Dan vs. Wild

Okay this is a question I got all the time when I told anyone that I was hiking the Pacific Crest Trail. And the answer is yes. I also saw a Tik Tok on how to annoy thru-hikers and this question was on the list lol

Well I personally don't mind the question and I bring up this book now because this next part is where Cheryl Strayed began her journey on the PCT. From Mojave/Tehachapi to Kennedy Meadows. This stretch lasts for roughly 150 miles and it took me about 6 days to complete.

After my well earned rest in Tehachapi, I headed back out on the trail to go through one of the most beautiful sections of the trail so far.

This is the foothills of the Sierra so naturally, the terrain changes into a more lush landscape and we began to gain some elevation. The campsites between Tehachapi and Kennedy Meadows were all stunning and at night I could see SO MANY STARS it was unreal.

I also need to note that the water carry out of Tehachapi was the longest by far! I want to say it was close to 40 miles? but don't quote me on this. I was very mindful of my water consumption in this part and hiked FAST trying to catch up to some hikers who left a day before me.

I also want to note I cried the most on this stretch of the trail. Not because of sadness but more so because I was in awe of my surroundings and felt surreal and blessed. This is definitely why I love to be outdoors immersed in nature. The sheer magnitude and beauty of the landscape evokes a certain feeling in you (◕‿◕✿)

^That was where I bawled lol

Anyways, I was able to catch up to my fellow hiker Strider in the next stretch and I made it to Walker Pass. We hitched a ride into Ridgewood and stocked up on some supply to push to Kennedy Meadows!

Fast forwarding a little bit, this next section was very hilly and I witnessed some of the most striking sunsets here. I can't stop recalling how beautiful it was and I keep thinking I need to use the word "beautiful" a bit less lol

Push Push Push

And there I was, in Kennedy Meadows!

Aw man, you wouldn't believe what I felt there. PURE ECSTASY

The fact that I had hiked 700 miles was mindblowing and seeing others who had walked the same journey melded a sense of solidarity and unity in this community.

The common topic of this hiker haven was where to go next. Because of the high snow fall in the Sierras, many decided to bypass and go up north. As for my trail family, we decided to head up to Mammoth Lakes to go skiing for a day and jump up north.

Hey folks it's been a minute. It was extremely hard to post updates while on the trail. I would go to libraries along trail towns to upload photos and try to write out a post since its much easier on a computer ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Well I'm going to try to sum my PCT experience up in the next few posts :D

Last time I left off, I was at around day 30. Doing this almost six months later seems a lil weird lol but I'll try my best. Better late than never!

After Agua Dulce, I cowboy camped a bunch and went FAST. I was doing marathon days (26+ miles) and my pack felt super light by that point. Fast forward a few days, I got to the LA aqueduct, which is a flat and exposed part of the trail spanning about 20 miles.

Well my pals and I got ready for this part at Hikertown, which is a super cute hiker haven with a western town look that provides lodging. I'm going to be very transparent and blunt here lol As many hikers do, here I dropped some acid here and decided to continue on the aqueduct.

Absolutely beautiful here. Maybe it was the acid, but this day still remains my favorite day on the trail! Afterwards, I heard a lot of people didn't like hiking the aqueduct because of the hard pavement and long flat expanse but for me, that day was absolutely gorgeous. I even saw a shooting star hiking at night <3

I could go on about my trip ★ but I'm going to keep it brief!

Okay moving on, here's a gorgeous sunrise I saw in this stretch.

I guess next up is Tehachapi. This is usually the last town hikers hit up before ending up in Kennedy Meadows!

I stayed at the hippie hiker haven if you couldn't tell.

Here's a film pic I took and developed at the hiker haven :)

Ah good times. I also got a foot massage and stocked up on some necessities before heading to Kennedy Meadows. They also had the biggest jar (size of a water cooler tank) of weed free for hikers lol

Oh btw Secret Aardvark was my hot sauce of choice for the trail. Tehachapi is a really cute town and I would love to visit again. For those who read "Wild - Cheryl Strayed" this is also where she started her hike on the PCT.

Little Bear Spring Camp to mile 464.0 - 156.1 miles

A bunch of stream crossings in this stretch. I have to dip my shoes underwater which is never satisfying but thankfully they dry out quickly in the desert.

I still have some knee pain but it is getting better every day. The scenery is beautiful and I love taking dips in the creek to cool off. It's been much warmer at night and I couldn't be more thankful.

Oh I also started cold soaking food. I am figuring out the perfect amount of time necessary for food to cook when cold soaking and I am thinking about ditching my stove for a bit to go hardcore ultralight lol

This was the first natural hot springs I've been to and it is the only one on the trail (I believe). The water was indeed HOT and since the springs were next to a creek, I alternated hot and cold to give my muscle some ease. This was an awesome camp spot although I did wake up to a crowd of naked people on the weekend.

We hiked a bit further toward the rim of the world and Silverwood Lake. This lake is huge and it feels like I am no longer in the desert but I'm sure the heat and the dryness will return.

Also some trail magic <3 So trail angels come out to spots on the PCT to offer free food, charging, and other services a hiker may need. They do it completely free and only a handful accept donations so these are just purely good people out there who want to see you succeed. I had a few cokes and beers to quench my thirst and load up on some calories. The nice lady also cooked me 2 veggie burgers, which were delicious after hiking for a while. Honestly I am a bottomless pit when it comes to food these days. I would love to come back to the trail as a trail angel and feed some hikers. PAY IT FORWARD :D

Next up is McDonald's in Cajon Pass. This is the only McDonald's on the trail so I'm pretty excited.

After loading up on some junk food, my trail fam hiked out a bit further. The next day is almost a 20 mile hike uphill with a long water carry so we are going to start early. We also had a family dinner and this was the biggest one by far!

Next up, Wrightwood. I was really missing some town food so I decided to go a bit faster to take a zero day at this lovely hiker town.

And here comes the second mountain challenge, Mt. Baden-Powell. It was actually not too difficult and we were able to do it in one day. The sunset was absolutely gorgeous coming off the summit although I was tired from the steep uphill climb in snow of course.

After Baden-Powell, I pushed back to back marathon days (26 miles +) to get to Acton for a nice shower and laundry at the 49ers Saloon. This spot was epic and I would recommend people camp there for free. The food was pretty good too and we were able to hitch back to the trail easily.

We then cowboy camped (as the weather was nice) and aimed to get to Agua Dulce soon after.

We chilled at the hiker oasis in Agua Dulce for a bit before heading back out onto the trail. I'm actually feeling pretty good now. Most of my leg pain have resolved and I only feel some pain in my feet. Once that goes away, I will be unstoppable.

Oh I also ditched my stove in Wrightwood and sent it forward to Tehachapi. I will be cold soaking only for the next week or so. It's been going great so far but I do miss the hot meals after a long day. I am starting to pick up the miles so I'll have to keep this up to make up for the slow days in the beginning.

Idyllwild to Little Bear Springs Camp - 134.7 miles

I was going to try to post daily but its proving to be extremely difficult so here I am with 10 day updates.

So after my zero day at Idyllwild, I hitched out back to Paradise Valley Cafe and started my hike up San Jacinto, the first mountain challenge of the PCT. I've been struggling with blisters and knee pain so I'm still cautious about doing big miles but I think I could manage in a few weeks time! This is where we camped up on San Jacinto. It was right on the mountain ridge and we could see the clouds spill over into Palm Desert. It's very interesting to see a dense forest on one side of the mountain and a desert on the other. In the morning the frost had completely covered our tents.

The morning hike was absolutely gorgeous. Beautiful terrain and frost still hanging onto tree branches.

The night before summiting San Jac, we camped at this beautiful campsite overlooking the cloud covered town of Idyllwild.

Hiking in snow has been pretty brutal. We were doing about 1 mph, which can be fun at first but gets real old very fast. I hiked with a bunch of people I met on the trail and glad to say we crushed the first mountain challenge.

Okay the hike down was pretty sweet. My knee pain had subsided a bit and it finally warmed up. I was so cold every night on the mountain :/

Of course, we had to get In-N-Out! I've actually been to this exact In-N-Out when I used to live in LA so it felt pretty good to be back! I ate 3 cheese burgers and 4 fries, which I didn't even know my stomach could take. HIKER HUNGER IS REAL~

And back out to the trail. Next stop is Big Bear, which I also used to frequent in the winters to ski. I feel like I'm leaving out a bunch of stuff with these longer day updates but oh well~

The hike has been pretty sweet so far! Made it 200 miles out on the trail and I am loving it so far.

Diner brekkie is LAW. Once we got to Big Bear, we had to make sure to go to a proper American diner with bottomless coffee and some country fried steak. We are stoked to be here and to take a zero day after so long. We had just summited San Jac so we are sorely due for a shower, laundry, and town meals.

As I mentioned, I used to come here for short ski trips since it is a 2 hour drive from LA. I ran into so many familiar faces here and got some quality rest.

We hiked out to a nice stream and that concludes my 10 day update. If you want more detailed day to day updates on my progress, feel free to check out my IG: @_danvswild

I am feeling good so far! I've made tons of friends and I've been handing out a bunch of pins to people I meet on the trail. My feet and legs are getting stronger everyday and I am in love with the sense of amity and respect between hikers. I also feel a great deal of freedom and happiness from simply admiring the beauty on this Earth.

mile 133 to Idyllwild - 18.9 miles

Fantastic day today!! I hiked with a buddy the whole day for the first time. I woke up this morning and the tent was v wet 🥲 But I packed it up and starting wading through the brisk morning air. I later ran into Jaise and we planned to hime together to Paradise Valley Cafe (PVC) and hitch our ride into Idyllwild.

I really enjoyed hiking with Jaise. We maintained a similar pace and exchanged pleasant conversations and silences. We pushed through the desert until we stumbled onto a water tank.

This was a high frequency water tank. Very good vibes. I ran into many friends I haven’t seen in a while. After fueling up, Jaise and I realized we had 2 hours to hike 6.5 miles in order to grab a burger at the cafe. We buckled up and pushed real hard and made it to PVC where we got a burger and a quesadilla. Even with my tender tendons, I felt unstoppable today :) Glad to see that my legs are feeling better!

Afterwards, Jaise, Marina, Juan, Clark, and I hitched together to Idyllwild and got a campsite. Jaise and I then headed into the town and we got some bomb ice cream. We also got a cabin for tomorrow night for our first zero day (when you hike 0 mile) ever! Oh after our chill sesh back at the campground, I took a hot shower.

mile 115 to 133.0 - 18.0 miles

Today was the first day I felt really challenged by the trail. I woke up with a bit of knee pain probably from the day before when I sprinted into Warner Springs. But the morning air revitalized me and I stepped back onto the trail. The hike today was not as dramatic as the last few days but I did see a bunch of cool boulders ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

By noon, I had traveled non stop for 9 miles and I decided to make some lunch and pause. I perched under a boulder for some shade and prepared my recently resupplied mountain house. My tummy was satisfied and I was mentally ready to push push 🏎️

I stood up and I felt a sharp pain in my achilles tendon and I couldn’t bear any weight on my left leg. I was so scared that I may have been seriously injured to the point of having to quit the trail. I tried to continue to Mike’s Place, a well known water resupply location 5 miles from my current position. I walked 0.3 more miles and decided to pitch and tent and rest for a bit as to prevent exacerbating the pain. I stayed in the tent for 3 hours and continued slowly afterwards. If the pain was at a 9 before, it was now 8.

I slowly crept up to Mike’s Place and grabbed a beer. There was a bunch of other hikers camping at Mike’s but Breck, Kat and I decided to hike further out for a shorter day tomorrow. We walked for another 5 miles after downing some NSAID and made it to our campground.

I really hope some good rest will fix my tendons 🥲 I still have so much vigor and gas left in my tank!

Montezuma Valley Road to mile 115 - 15.0 miles

I slept a total of 10 hours last night :) I guess I’ve been missing a bed. This morning I woke up and made a huge breakfast in preparation of picking up my first resupply packages in Warner Springs.

I took that one last hot shower until Idyllwild and hitched a ride from Bill back to the trail. I felt so powerful this morning (probably because the trail was pretty flat). I walked swiftly through the fields and pastures to Eagle Rock. Can confirm the rock does indeed look like an eagle, good name!

I headed into Warner Springs to pick up 2 resupply packages! One from my friend and one from @minijeng <3 I got my arcteryx jacket and prepacked snacks from my friend. @minijeng sent me a bunch of Mountain Houses, trail mix, and a tamagotchi, which is perfect for the trail :D Really so so thankful and grateful for this. I had such a rush of happiness from seeing those freeze dried meals with over 700 calories :P I had so much food, I sent my future self a resupply package 150 miles ahead at Big Bear. I also got the famous Mad Mike’s sausage dogs and they were 🔥

I hiked about 5 mile mores through a beautiful meadow just like the one in Microsoft XP. Then I setup camp and hit the bag.

Overall really good day! My knee hurts a bit but I was so happy to be back out in nature and in my tent again :D

Day 6

mile 86.6 to Ranchita - 14.6 miles

It’s been a minute since I’ve actually seen a rainbow this shaped and defined! 🌈 This was a really cool experience but it was an omen to the extremely wet day I was to have.

The morning was as breathtaking as always. I started my hike around 7am and felt super powerful. My pack felt so light that I could run up the mountain. Somehow I decided to hike today without a rain jacket and by the time I reached higher elevations, rain and wind barraged against my skin.

Everything was super wet but I did find joy in signing the trail register. I also found a little cave where I perched for a few minutes to avoid the cold wetness.

I ended my hike early around 11:30am and hitched a ride into Ranchita to a resupply store which also had a motel. I got a room here and was able to take a long hot shower. I felt a bit miserable in the rain but this shower absolved me of all my misery and annoyance.

I was also able to do some laundry and dry/clean all my gear. I don’t know what I would’ve done without this place! My socks and shoes were completely soaked as well as my pants and shirts. Its supposed to be in the 30s tonight! Anyways I’m extremely grateful for this haven.

Ooh I also reached 100 miles on the PCT today

Sunrise Hwy to Julian to mile 86.6 - 13.8 miles

Big day today! I hitched my first ride into Julian today. A very nice fellow named Ryan picked me up and drove me into town :) I got there early around 8 am so I went to a diner and grabbed myself a hearty meal called the PCT power bowl!

As for my blisters, they better be sorry because I got new shoes!!!

After some time in Julian, I hitched my way to Scissors Crossing and walked another 10ish miles. My pack is feeling lighter and lighter and my tent pitch is looking better everyday. It’s supposed to rain tomorrow so wish me luck :3

Mt Laguna to Sunrise Trailhead - 18.3 miles

The days keep getting better and better! Absolutely beautiful hike today, overlooking many mountain ranges. The morning was very cold though. It hailed overnight and all my laundry left outside the tent were frozen solid. But the walk out from Mt Laguna was absolutely stunning

I plan on going into Julian tomorrow and hopefully I can get some new shoes. My feet are nasty right now. On my hike I passed by a memorial of people who passed away and got a bit emotional. in a good way. I hope more days are like this!

Boulder Oaks to Mt Laguna - 15.4 miles

Ah what a beautiful day! Although every day has been pretty magical so far. I started my day early around 6am. I go to bed before the the sky is dark now lol

Temperature was pretty awesome today. I also loved the landscape. Going from rocky mountains to a forest of ponderosa pine. Mm I can still smell the forest of Mt Laguna

I also got to grab some real food at a nearby lodge with other hikers :) The campground is very nice and I love that all the PCT hikers are camping together!

so here we go!

Day 2

mile 11.4 to Boulder Oaks - 14.6 miles

Day 2 was very enjoyable and magical! I hiked to Lake Morena and tumbled into my first trail magic. Trail magic is put together for hikers by volunteers and there are charging stations, good food, and a place to rest for weary souls. I met a bunch of people here and Worthy, a middle school teacher, gave me a note written by his class.

I thought this note felt threatening as if to say that if I quit, I am the biggest loser lol I appreciated the note!

I’m dumping films from my instagram account (@_danvswild) since posting on two different platforms is proving to be very difficult lol

Day 1

Southern Terminus to mile 11.4 - 11.4 miles

Okay so I started my trail on 04/29th around noon!

Hey folks! My name is Dan and I used to work for Tumblr. I quit my job about 10 days ago to prepare and commit myself to a long distance thru hike. Welcome to my hiking Tumblr 🎉🎉🎉

Here we go! It's T minus 4 days until the beginning of my Pacific Crest Trail thru hike. I will be blogging and documenting my journey on the trail. I suppose I will try to publish my posts every time I go into a trail town.

Gear List

Let's break down the gear I will be starting with!

Big 3 (pack, shelter, sleeping bag)

Durston Kakwa 40 - I will be carrying a 40L backpack this time. I've added some patches with fabric glue to personalize it a little bit (◕‿◕✿)

Enlightened Equiptment Enigma 20F Quilt

Durston Gears X-Mid Pro 1 - best lightweight trekking pole tents imo

Sleeping Pad - Klymit Insulated V UL SL

Water Filtration

Smart Water Bottle 1L x 4

Sawyer Squeeze <3

Kitchen

Jetboil Stash

Fuel Cannister

Utensils

Bic lighter

Toiletries

Nail Clipper

Wet Wipes

Toothbrush/Toothpaste

Sunscreen

Chafing Balm

Trowel

Lip Balm

First Aid Kit/Duct Tape/Meds

Clothing

Smart Wool Socks x 2

Arcteryx Synthetic

Arcteryx Atom Shell

Patagonia Wind Pants

Leggings

Baseball Cap

Underwear x 2

Hiking Shorts

Patagonia Sun Hoodie

T-shirt x 2

STUFF

Apple EarPods

iPhone 11 Pro

Garmin Inreach Mini 2 - satellite transmitter

Nitecore UL Headlamp

Nitecore UL 10000 mAh Powerbank x 2

Sony ZV-1 & UL tripod

Journal & Pen

UL Sea2Summit Pillow

Bug Net

Microspikes

There may be a few I'm leaving out of this list but ^ gives you a general sense of what I will be carrying. Here's also a link to my lighter pack

Base weight is currently just under 14 lbs! As reference, I am 5'7 130 lbs

Section 1: Southern California

The Southern Californian portion of the trail is dominated by desert landscapes with a few mountain passes. Socal saw record snow fall this year so I hope water resupply in this section won't be as big of an issue!

The following are all the trail towns I will be visiting in this section. For the sake of simplicity, all trail towns up to Kennedy Meadows South or KMS will be part of socal.

My friends back in NYC will be sending me resupply packages as I go. Currently, I'm reading Pacific Crest Trials which I am finding to be very interesting in terms of mental preparation for the thru hike.

My friend Kevin will be driving me down to Campo, the southern terminus of the trail on the 29th!

I'm feeling pretty good about this and as prepared as I can be!!! I also reached out to a manufacturer to make pins I could give out to fellow hikers on the trail. I've learned from music festivals that pins are a great way to make friends :3

It's just a simple design of the PCT trail marker but it came out looking very nice!

Intentions & Goals

I read this book called 'Start With Why' with one of my previous coworker and I thought defining my "why"s for the trail will help tremendously. I know I will have really tough days and days when I want to just quit and go back to the comforts of society. Here is my unpolished "why" for the PCT that I memoed on my phone:

I am doing this for to remind myself that I can do anything I put my mind to. This year, my friend passed away and I was reminded that life is fleeting and I need to live pursuing what I want more vigorously. Postponing happiness until retirement is a flawed life approach! I've always wanted to this and I would like to take this time to figure out what I really want to do in this life and where I want to end up. I am trying to live with more intentionality and I'm working towards a real goal I've set for myself and doing this out of my own joy.

I am hiking the PCT because:

I need time to evaluate what I want to do with my life and career

The PCT has always been a larger than life adventure that I wanted to do

Life is short and I should take every chance I get to pursue what I want to do in life

I have the rest of my life to excel in my career

I want to experience true freedom and self sufficiency

I want to prove to myself I can do anything I set my mind to

Well here we go and I will try to post updates on my epic as I go :D