Overall PCT Day 119

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2026 PCT Day 3, 17 August 2026 (Monday)

Overall PCT Day 119

"Pacific Cow Trail (PCT)"

 

Start Location:	PCT Mi. 1554.3	Destination:	PCT Mi. 1582.6
PCT Miles Day 119:	28.3	Cum PCT Miles:	2137.1
Non-PCT Miles Day 119:	0	Cum All Miles:	2335.55
PCT Miles Remaining:	510.2
Elevation Gain Day 119:	3895	Cum Elevation Gain:	378,249

 

I was about 25 minutes faster this morning packing up than I was yesterday. So that’s progress.

The trail was very hard today, lots of obstacles, lots of rocky, uneven trail, lots of deep loose sand on steep slopes, and lots of downed trees. I only ran into one other hiker today and it was actually a girl from Belgium going north. A little bit of a rarity as most of the PCTers I see on this part of the trail are going south.

I had another unusual for me, and what I hope is temporary issue today. My right knee was getting stiff, so much so that it was slowing my progress. I’m hoping this is just one of those temporary things that will work itself out, like most other physical issues I’ve had on trail. Really, how can you hike 51 miles in the first two days on a trail carrying a backpack with all your gear and 15 pounds of food and not feel it somewhere in your body. Dealing with discomfort is the price of admission for doing hikes like this.

Even with the stiff knee, today I felt a subtle shift into hiking terminator mode. Terminator mode is when you feel like almost nothing is going to stop you from reaching your goal. You become relentless. The question is in these first few days, is it going to be Terminator 1 which is easier to vanquish or slow down, or Terminator 2 which is much harder to stop. Or the alternative theory is that my pack is lighter and the trail was easier today. I think it’s a tossup as to which of these explanations holds up better under the theory of Occam’s razor.

There were some bothersome cattle on and near the trail today. I don’t know if it’s a requirement in this area, but all of the cattle seem to wear bells. And when I got to them this morning, I could only see a couple at first, but there was a racket of cowbell clanging. This meant, of course, that there were many more that I couldn’t see because they were hidden by the dense brush and trees. Because so many of them were hidden, I had to be cautious with my approach up the trail. I was keeping one eye on the trail up in front of me, and one eye continually looking for a place to get behind to protect myself if needed. These cattle, like the ones I saw in the High Sierra in 2022, didn’t seem particularly happy that I was near them. Eventually, I was able to get past them and then continue hiking normally. I think caution is best around these large animals. Getting hit by one of them is not how I want my PCT hike to end. If I’m going to be killed by a bull, I want it to be on the streets of Pamplona, Spain, not the PCT.

I could have done another 10 x 10 today if I hadn’t brushed my teeth after eating breakfast. However, I think four out of five dentists would approve my choice.

Phone Battery: 62%

Uh oh, cows!  And I hear a lot more hiding in the tress and bushes that I can't see.

Marble Mountains...I think

Somewhat typical trail today

A better view of the Marble Mountains

Mosquito Lake Outlet...a good water source

Big Marshy Lake

Starting to get to some burn areas.  This is the one that prevented me from completing California in 2022.

First wildflowers I've seen...Wild Buckwheat

Fireweed

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