[pct-l] FORAGING - MOTELS - RESTAURANTS

[Edward Anderson]

There has been recent posts on these subjects. For those who might be curious, I thought I'd post in on my approach to riding the PCT with my horse.  It actually took four years - although we reached Canada at the end of the second.  Then I had to return to the PCT to ride the Sections between Horseshoe Meadows and Sierra City, which I had trailered around in 2008 to avoid the snow.
 
During my journey, I never stayed in a motel. I only ate in restaurants twice - once at McDonalds, Cajon Pass ( I rode Primo through the drive-thru there), and also at Vermillion Valley Resort (great food there). The only real foraging along the trail was by my horse, Primo, as he grazed while we were in our camps and also all along the trail whereever he saw something that he wanted to eat.
 
I did a LOT of research and planning before attempting the PCT. I had the benefit of having already ridden about 43,000 miles, including horse camping in back country places with just one horse. I had also done a lot of backpacking.

I did 99% of my foraging before starting each year. I foraged along the aisles of Super Markets, Costco, and Health Food Stores. I bought all of my food ahead of time. I also dehydrated some of my food myself. I bought all of the special processed horse feed that would supplement what Primo would eat, in addition to his grazing, while we on the trail. I did a little foraging for myself along the trail too - a few wild plants that I was familiar with, berries, and trout. That was probably just 1% of what I ate.

To RESUPPLY, I planned a resupply box or cache for each location and boxed all food before starting - mine and Primo's. Each box was marked with the planned resupply location. While passing through S. Cal. I recall that I cached ( buried and camouflaged) four times ( I always carefully re-camouflaged the spot after recovering a cache), was met by my wife four times, by a friend once, dropped off at the Equestrian Center at Warner Springs, and sent a resupply box to Kennedy Meadows.

After restarting from Sierra City, I had decided that caching was, for me, the best, and most predictable way of going. A big advantage was that it did not require that I be on a schedule and was therefore safer (trying to stay on a time schedule with a horse can be risky) and allowed much greater flexibility- I could take a "0"day on the trail if I discovered a great place to camp. It took a lot of research and pre-planning to find safe places to leave Primo while I would drive my rig north, sometimes several hundred miles, caching along the way, and then park it in a safe and pre-planned location near the trail where I could also leave Primo after I rode him there. Then, I would hitch-hike back to where I had left him, saddle up, and ride north, recovering my resupply caches as I went, to where I had parked my well-stocked camper and horse trailer. After getting there I would usually take a "0" day in my van camper (I designed and built it
 myself), which is fully self-contained with solar recharging and water heating. Then I would leave Primo and all of my supplies and equipment, and repeat the strategy that is described above. My last cache was at the Ranger Station at Harts Pass. From there I rode to the border and back, and then down towards Mazama, where I had last parked my rig. A part of my way of going on the trail was to hike, leading my horse.

Of course, I got much needed and appreciated help from other equestrians, Rangers, Back Country Horsemen, hiker-friends. In addition to my hitch-hiking, I was sometimes offered rides. The journey would have been very difficult without their help. For example, I arranged to be trailered around the dangerous for stock "Little Giant" part of the Section K detour in Washington. One of my planned stops was at Hiker Hide-Away.

So, I covered most of the distance between Mexico and Canada three ways: by driving, riding, being offered a ride,or hitch-hiking, and sometimes, when available, taking buses. It never took longer than a day to return south to Primo - and, while hitching, I always carried my knapsack with my sleeping bag and what I would need if I had to spend the night in some remote location.

The HYOH philosophy is the reality. Each person who hikes or rides on the PCT will choose, or end up doing, what is best - or what circumstances dictate. A thru in one season, a thru achieved in multiple seasons, Sections, a part of a Section, hikes or rides of just one special part of the PCT, A record attempt, a yo-yo, a journey including all of the towns along the way. However you go - the important thing is that you go!

MendoRider-Hiker
 

________________________________
 From: "mkwart at gci.net" <mkwart at gci.net>
To: pct-l at backcountry.net 
Sent: Sunday, November 11, 2012 1:29 PM
Subject: [pct-l] No on Proposition foraging
  
Diane said what I meant to say in my email way back about foraging your 
way through the PCT. People that lived off the land did bring a lot with 
them when they travelled around, supplemented by game and wild edibles 
in season.

One would have to do the foraging and packaging in the off season, then 
use the modern postal service to mail that foraged food to themselves 
along the trail. Or else maybe cache it like Mendorider, somehow in an 
animal proof manner. Come to think of it, a lot of people do this 
already to a big extent if they make their own food in the off season 
and dry it to use on the trail. I dry vegetables and apples grown by 
friends and put them in baggies for the trail.

Another option would be to meet someone along the trail with your 
re-supply stuff. Of course they would have to get there by non motorized 
transport. (LOL).

Using the modern resources of community supported
 agriculture to get 
food for the trail, process it and take it on the trail is a natural 
extension of foraging on the trail and is a lot cheaper and more healthy 
than buying meals made by others.

--Fireweed
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