By Mark Larabee
Trail Gorilla Al Golightly, a soft-spoken but dedicated camp cook who greeted weary trail crews with food and encouragement for more than two decades, died Oct. 30 after a long battle with Parkinson’s Disease. He was 79.
Al and his wife, Edwina, who goes by Neddie, were ... Read more
Lesya Struz, former PCTA board member, a volunteer founder of the PCTA’s Mount Hood Chapter in Oregon and the force behind the creation of a single permit for long-distance PCT travelers, died this week at her home in Boston, Mass. She was 68.
A 1991 PCT thru-hiker with the trail ... Read more
Stevens Pass, a key Pacific Crest Trail access point in the Cascade Range east of Seattle, is the PCTA’s latest land protection purchase.
On Wednesday, after years of work and major help from private donors and trail lovers, we closed the $1.6 million acquisition, buying 402 acres from a private ... Read more
By Connor Swift, PCTA Trail Crew Technical Advisor
The 2013 Mountain Fire closed nearly 25 miles of the Pacific Crest Trail through the San Jacinto Mountains as it approaches the town of Idyllwild in Southern California.
The fire burned hot and intensely, creating hazards in some places such as dangerous ... Read more
PCT thru-hikers have always told us how much the trail means to them. Many want to give back somehow. So in the spring of 2017, inspired by this—and by increasing pressure on the trail from its growing popularity—we created the P3 program: ten thru-hikers selected to share their experiences toward ... Read more
The 2018 Pacific Crest Trail Association Photo Contest is open.
Please consider sending in your best photos from the trail. We’ll use them throughout the year in our publications and promotional materials to illustrate the beauty and experience the PCT provides. Your volunteer photos help protect the PCT for future ... Read more
Safely and successfully hiking the Pacific Crest Trail requires some basic survival skills as well as a keen awareness of your surroundings. You can’t possibly plan for everything, but you can easily prepare yourself with quality gear and enough knowledge to identify dangerous situations. Keep reading to learn the five ... Read more
If you are 70 ½ years or older, you can take advantage of a simple way to benefit the PCTA and receive tax benefits in return. You can give up to $100,000 from your IRA directly to a qualified charity such as ours ... Read more