Daniel Woods' 2009 PCT Hike - Epilog

Twentynine Palms, CA
September 1, 10:00 AM

This is the final report on the 2009 PCT hike.

We left the motel near the Canadian Border at abut 9:00 on Friday morning. We had decided the day before to go home down the East Side instead of grinding it out on I-5 for 13-1400 miles. I had the bright idea of going home through Boise so we started out in that general direction, towards southeast Washington. It was a hot miserable day and after several hundred miles I realized I just wanted to go home and Dan did not object so we took Highway 395 south from Pendleton, OR instead of I-84 to Boise.

We covered almost 700 miles that day 90% on 2 lane mountain roads. We ended up in Alturas, CA, where we got a room and a mini-mart dinner (all that was open). The next morning we took Highway 299 to Redding where Dan finally got the In-N-Out burger he has wanted all summer. We then took I-5, 505, I-80, 680 and 880 back to his home in Newark, CA. I left there about 5:00 after we attempted to dig all his stuff out of the car and drove home arriving at 1:30 Sunday morning. It was a 900-mile day.

Dan is doing well. He lost 22 pounds (from 184 to 172) but is otherwise unscathed. I am sure he will enjoy eating the weight back on.

Dan took 6-8 hours of video and is planning to prepare a DVD of his hike. Hopefully we will be able to share this with those of you who are interested.

Dan has made a donation to the PCT Trail Maintenance Fund administered by the Pacific Crest Trail Association (www.pcta.org) and has asked me to put the arm on all of you for donations. This fund is used to maintain the 2663 miles of the PCT. Volunteers supply much of the labor but there are many expenses associated with the task as well.

If any of you are interested in donating (please feel no obligation to do so), you can send a check to:

PCTA
P.O. Box 39000
Dept. 134137
San Francisco, CA
94139-0001

Note on the check:

Dan Woods 2009 Thru-Hike Donation

Dave