The trail runs from the California border with Mexico up around LA to Sequoia and Kings Canyon, through Devil’s Postpile, Yosemite and Lassen. Then it continues up to Crater Lake in Oregon, crosses over the Lewis & Clark trail on the Columbia River into Washington, past Mt Rainier, to the high bridge (see photo) between Lake Chelan and the North Cascades, crosses the Pacific Northwest trail and finally crosses the Canadian border.

The PCT is 2,650 miles and grew out of Clinton Clarke’s idea in the 1930s to link existing trails to create a border-to-border extremely scenic trail. Although in 1968 it officially became one of the two first national scenic trails—along with the 2,190 mile Appalachian Trail—, the PCT wasn’t completed until 25 years later. It’s a foot trail (e.g. horses), no vehicles (e.g. bicycles). Having visited all the parks and many of the national forests wilderness areas along the trail, including places photographed by a PCT founder named Ansel Adams, it’s one of our great national treasures.