Return to Oz – PCT 2025

Hi all, Oz here. Last year I blogged my journey hiking SOBO on the CDT.  I finished the CDT at the southern terminus on 6 Nov. The CDT was a great trail with lots of opportunities to address your fears, lol.  But much to my chagrin I hadn’t developed a good blogging approach or rhythm and my last posted blog was about entering Wyoming. Fortunately I’ll get another stab at blogging during my NOBO PCT hike this year.

The PCT will complete my triple crown hikes. Although I’ve logged over 5,700 hiking miles  I’m as nervous as any new thru hiker to start the PCT. 

I check the San Jacinto Trail Report obsessively to see if I’ll need my microspikes early.  I scour the seemingly one million PCT- related Facebook pages to find out relevant details.  I  watch last years’ hikers’ vlogs to see how bad Bear Creek will be during the melt. And I sort and resort my gear as if touching it over and over will calm my anxiety.  Pretty standard pre-hike stuff.  Too soon it’s time to head to California- ready or not Oz has to get moving.  

An easy flight and free shuttle brings me to the  Old Town district of San Diego. There in a small motel I begin the transition to thru hiker. My toiletry kit  has only  three things in it;  I’m grateful the motel has shampoo….and free breakfast in the morning. In two months  I’ll demolish a free breakfast buffet but now I am content with coffee and cereal. I pick up my battered Durston Kakwa. “Hello, old friend,” I whisper. I slip on my new UNO – themed Goodr sunglasses.  They are a shout out to Magic Mike  whom I beat at UNO every morning over coffee at home. In the mirror I see a middle aged lady with a  cool Jolly Gear shirt and a determined expression. 

Oz is back and ready to hike

I walked to the meetup for the PCT shuttle. Several hikers are already there waiting and we mill about  awkwardly with sporadic conversation. “This is like the first day of kindergarten,”I think to myself.  Most of them are international hikers and I think of how complicated their logistics were to get them here and  how much more anxious they must be. 

PCT shuttle to Campo

The shuttle is run by One Speed and Just Paul, former PCT hikers. It’s a fabulous service that makes getting to the terminus ridiculously easy.  They run us by REI for last minute supplies and then we enjoy the hour long ride to Camp Lockett.

REI special PCT section for hikers on their way to Campo

The camp near Campo  is run by nonprofit organization staffed by volunteers like Just Paul and One Speed and a few other folks. The camp has a central pavilion with a charging station and a small kitchen. They direct us to set up our tents in the flat spots and to meet them under the pavilion at 6 pm for a fireside presentation.  Twenty-one hikers huddle around the camp hearth in the chilly night. A lot of them are in shorts not expecting the Southern California weather to be cold. 

Tent city at Camp Lockett

We listen raptly as the presenters go through topics like: most common medical issues, how to adjust your pack, how to plan for water carries, how to ration food etc.  Some of it is old news but I appreciated the refresher and took away a few gems, particularly some tips on hitchhiking.   I shouldn’t frown at cars at that pass without picking me up in case I run into them later. 

Tons of hikers have come through Camp Lockett since early March

From what I gather this group consists of mostly first time thru hikers.  The presenters do a good job of talking to us and not talking down to us.  They don’t beat us over the head with their own war stories and they don’t try to scare the new hikers.  And they recognize and address the unique concerns of the international hikers.  Later we all sign the Class of 2025 banner.  The banner will end up on display at Kennedy Meadows South, the gateway to the Sierras.  Although I would have appreciated this type of information before my first thru hike on the AT I can’t help feeling like this hike is starting out like an organized field trip. 

We scatter to our tents at hiker midnight. I hadn’t been able to do a shakedown hike because of injuries and I feel rusty as I organize my space. I wonder when and how my own experience will show during this hike. I get my first indication almost immediately.  Distracted by my own thoughts I grip the zipper on the tent vestibule too roughly and the zipper chain rips from the fabric. A young hiker behind me gasps. “Will you have to postpone your hike until you get a new tent?” I assure her that I’ll be able to rig a fix, that my hike is not over before it begins. I’m annoyed at myself for the mistake but shrug it off.  I’ll figure it out.

The next morning our hosts cook us a pancake breakfast.  A trail runner checks our permits and issues us PCT hang tags. And then we’re off.  I’m one of the last to leave camp for the southern terminus. It’s overcast and chilly when I arrive at the wall. I wait patiently in the  line for photos at the monument.  Finally it’s my turn and I use the same pose I’ve used for my previous hikes.  I take my first steps on the PCT and some of my nervousness disappears. 

Every trail is different; each has something new to teach a hiker and I can’t wait to see what the PCT has in store for me.