[pct-l] Best months to hike OR and WA PCT

[Devon Taig]

My two cents is that I would do September for Oregon in the first year and
August for Washington the next year both NOBO.  Oregon is pretty likely to
have great weather but not be real hot in September (ideal conditions).
 You'll have very few mosquitos that time of year.  Washington's hiking
season especially up north is pretty short. I would go SOBO (better
weather) on a September hike, but NOBO on an August hike.  Either would be
great.  Check with the PCTA about how to legally get across the border into
the United States if you go southbound (or start at Heart's Pass about 30
miles inside of the US).
One thing to keep in mind is that you'll probably see 2 or 3 times more
people going south bound than north-bound since the bulk of hikers move
south to north and thru-hikers that time of year represent most of the
trail traffic.  If you like stopping to chat with other hikers, great...if
you prefer the illusion of solitude that you get from encountering fewer
people as you hike, go north for sure.

River

On Mon, Apr 1, 2013 at 12:21 PM, John Herrin <johndavidherrin at gmail.com>wrote:

> My wife and I are planning on backpacking the PCT over two summers/years.
> What are the best months to backpack the OR & WA portions of the PCT. We
> are looking for the least snow, best weather, less mosquitoes, and time to
> finish before wintry weather returns.
>
> I realize not all of this criteria may line up. But I am hoping to draw
> from the vast experience of this group in determining what dates we should
> set aside.
>
> We will be 60 and 58 yrs old and aren't particularly fast hikers, some I am
> guessing we'll need to plan on at least 2 months. We have the time to allow
> for more days/weeks if needed. Also would you recommend we hike NOBO or
> SOBO?
>
> Thanks and I love reading the daily posts and can hardly wait to get back
> out there.
> _______________________________________________
> Pct-L mailing list
> Pct-L at backcountry.net
> To unsubcribe, or change options visit:
> http://mailman.backcountry.net/mailman/listinfo/pct-l
>
> List Archives:
> http://mailman.backcountry.net/pipermail/pct-l/
> All content is copyrighted by the respective authors.
> Reproduction is prohibited without express permission.
>