Pass to 
Route 18 on Sept 8 thru the 11th. Contact me directly.
Good luck in your travels, OC