Is it worthy?

Getting to the U.S. – A Challenge for Europeans

For us Europeans, flying to the U.S., getting to the start of the trail, and hiking from the Mexican border all the way to Canada… that’s already a reward. But preparing for an American thru-hike starts much earlier. First and foremost, we need to actually get to the U.S. and secure permission to stay for six months.

PCT Permit

The PCT Association offers a permit for this long-distance trail. This permit allows access and overnight stays in all seven national parks along the route. It’s free, and the only limitation is the number of people starting each day. Permits are granted from early March to the end of May, which is the ideal window for a continuous PCT thru-hike. A maximum of 50 people can start each day. There are two application rounds: one in early November and another in January. In November, 35 spots per day are released, and the remaining 15 are made available in January.

This year, the PCTA introduced a new system requiring hikers to register before applying. In early November, we both signed up on https://permit.pcta.org/ and indicated that we would be hiking together. We received an email with our assigned date and time to enter the system and choose our start date. Since we registered as a pair, only one of us needed to select the date, and the system automatically assigned the same permit to both of us.

We got lucky! Our randomly assigned time to enter the system was just 15 minutes after it opened. I was at a ceramics class, typing a message to Patrik with my clay-covered hands. The hardest decision? Choosing the perfect start date.

March is still relatively “cool” in the desert, but there’s too much snow in the Sierra. By May, the desert is unbearably hot, and melting snow in the Sierra makes river crossings dangerous. In the end, we chose April 7, 2025. About two weeks later, we received a beautiful email starting with: “Your permit application is approved! It’s getting real.” At that moment, I didn’t know whether to celebrate or panic. Well, that’s one thing checked off the list.

Passport

Before taking care of anything else, it’s crucial to have a valid passport—one that remains valid for at least six months after your planned return. Mine was cutting it close, so I checked to make sure everything was in order. Patrik had to get a new passport, which delayed our progress slightly, but once we had them, we moved on to the next step.

U.S. Visa

For Europeans, getting a U.S. visa is a whole process. It sounds simple, but the reality is far more complicated. The ESTA visa waiver is easy to obtain but completely useless for a six-month thru-hike. Instead, we had to apply for a B-2 tourist visa, which meant filling out the never-ending DS-160 form on https://ceac.state.gov/genniv/.

Apparently, in addition to standard security questions like “Are you a terrorist?”, the U.S. government also wants to know details such as “When was the last time you farted?” (Okay, I’m exaggerating, but that’s what it felt like.)

The form is extremely detailed, and to complete it, you need:

• At least some knowledge of English (or a friend to help)
• A lot of time (about three hours)
• A lot of patience

This wonderful website crashes about every five minutes, so anything you don’t save gets lost. After two hours, I wanted to cancel everything and throw my laptop out the window.

Surviving this torture, we paid $195 each to schedule an embassy interview. We booked our slot on November 26, and the first available date was in late January. We printed the required documents, grabbed our passports, and on January 30, we walked across Prague to the U.S. embassy.

You can’t bring large electronics or backpacks inside. Police and security guards are stationed outside. We arrived 15 minutes early, as instructed, and asked the guard at the door if we could enter. Nope—punctuality doesn’t matter here. We had to wait in line. Outside. In winter.

Security is like an airport check: all belongings on a conveyor belt, and we step through a scanner. Beep, beep—damn! I forgot to take off my watch. They confiscated our electronics, gave us visitor passes, and sent us upstairs to the waiting room. (Why such a big waiting room if they make everyone wait outside in the cold?)

Then it all went fast. First, we provided fingerprints. Then, we had our interviews. Patrik’s was quick, mine took a little longer. It was all in English, and the expected questions were:

• “Why are you going to the U.S.?”
• “Where will you sleep?”
• “How are you funding this trip?”
• “Who are you going with?”
• “Are you returning to work?”

After a few questions, we received a paper confirming we had passed, and they kept our passports to add the visa. Apparently, it takes 3–5 business days.

Three days later, we picked up our passports at a DHL office in the city. Nervously, we opened our envelopes… and it wasn’t just a stamp! It was a full-page visa with a photo. Woohoo! We had our visas!

Flights

For a PCT start, the best option is to fly to San Diego. There are no direct flights from Prague, so we had to decide what was most important—lowest price? Shortest travel time? Fewest layovers? We ultimately chose to fly from Munich, which offers a direct flight to San Diego. Layovers increase the risk of lost luggage, so this was a clear choice.

We tracked prices for about three weeks before purchasing two tickets, including one checked bag. The direct flight cost around $870 per person. We depart on April 3, taking a train to Munich the day before, spending the night there, and heading to the airport after breakfast—off to adventure!

Insurance

Is hiking a risky sport? According to insurance companies, yes. For a thru-hike, you need coverage for risky activities. We previously had annual insurance with Alpenverein, so we first checked if it would suffice. One phone call was enough—it wouldn’t. The coverage lasts a full year but has a maximum trip length limit.

It turned out all annual policies had similar restrictions. To stay abroad for six months, we would have to return home every three months. The alternative? A short-term policy for a specific trip. But when we set the parameters to worldwide coverage, risky activities, and a six-month duration, the prices ranged from $1,300 to $3,500 per person. Ouch!

Luckily, we found a great solution in a Czech PCT Facebook group—the Czech Mountaineering Association offers insurance plans with various trip lengths and no altitude limits. Perfect! Price? $390 each—still a big expense, but peace of mind is priceless.

California Fire Permit

Lastly, we had to review fire regulations—how to respond to wildfires, fire bans, and restrictions. The details are on the PCTA website: https://www.pcta.org/discover-the-trail/permits/california-fire-permit/.

After reading through the information (about 30 minutes), we entered our details, watched a short video, and answered eight multiple-choice questions. The test is easy if you watch the video, but for safety, it’s best to study the information thoroughly. The permit is free and is required for using a stove, not just making campfires. Hopefully, we won’t have any close encounters with wildfires!

Before we even started our journey, packed our bags, or set foot on the trail, PCT preparations had already cost us a lot of time—and nearly $1,700 each.