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The Freedom of Long Distance Hiking

by Tom Potochny

Most long distance hikers return to their ‘normal’ lives after long journeys and are often asked the same questions by their friends and family.The questions are often How far did you get?, Didn’t you get bored, What did you eat?, and Did you hike alone?.Or maybe Did you see any animals?. After I returned from my long distance hiking trip in 1999, I was asked the same questions so many times that I came up with canned responses.The question I had the most difficulty with was “What was your favorite part of your trip.

I would think: Did the person asking the question want to know the geographic portion of the trip which was my favorite? That was difficult to answer. I had hiked about 2,000 miles through incredible scenery and it was unfair to pick one section.The High Sierra and the John Muir Trail (segment) could be a reasonable response.But just about every day was memorable and exciting in one way or another.

Maybe I was supposed to answer in a different way. The other hikers and people in the towns that I met could be my favorite part of my trip.So was the opportunity to challenge myself to my limits, to get closer to nature, and truly live life to its fullest.

I spent about 3 1/2 months on the Pacific Crest Trail, and had hit Crater Lake National Park in Oregon in early August.It was about this time I realized what was really my favorite part of my trip. It was the freedom of long distance hiking. I had enjoyed my time on the PCT, but I had reached a mental block that required some serious re-thinking on why I had chosen to spend 5 months hiking to begin with.Like many others, one of my top reasons to start from Campo at the Mexican border in late April was to take a break from the pressures of ‘normal’ life.Unlike my friends I left behind, I was not going to spend my entire life in a cubicle. I thought there was more to life than what we had been taught by television and peer pressure.I wanted to do something unique and independent.

Even during the early stages of my trip I found that it was sometimes advantageous to diverge from the PCT. The first time was at Warner Springs, California, (Section A14 in the guide book) where the post office is located a mile or so off the trail.A road walk on Hwy 79 is required to pick up supply packages and grab some grub at the town golf course.I didn’t give a second thought to continuing on the road to the PCT where it intersects the road further on.The route I took skipped about 3 miles of the PCT . However insignificant this seemed to me, there were other PCT hikers who thought I had committed a sin. I do remember a discussion among some hikers on whether to backtrack down the road to where they had left the PCT. The idea is, of course, not to miss even one inch of the PCT.

In the following weeks, as the slightly spread-out group of 1999 PCT hikers made their way through southern California, I remembered back to Warner Springs and made a special effort to stick to the PCT. I’m not sure why I wanted to, but I did it anyway. At least until I hit an extremely overgrown section near Silverwood Lake (Section C15) and decided to join other hikers that I enjoyed being with, on nearby Hwy 138 that roughly paralleled. It was an exciting moment, taking a unique path and thinking independently.It was the first of many wonderful experiences I had, trying something other than the designated path.

One particular, potentially miserable section of the PCT is from Agua Dulce to Tehachapi, across the Mojave desert. A number of 1999 hikers, including myself, decided the PCT left a little to be desired as it weaves around the lower elevations of the local Tehachapi Mountains.Thus, a “desert shortcut was created.A straight line roadwalk along 170th Street from Lake Hughes (Section E6), by Fairmont Reservoir, to the PCT at an intersection with the LA Aqueduct. By no means the official route, yet a perfectly reasonable alternate route for long distance hikers interested in freedom of choice.  And, as it turned out, it was a memorable part of my overall journey.And an interesting side note -we came across a few very old PCT signs from when the PCT DID officially go this way.

As the PCT continued north, eventually leading us through the High Sierra, I stayed on the official trail.Probably because of the excitement and challenge of just getting past each of the High Sierra passes: Forester, Kearsarge (twice, and a great “side hike to resupply in Independence), Glenn, Pinchot, Mather, Muir, Seldon, Silver, Donohue. The John Muir Trail was something that could not be missed. Heading north from Tuolumne Meadows in Yosemite National Park, there were three instances where I (along with my brother who had joined me at Mammoth) decided to take alternate routes due to safety considerations.One was just past Seavey Pass at Kerrick Canyon Creek (section I5), where we encountered steep, icy slopes without ice axes. We chose a route that allowed us to experience rarely used Yosemite trails, some very challenging but not so dangerous as Kerrick Canyon. A difficult snow patch in Section J5 caused us to take the old PCT, an overgrown, alternate path and another dangerous snow patch near Elephant’s Back (Section J7) caused us to bushwack up a bare slope.

Section K (Echo Lake Resort to Interstate 80) marked the beginning of some significant road walking.As the PCT stayed well west of Lake Tahoe, I began to wonder what it would be like to walk next to such a huge lake. After an extremely humid and mosquito-dominated day, I found my way down from Barker Pass (Section K5) to Tahoe Pines.I then began a very nice road walk along Highway 89. Following a bike trail from Tahoe City, along the Truckee River all the way up to Squaw Valley Ski Resort. Then down to the town of Truckee, paying special attention to oncoming traffic, and up along Donner Lake. After all the mountain PCT miles I had racked up, it was excitingto experience something totally different.Leaving Sierra City in Section M1, one can take the PCT along the front (south) side of Sierra Buttes.Although the roads were sometimes narrow and winding, this alternate route allowed easy access to streams, lakes and some very interesting lodges.   From Packer Lodge, which offers excellent food, it is a short, steep jaunt back up to the PCT.

Another memorable side hike was when I decided I wanted to see the logging town of Quincy. By the time I hit Quincy -LaPorte Road in Section M5, I was ready for an adventure.I did some night hiking on the road and continued the next morning, constantly dodging logging trucks in both directions. Closer to Quincy, I met up with a real gold miner and his loyal dog who were also walking to Quincy.For a couple of hours I got to hear some very interesting stories about the area, mining, logging and the Forest Service. As I pushed on further north, eventually into Oregon, the more I wanted to do and see different things. The long distance hiking aspect of the journey still appealed to me greatly, but the adherence to the PCT no longer did. The frustrations of the infamous Section O led me to take Tate Creek Road in Section O5, a pleasant descent through beautiful forested areas, to busy Highway 89, and on to my favorite small town of the trip, McCloud.Of course, a strict PCT thru-hiker will usually never get to see towns like McCloud, Quincy, or Truckee, but I am glad I was able to.

More road walking in southern Oregon led me to the towns of Ashland and Fort Klamath, and up rarely-walked Highway 62 through the southern road entrance to Crater Lake National Park (Oregon Section C10). At Crater Lake I had finally had enough of the PCT and the mountains and decided to continue my long distance hiking journey along the Oregon coast.After hitching a ride back to Ashland, I purchased a book ,’120 Hikes on the Oregon Coast’, by Bonnie Henderson and planned a three week trip from Bandon to Lincoln City.

My journey along the Oregon coast was completely different than the PCT. Frequent towns and wonderful state parks allowed for the opportunity to be spontaneous.If I felt like walking two miles in a day along the beach, I could. If I felt like visiting a few lighthouses or see some ocean wildlife, I could.However; even though there is something called the Oregon Coast Trail, it is really only a series of (sometimes dangerous) road walks and slow, sandy beach walking.The route is primarily designed for long distance bikers.

I like to compare hiking styles to tastes in food. One person might like Italian food, another might like hamburgers. Someone who really wants a variety might like Italian food, hamburgers and rocky road ice cream. For me, the ideal long distance trail would have a combination of what the PCT has to offer and what my trek along the Oregon coast had to offer. There should be both stretches of remote isolation, but also frequent opportunities to be spontaneous and take advantage of the freedom of long distance hiking. To be able to visit towns, see sites, and make the trip even more special. In essence, to be able to eat Italian food, hamburgers and rocky road ice cream.