{"id":5135,"date":"2015-09-27T10:45:37","date_gmt":"2015-09-27T16:45:37","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/adventureswithinreach.com\/travel\/?p=5135"},"modified":"2015-12-10T15:19:50","modified_gmt":"2015-12-10T22:19:50","slug":"awr-dean-paschall-finishes-the-pct","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/adventureswithinreach.com\/travel\/2015\/09\/27\/awr-dean-paschall-finishes-the-pct\/","title":{"rendered":"AWR’s Dean Paschall Finishes the PCT!"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Dean9r<\/a>Dean Paschall, of AWR, finished hiking the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) on September 12, 2015.\u00a0 It took 150 days, just under 5 months, which was better than his expected 5 1\/2 months.\u00a0 He thru-hiked the PCT from Mexico to Canada for a total of 2650 miles, starting on April 16, 2015.<\/p>\n

“Adventures Within Reach was so honored to sponsor this amazing adventure.\u00a0 We are so excited that Dean made it to the finish and in great style,” said Robin Paschall, President of Adventures Within Reach<\/a>. “It was much more challenging than any of us imagined.\u00a0 He had to overcome physical challenges, bad weather, and forest fires.\u00a0 While this adventure is not “within reach” for most people, it exemplifies adventure travel with activity, culture, and nature.\u00a0 It has been inspiring to watch his progress along the way.”<\/p>\n

Dean describes his experience:<\/p>\n

\"IMG_0058\"<\/a>“The first part of the Pacific Crest Trail is in the desert in southern California.\u00a0 Some days were so hot, I had to hike at night in cooler temps to preserve precious water resources.\u00a0 This section was particular hard because water was so scarce.\u00a0 In some cases, 42 miles between natural water resources which meant I had to carry a lot of extra weight in water, up to 8 liters or 16 lbs in water alone.\u00a0 This made trip planning critical to make sure I preserved enough water to reach the next source.\u00a0 However, some nights in the desert were also extremely cold, I encountered more snow in the mountains of the desert than in the high peaks of the Sierra.<\/p>\n

\"IMG_0280\"<\/a>“The second section of the hike was in the Sierra Mountains in California also known as the John Muir Trail.\u00a0 This was one of my favorite sections because I am very familiar with this area from my years as a back-country ranger in Yosemite.\u00a0 It was also exciting to summit Mt. Whitney [At 14,505 feet, Mt. Whitney is the highest point in the continental U.S.].<\/p>\n

“Oregon was made difficult because all the nearby forest fires.\u00a0 I was\u00a0 often forced to hike with my bandanna over my face because of all the smoke and ash in the air.<\/p>\n

\"IMG_0380\"<\/a>“Although it was intensely beautiful, from very my first steps into Washington, it started to rain and snow didn’t seem to stop until the week before I finished.<\/p>\n

“Although my life on the trail consisted of waking up at 4:45am every morning,\u00a0 hiking a marathon (20+ miles), finding a place to sleep at dusk, and getting up the next day to do it again, there was never a day when I would not feel like hiking.\u00a0 I saw remote wilderness areas that few people ever get to see, but probably the best part of the hike were the many amazing people I met along the way — new friends for life.\u00a0 It was the most challenging and yet the most satisfying physical endeavor I could have ever imagined.”<\/p>\n

\"20150914-pct-return-dean-robin-2\"<\/a>Dean returned home from Canada on September 14, 2015.<\/p>\n

“It was great to be able to able to meet and congratulate him when he returned home from this great adventure!” said Robin. “He lost about 30 pounds, but he looked good and was in great spirits.”<\/p>\n

Dean will giving presentations on his trek this winter in Boulder, Colorado and in Sun Valley, Idaho.<\/p>\n

\"Dean<\/a>His Blog follows his progress along the trail.<\/p>\n