Show Me the Money: The Cost of Thru-hiking the Pacific Crest Trail

How much people spend on a thru-hike can vary based on a number of factors such as how much gear you already own, what off trail expenses you have, and how much are you willing to spend in towns. When I thru-hiked the Appalachian Trail in 2013 I failed to keep solid records of what I spent. This time around Mara and I want to change that. It's not only helpful for us but also for other prospective thru-hikers.

At the end of the hike (assuming we finish) we'll post a much more detailed look at our expenses. For now, our estimate is that this thru-hike will take 5 months and cost $22,055. What!? How is that possible!? Let's break it down. The majority of the costs fall into 4 categories which are:

1. Off Trail Expenses

These are the regular living expenses incurred while on the trail. For us they include mortgage, car insurance, expenses for my business, student loans and cell phones. Luckily we won't be paying our house utilities or all of our mortgage because my sister, Angela, lives with us and will be covering those costs. Our off trail expenses for 5 months breaks down as follows:

Total: $5,030

2. Transportation

This includes transportation to and from the trail. To get to the trail we decided to drive from Kalamazoo to San Diego with a rental car. There's a slight detour involved in Santa Fe, NM where Mara will be officiating a friend's mountain top wedding 3 days before our start date. This is one of the main reasons we decided to drive. Once we finish the trail (crossing fingers) we'll need to get from Manning Park, Canada to Portland where we'll stay for 3-4 nights so we can visit friends and family.

Could we have done this cheaper? Absolutely. However, the majority of our transportation costs will be covered by credit card points.

Total: $2,365

3. On Trail Expenses

On trail expenses are the expenses you incur while on the trail. They fall into 5 categories which are:

I could try to estimate what we spend in each of these categories but truthfully I don't have a good enough idea to do that. Instead, I'm estimating how much it will cost per mile. Other hikers have estimated an average thru-hike costs $2/per mile. To be on the safe side, I'm estimating it will be $2.30/ per mile which would be 2(2650) * 2.30 = 12190.

Total: $12,190

4. Gear

We've been in the process of buying gear for the PCT for about a year. We do have leftover gear from the Appalachian Trail that will be used on the PCT as well. Those items include my backpack, sleeping bag, stove, camera, headlamp, knife, spork, and dry sacks.

The list below represents what we have already purchased for the PCT. Unfortunately, it by no means is complete. Mara still needs a sleeping bag and some clothes. I still need a sleeping pad and almost all of my clothes. We both need trekking poles. I would say we still need about $1,000-$1,500 worth of gear.

Total: $970 + another $1,500

Conclusion

This sounds like a lot of money. It is a lot of money. But when we add up our usual monthly expenses, it's actually not that far away from these hike numbers. The biggest difference is that Mara and I won't be working for these 5+ months, so the money is only going out. 

And these numbers just represent our current over-estimates. There are ways we can and will get these expenses lowered. Our car insurance can get dropped down to parked car insurance. We might find that our shoes can be limped along for 150 miles longer than we thought, or find some great deals on gear. While in town we could only order 2 pizzas instead of 3, and we'll stop eating our resupply food in the motel room, eliminating the need to go shopping twice in one day (yes, that has happened before). 

When we get our gear finalized, we'll put together a spread sheet with all the costs and other details. And of course, when we get back from the hike, Mara and I will try to figure out exactly what we spent and where we spent it.