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TIL the Pacific Crest Trail gets 10 times more permits than the Appalachian Trail
I was reading the PCTA's annual report last night and saw that they hand out around 7,000 long distance permits a year, but the ATC only issues about 700 for thru hikes. That blew my mind because everyone talks about the AT like it's the overcrowded one. I know the AT has way more day hikers and section hikers, but for pure thru hike permit numbers, it is not even close. Is it just because the PCT is more famous now with all the social media attention, or are the desert miles actually that popular? Has anyone else noticed how the trail crowds have shifted in the last 5 years?
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dakotab271mo ago
Damn, that stat is wild when you put it like that. I remember scrolling thru instagram during covid and every other post was someone on the PCT, all those desert sunsets and the Sierra snow pics just blew up. Meanwhile the AT folks are just posting wet boots and shelter mice, lol. I hiked the AT back in 2019 and the permit thing was basically a joke, you just showed up and walked. But my buddy did the PCT last year and said he had to plan his start date like a wedding, had backups and everything. Feels like the PCT got this whole mystique now, like it's the harder, more scenic, more gram-worthy trail, so everyone wants a piece of it. The crowds definitely shifted, I see way more PCT stickers on cars around town than AT ones these days.
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danieljenkins1mo ago
@dakotab27 nailed it, social media made the PCT the cool kid and AT feels like the old reliable now, wild shift.
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