The Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) is a 2,653-mile long-distance hiking and equestrian trail running from the Mexico–United States border near Campo, California, to the Canada–US border in Washington, passing through California, Oregon and Washington.
Designated a National Scenic Trail in 1968 and completed in 1993, the PCT closely follows the highest portions of the Cascade and Sierra Nevada mountain ranges, between 100 and 150 miles east of the Pacific coast. The route traverses 25 national forests and seven national parks, ranging in elevation from roughly 110 feet above sea level near the Bridge of the Gods on the Oregon–Washington border to 13,153 feet at Forester Pass in the Sierra Nevada, with a cumulative elevation gain of approximately 489,000 feet. Its midpoint lies near Chester, California, where the Sierra and Cascade ranges meet. Originally conceived by Clinton Churchill Clarke in 1932, the trail forms one leg of the Triple Crown of Hiking alongside the Appalachian Trail and the Continental Divide Trail, and is part of the 6,875-mile Great Western Loop.
