Читать книгу The John Muir Trail. Through the Californian Sierra Nevada онлайн

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Every year around 300 or more of the world’s best long-distance backpackers gather at the end of April for the now traditional send-off party near the Mexican border, and the following day take their first steps northwards on a truly marathon hike through the US to Canada. Many of these ‘Thru-Hikers’ fail to complete the PCT in one season, but the determined few make it to Canada by early October.

Nearly all PCT Thru-Hikers head north because the logistics of walking north to south in one season are unfeasible. Most head through the High Sierra country through which the JMT passes during the month of June, so they have to contend with much more snow than the summertime JMT walker, and river crossings can be extremely hazardous as the many streams are swollen by melting snows high up in the mountains.

The chances of a southbound JMT hiker during the summertime encountering a northbound PCT Thru-Hiker are therefore pretty slight. However, for every Thru-Hiker there are many hundreds of other backpackers who walk sections of the PCT every year, and you are sure to see some of these. It is the cherished ambition of some American backpackers to complete the PCT over a number of seasons, and many do a week, fortnight or monthly stage every year. Most take half a lifetime or more to complete the Trail. Many thousands more are content to return to the wilderness occasionally for short adventures of a few day’s duration.