Riding The Crest 2009

The PCT trip:

…Did not consist of day rides. Day rides are when you pull up in your trailer to a trail, unload your horse and ride out and back, load your horse back on the trailer or camp right there at the trailhead. The Pacific Crest Trail is a 2650 mile linear trail. You ride continuously north or south (I rode north through California and then south through Washington and Oregon).  

…Was an extended camping trip with horses. I was not in a bed inside our camper each night. I  camped in my tent with a sleeping bag on whatever piece of ground I could find 115 nights.

…I ate “camp” food, mostly dehydrated foods while on the trail. I had to conserve every ounce of weight that I asked the horse to carry and every cubic inch of limited amount of space in the packs. Weight and space were at a premium. Then there was times when I not only had to carry my food, but also that of the horses. That added tremendous weight and volume to the load. (I walked alongside the horses when the weight was heaviest or the climb was steepest.) I chose to package much of my own food as I live on a farm and grow many fruits and vegetables. Some of the dried food I am carried was apple, pear, peaches, blueberries, okra, and home made beef jerky. Back at the trailer was frozen blueberries and blueberry jam as well as canned pears.

…Safety was the top priority and the care of the horses paramount. Without the horse the ride was over. Unlike the hiker that makes the decision where to put his/her feet, I depended upon my mounts to do this wisely. Jur and Harmony (Janice’s horses) had proven to be ready for the challenge. I was feeding the best feed because not only was feed weight limited so was the type. Many parks and National Forests do not allow any seed grain such as oats. So the horses were on a pellet diet much of the time.

…I also prepared our communications and connections. It felt like we were carrying too many devises for communicating with our support team. Of course, that was somewhat an illusion as cell towers only reached so far and satellites had to be “picked up.” Besides “the team,” there wais an incredible amount of support from Trail Angels and other riders who drew alongside us. The trip was not possible to do without support.

…Almost none of the initial planning (done by another rider) was used. Most zero days were spent preparing for the next ride. I maintained the website and made contact with sponsors. Ralph was finding and contacting our next way stop and getting us there.

…was another great adventure! An incredible amount of planning and logistics goes into organizing two people and two horses 3000 miles away from their homes for over six months. The final month at home was full: veterinarian exams and health certificates for the horses, along with updating vaccinations, loading the trailer with the first month of feed for the horses and food for the people, taking “trial runs” (camping out with horse and gear to make sure we had everything and that it worked), checking all the electronic gear after learning how to use it and packing back up batteries (chargers would be back at the trailer), rechecking that every item needed was IN the trailer, packing clothes in sets of two (one set to be worn and carried and one set to be washed and repacked), paying up bills at home and getting all banking prepared for on line transactions, and making last minute changes to our route as we find out about trail conditions.  

SIGNS OF THE PCT

 So many trails - So little time!

This website is intended to share our adventure with you.
Visit as often (or as little) as you like.  

We 'd like to hear from you. Please sign our guest book and/or e-mail us.

Janice will be your commentator.