Hike the Pacific Crest Trail with a Cicerone guidebook

• Location
• Description
• Contents
• Introduction
• Maps
• Updates
• Reviews
• Further Reading

Other guidebooks and handbooks

The John Muir Trail Guide, Alan Castle (Cicerone, 2004, updated 2010)
Covers Yosemite Valley to Whitney Portal.
www.cicerone.co.uk

The Pacific Crest Trail (three volumes), Ben Schirfin, Thomas Winnett, Jeffrey Schaffer, Ruby Johnson Jenkins and Andy Selters (Wilderness Press, 1973, updated 2003)
A comprehensive guidebook in three heavy volumes with black and white 1:50,000 maps.

Pacific Crest Trail Data Book, Benedict ‘Gentle Ben’ Go (Wilderness Press, 1997, updated 2005)
Summarises the information in the guidebooks.
www.wildernesspress.com

The PCT Hiker’s Handbook, Ray Jardine (AdventureLore Press, 1992)
Advice on hiking the PCT with an emphasis on ultra-lightweight hiking and high daily mileages.

Trail Life: Ray Jardine’s Lightweight Backpacking, Ray Jardine (AdventureLore, 2009)
The latest incarnation of Jardine’s PCT Hiker’s Handbook benefits from the experience of thousands of additional trail miles.
www.adventurelore.com

Yogi’s PCT Handbook, Jackie ‘Yogi’ McDonnell (self-published)
Provides the most comprehensive information on towns as well as other trail information (no maps).
www.pcthandbook.com

Pacific Crest Trail Atlas, Erik Asorson (Blackwoods Press, second edition, 2010)
A set of PCT maps in five expensive volumes with brief notes on the route.
www.pctatlas.com

Pocket PCT, Paul Bodnar (self-published, 2009)
Elevation guide to the PCT in three small volumes, with limited water and resupply information.
http://hikethru.com

Natural History

The Laws Field Guide to the Sierra Nevada, John Muir Laws (Heyday Books, 2007)
A superb guide to the fauna and flora of the Sierra Nevada.

Sierra Birds: A Hiker’s Guide, John Muir Laws (Heyday Books, 2004)
www.johnmuirlaws.com

National Geographic Field Guide to the Birds of North America, Jon L. Dunn and Jonathan Alderfer (National Geographic Society, 2006)

National Geographic Field Guide to the Trees of North America, Charles Hollis and Keith Rushforth (National Geographic Society, 2006)
http://shop.nationalgeographic.com

Books by PCT hikers

A Thru-Hiker’s Heart, ‘No Way Ray’ Echols (Tuolumne Press, 2009)
A collection of tales from the PCT.

Zero Days, Barbara Egbert (Wilderness Press, 2008)
Tells the story of the thru’-hike by 10-year-old Mary ‘Scrambler’ Chambers, with her parents Barbara Egbert and Gary Chambers

Soul, Sweat and Survival on the Pacific Crest Trail, Bob Holtel (Bittersweet Publishing Co, 1994, Essence Publishing, 2007)
Tells the story of his solo run of the PCT, over three summers.

Along the Pacific Crest Trail, Karen Berger and Bart Smith (Westcliffe Publishers, 1998)
A coffee-table book with superb photographs from a PCT hike.

A Blistered Kind of Love: One Couple’s Trial by Trail, Angela and Duffy Ballard (Mountaineers Books, 2003)
A humorous account of a young couple’s PCT hike.

Walking Down a Dream: Mexico to Canada on Foot, Natasha Carver (self-published, 2003)
A humorous account of a PCT thru’-hike.