Pacific Crest Trail

On its 2,650-mile-long route between Mexico and Canada, the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) crosses the Columbia River at the Bridge of the Gods near Cascade Locks. The cool, shaded forests from which the trail emerges here feel worlds away from the hot deserts of southern California, where most thru-hikers start. In the 2,000 miles between, the PCT passes through a half dozen ecoregions with distinctive climate, vegetation, and geology.

The PCT was conceived in the early 1930s by a group of hikers who sought a border-to-border path that connected existing trails in California, Washington, and Oregon. By 1968, when the PCT and the Appalachian Trail were designated as the country’s first National Scenic Trails, this vision was largely realized. But it was not until 1993 that the trail was formally completed.

Today hikers and equestrians on the trail pass through 24 national forests, 33 wilderness areas, 7 national parks, and 3 national monuments. The Pacific Crest Trail Association works in cooperation with the U.S. Forest Service, the National Park Service, and the Bureau of Land Management to manage and maintain the trail. Bicycles and mechanized vehicles are prohibited.