As PCTA's GIS Specialist, Galen is responsible for all things maps, including cartography, analysis, and data management. When not staring at maps of the PCT, Galen can be found exploring trails, strumming a stringed instrument, or hanging out with his wife and cats.
Are you visiting the Pacific Crest Trail in 2026? We need your help gathering photos of trailhead parking lots and water sources. Join PCTA as a volunteer Trail Information Data Collector and contribute to building a robust database of information about the ... Read more
Each year, PCTA’s volunteers, corps crews, and staff put in tens of thousands of hours toward maintaining the PCT. This devotion of time and energy yields extraordinary results: over 2,000 miles of the PCT have been maintained since ... Read more
April 14 update: thanks to all of the people who have volunteered to help! We’ve closed recruiting for this project for now.
Calling all hikers, outdoor photographers, and data nerds! Are you visiting the Pacific Crest Trail in 2025? We need your help gathering photos of trailheads. Join PCTA as ... Read more
Though we use 2,650 as shorthand for the length of the PCT, it actually shifts a bit year-to-year due to new construction, reroutes, and the like. To dig into this topic, see our previous blog post How long is the PCT really? – Pacific Crest Trail Association. Every January of ... Read more
Easy, 2,650 Miles, right? Well… not quite. The question of the PCT’s length comes up often, with guidebooks, phone apps, and other sources across the internet offering varying figures. In recent years, PCTA has come a long way in better tracking and calculating distance. While we regularly reference the rounded ... Read more
We’re happy to share that we’ve updated our interactive map, making it even more user-friendly and informative. Performance is improved, loading quicker and rendering better on mobile devices. We’ve also added more layers and they are better organized. Remember, the map is always found at the simple address pcta.org/maps.
The ... Read more
Welcome to the blog of the Pacific Crest Trail Association. Check back often for news about the trail.