A definition of Desert

This text was published in French during my hike

For the PCT hiker, the desert section starts at the south terminus and ends 1130km later at Kennedy Meadow South. But the definition of Desert can be confusing. Southern California's desert is not the death valley.

On the third day of the PCT, I was caught in a wind and snowstorm.

First, the PCT is a mountain hike. The climb starts at the very begining. On the 428km I have already covered, we have climbed over 15.000m in elevation and descended over 13000m. The average altitude is largely above 1000m in a two-week hike. We passed through forests and snowy peaks. Flowers are everywhere, an early start makes for magnificent blooms. Even the cactuses

 What characterizes the desert is the rarity of water. The longest waterless stretch we have had so far is 40km. 40km represents in mountainous terrain almost two days of walking.

So we organize and often have to carry up to 5 or 6 L of water to be able to bivouac, cook and drink until the next water source. It is fairly easy to predict as the water source information is regularly updated by hikers on our Farout app. It is harder to face a thousand meters of positive elevation gain with 6kg extra. To help myself with those consideration, I usually count in Eiffel Tower : the tower's height being 300m, I tell myself I just have to bring this water two times to the top of the monument.

So far, I've always taken too much. Too bad for my knees but safety first. Soon we will reach the Mojave desert where we will probably have to carry even more.

Until Kennedy Meadows and the Sierra.