PCT Resupply Plan

Though not yet set in stone, I’m planning on a start date of April 21th for my PCT hike.   You can resupply by purchasing supplies at stores along the way or shipping packages to post offices and businesses that will hold them for you, or some combination of the two.

If you buy local you are at the mercy of what’s available within a reasonable distance from the trail.  It’s flexible but you may end up eating nothing but poptarts and candy bars if all you can find is a gas station.   Alternatively, you may have longer hitch hikes to get to larger grocery stores.

If you ship yourself packages to post offices you may end up waiting if you get there on a weekend and the post office is closed.  If you do all your shopping up front you may also end up with packages of food that you are just plain sick of.   On the 500 mile hike on the A.T. that I just completed I did 3 packages and 4 stops where I bought local.  I liked the flexibility of buying locally but it also took more time.

My PCT plan is to do some of each.  I will buy local where it looks feasible and to ship packages where it looks like the shopping would be sparse.   I’ve read books and blogs by folks who recently did the PCT.  One great source of info is an annual survey of folks who finished the trail that includes questions about food stops, where they would ship vs purchase locally.

I will ship food boxes to 9 of my 26 planned resupply stops.    I expect to shop and package up the first 3 boxes and ship them before I leave.  Gayle will be visiting me in Lone Pine and I’ll put together and ship the next two boxes from there.  When I’m in Ashland Oregon I’ll buy, box up and ship the remaining 5 supply packages.  It’s also possible that I’ll just go online and order those boxes from Zero Day Resupply.   There are two other spots where I’ll mail only my maps and perhaps a couple of hard to find items.

Here’s my draft resupply plan.  The dates are based on a start date of April 21, which isn’t set in stone yet.

Note:  This was a draft.  My current and updated resupply plan is available via the top menu or by clicking here.

Resupply Point	Trail Mile	Distance From Previous	Type	Wild Ball Park Estimated Date To Not Count On	Distance From Trail & Notes
Warner Springs	109.6	109.6	USPS food	April 26	1.2mi road east;  USPS to Warner Springs Post Office,  Warner Springs CA 92063
Idyllwild	179.4	69.8	buy	April 30	2.6mi trail + 2.6mi road to campgrounds w/showers, laundry, grocery stores; outfitter has fuel cans
Big Bear	266.1	86.7	buy, USPS maps 2 & 3	May 5	9mi road SW to Big  Bear Lake – groceries, restaurants, sporting goods, Big Bear Hostel $20 bunk; fuel cans at big 5; mail to Big Bear Lake PO; (overnight here)
Wrightwood	369.4	103.3	buy	May 10	5.5mi east trail to grocery store, motels, hardware store w/fuel cans, camp wrightwood is barebones hostel if stuck in town.
Agua Dulce	454.5	85.1	buy	May 15	on trail, grocery store, restaurants, Hiker Heaven Hostel (aka Saufley’s)
Mojave (hwy 58)	566.4	111.9	buy	May 20	12 mi road east to Mojave w/ grocery store, motel 6, fuel cans at hardware store; alternative is 9.2 mi road west to Tehachapi with grocery stores  (overnight here)
Kennedy Meadows	702.2	135.8	USPS food, gear maybe	May 27	.5mi road to Kennedy Meadows General Store
Lone Pine (via Cottonwood Pass)	750.2	48	Gayle brings gear, food, map 4	May 30 (3-4 days off here)	3.8 mile trail to Horseshoe Campground then 20 mile road to Lone Pine.  My wife Gayle is meeting me here and I’ll take 3-4 days off.
Independence (via Kearsage Pass)	788.9	38.7 ***	buy	June 9  (snow advanced course)	Start this section by meeting Mtn Education group 1 mile north of Cottonwood Pass on evening of June 3.   Receive steep snow skills training while hiking trail north.   Mileage for side trip to summit Mt Whitney is not included in section mileage.  7.5 mi trail up over Kearsage Pass to Onion Valley trailhead then a 13 mile road to small grocery in Independence.  Lone Pine is another 16 miles south.
Vermillion Valley Resort	874.5	85.6	UPS food, map 5	June 18	1.5mi trail + 4mi ferry ride;  UPS package to Vermilion Valley Resort c/o Rancheria Garage
Tuolumne Meadows	942.5	68.0	buy	June 24	.3mi trail to campground store
South Lake Tahoe	1,090.8	148.3	buy	July 3	12.0mi road NE to groceries, restaurants, pharmacy, outfitter
Sierra City	1,195.4	104.6	USPS food, maps 6 & 7	July 9	1.4mi road to USPS package to Sierra Country Store, 123 Main St, Sierra City, CA 96125;  River Haven Hostel
Belden	1,284.3	88.9	buy	July 14	on trail small store, limited
Old Station	1,371.0	86.7	buy	July 18	.3mi trail to mini mart
Burney	1,408.8	37.8	buy	July 20	7.7 mi road sw to conv store
Castella	1,498.6	89.8	buy	July 24	2mi road to safeway, laundry, restaurants, campground near PO
Seiad Valley	1,653.4	154.8	buy	August 1	on trail small store
Ashland	1,716.2	62.8	buy	August 5 (~3 days here)	13mi road to grocery store, motels, pharmacy, hostel (wife Gayle meeting me here, taking several days off)
Crater Lake (Mazama Village)	1,819.2	103.0	buy	August 11	2mi road to campground store
Shelter Cove Resort	1,904.1	84.9	UPS food, maps 8 & 9	August 15	2.2mi trail to UPS to Shelter Cove Resort & Marina
Olallie Lake	2,043.1	139.0	buy	August 21	.1mi trail to camp store;
Cascade Locks	2,144.2	101.1	buy	August 25	on trail grocery store
White Pass	2,292.4	148.2	USPS food	September 1	.5mi road; USPS to Kracker Barrel Store, Naches, WA 98937
Snoqualmie Pass	2,390.6	98.2	USPS food, map 10	September 5	.3mi road;  USPS to Snoqualmie Pass, WA 98068
Skykomish	2,461.6	71.0	USPS food	September 9	16.2mi road west; USPS to Skykomish, WA 98288
Stehekin	2,569.2	107.6	USPS food	September 14	11mi road (bus possible) USPS to Stehekin, WA 98852; free camping, coin showers
Manning Park	2,661.3	92.1	done!	September 19	hostel, lodge, restaurant, greyhound to Vancouver; go home!