2 Nerds 1 Trail

Well, we did it. We walked from Mexico to Canada. In the coming months I’m sure I’ll hear hundreds of questions along the lines of “how was the hike?” from people expecting a quick answer. As you might expect, there’s…

California reminds me of an old rabbi or sage, providing numerous trials and tribulations to make sure we were actually committed to hiking the PCT. We had to survive 700 bone-dry miles through the desert before being thrust into the…

While hiking 130 days and over 2600 miles, we’ve come up with some interesting questions that we pondered on the trail. Since getting back into civilization, we’ve had some time to compile the data and look up answers on the…

So there we were. One state down, two to go. Every PCT hiker hears horror stories about the “green tunnel” of Oregon, where you hike for days without seeing anything beyond the walls of trees lining both sides of the…

Well, the title says it all. When we last posted, we were just shy of the halfway mark – around 1300 miles into the trail. In the couple weeks since then, we’ve covered around 750 miles. Due to scheduling constraints…

We’re sitting on the steps of the general store in Sierra City waiting for a UPS package after hiking our first 30 mile day, so we’ve got plenty of time to describe our most recent adventures and stories. We arrived…

“And from the eastern boundary of this vast golden flower-bed rose the mighty Sierra, miles in height, and so gloriously colored and so radiant, it seemed not clothed with light but wholly composed of it, like the wall of some…

The number of thru hikers on the PCT is difficult to ascertain since so many either drop out or don’t apply for permits, but the Pacific Crest Trail Association estimates that between 300 and 500 people applied for long distance permits…

I’m writing this post from the vast porch of the Kennedy Meadows general store, where we’re currently wrapping up our third zero day of the trail. Drinking cold beer and surrounded by other hikers, the anticipation is palpable- we’ve made…

I started writing this post on a computer from the Wrightwood Public Library, and am finishing it up from Hiker Heaven in Agua Dulce, at mile 454 of the PCT. The Saufley’s, retired trail angels dedicating their lives to help out…

I, the hiker formerly known as Nick, shall now go by Roadkill, he who sleeps in roads and smells like something scraped off the interstate two weeks ago. Well, it’s official. I have a “trail name.” Due to my propensity for…

Here are a few pics from Deep Creek Hot Springs this last week, after climbing out of the I10 valley and passing through the town of Big Bear Lake to resupply. Morale is still high and we’re loving the hike.…

Warning: I’m writing this message in a tiny two person tent, with enough foot odor to intoxicate an entire army, so my apologies in advance if this entry is a bit loopy. Also, I have no idea what the seven…

What’s the difference between the desert and the surface of Mars? One has almost-hospitable temperatures and maybe even water, and the other is full of cactus. I’ve always considered the desert to be a hot, dry, desolate wasteland consisting of…

The day has finally come that we’ve packed our bags and boxes, finished the last minute detains by crossing the i’s and dotting the t’s… We spent the morning printing topo maps on waterproof Rite in the Rain paper, labeling…

After purchasing $1500 of food from WinCo, Costco, Walmart.com, and Cash & Carry, we spent the past three days placing all our bulk food into small plastic bags to be sent to us on the trail. We’ve put together 20…