PCT Long-distance Permit Gear Checklist
A Pacific Crest Trail thru-hike is one permit and four different gear problems: desert sun, Sierra snow and bear rules, mosquito country, and food-storage rules that change in Washington. The Forest Service says the long-distance permit covers a single continuous trip of 500 or more miles. Hikers who finished write that the Sierra is where the rules and the weight change, with a canister required in places, an ice axe carried by most, and traction for the stream-crossing days. They also say most of what they sent home was comfort items.
What shapes your gear on Pacific Crest Trail
- Who needs the long-distance permit
- The Forest Service says a hiker or rider planning 500 or more miles in one continuous trip can get an interagency PCT Long-distance Permit from the Pacific Crest Trail Association. It also tells hikers to check with each national forest about local passes and permits.
From USDA Forest Service
- Where the canister starts
- The Class of 2025 survey says northbound hikers must carry a bear canister north of Lone Pine, and most pick one up at Kennedy Meadows. A guide for the trail says most northbound hikers drop the canister at Sonora Pass or Echo Summit.
From Halfway Anywhere: Pacific Crest Trail Gear Guide (2025 Survey) and Halfway Anywhere: PCT Bear Canister Requirements
- Yosemite food storage
- Yosemite requires food, trash, toiletries and scented items to be stored in an allowed bear-resistant container or a food locker, and hanging food is illegal. The park says lockers exist only at designated campsites in Little Yosemite Valley and by the five High Sierra Camps.
- Washington is different
- A guide to the trail's food rules says the national forests in Washington accept food hung at least 10 feet up and 4 feet from the tree. If that is impossible, an IGBC-certified container is required, which the guide says includes Ursack models. The rule differs from the Sierra.
- A typical starting pack
- The 2025 survey reports an average starting base weight of 17.76 pounds across 790 respondents and an average sleeping bag or quilt temperature limit of 18.7 degrees F. Snowpack that year was average for the Sierra.
From Halfway Anywhere: Pacific Crest Trail Gear Guide (2025 Survey)
What the agency requires on Pacific Crest Trail
A bear-resistant container in Yosemite
Food, trash, toiletries and every scented item must be inside an allowed bear-resistant container or a food locker in Yosemite. Hanging food is illegal there. A container must stay closed and locked, even while you are near camp.
The long-distance permit on trips of 500 miles or more
A single continuous trip of 500 or more miles falls under the PCT Long-distance Permit, issued through the Pacific Crest Trail Association.
From USDA Forest Service
What hikers carry on Pacific Crest Trail
A bear canister from the southern Sierra to Sonora Pass or Echo Summit
Over 60 percent of the Class of 2025 used one popular canister model, and only four reported carrying a canister for the whole trail. A thru-hiker who finished in 2015 said a bear bag was silly outside the required sections, and mice climbed right into hers.
From Halfway Anywhere: Pacific Crest Trail Gear Guide (2025 Survey) and REI Co-op Journal
A water filter, not chemical treatment
The 2025 survey says 97.6 percent of hikers used a squeeze, gravity or pump filter, and the author wrote that filtering is essential on this trail because Giardia is miserable. Boiling every liter, the author wrote, would take too much time and gas.
From Halfway Anywhere: Pacific Crest Trail Gear Guide (2025 Survey)
An ice axe and the skill to use it
In 2025, 60.7 percent carried an ice axe in an average snow year, and about half used microspikes for traction. Advice from the class of 2025 includes learning self-arrest first. One respondent saw many people hold the axe wrong in a glissade or carry it without a leash.
From Halfway Anywhere: Pacific Crest Trail Gear Guide (2025 Survey) and Halfway Anywhere: Pacific Crest Trail Hiking Advice from the Class of 2025
Waterproof socks for Sierra snowmelt days
A hiker on a second PCT trip wore waterproof socks in the Sierra and liked them, though water above the cuff ruins the benefit. He notes there is usually at least one major stream crossing a day, unless the snow year is small.
From Halfway Anywhere: Complete Final PCT Gear List, Round Two
A head net for mosquito country
The second-trip hiker wears a head net deep in mosquito country and says looks do not matter. A 2015 hiker lost a week to mosquitoes in the High Sierra in an open-faced bivy.
From Halfway Anywhere: Complete Final PCT Gear List, Round Two and REI Co-op Journal
Sun cover for the desert and the snow
The second-trip hiker chose a hooded long-sleeve merino shirt and polarized sunglasses for desert sun, altitude and snow glare.
From Halfway Anywhere: Complete Final PCT Gear List, Round Two
A pack liner that keeps everything dry
The second-trip hiker lined the pack with a compactor bag and said gear stayed dry through extended rain early in the hike.
From Halfway Anywhere: Complete Final PCT Gear List, Round Two
A satellite messenger or beacon
In 2025, 90.7 percent of hikers carried one, and the survey author calls hiking without one borderline irresponsible. A 2015 hiker had a texting GPS device weighing nearly half a pound and wished she had left it home.
From Halfway Anywhere: Pacific Crest Trail Gear Guide (2025 Survey) and REI Co-op Journal
Going as a group? Split this list between you so nobody carries two stoves.
Plan a trip hereWhat hikers regret or leave behind on Pacific Crest Trail
A bear bag outside the canister sections
A 2015 hiker used a canister where required and found the bag silly elsewhere, because mice got into the open top.
From REI Co-op Journal
A big water reservoir with a hose
The same 2015 hiker was afraid of running dry in the desert, never did, and drank only from external bottles so the hose went unused.
From REI Co-op Journal
Gaiters, a silk liner and a town dress
The 2015 hiker got as much sand in her shoes with gaiters as without, tossed a silk bag liner, and said a rain-gear laundromat outfit worked fine instead of a dress.
From REI Co-op Journal
A sleeping bag that was warm on paper only
She bought a bag labeled for men to 15 degrees, then read the tag on trail and found the women's limit was 31 degrees. She bought a quilt instead. Class of 2025 hikers advise insulation for cold nights.
From REI Co-op Journal and Halfway Anywhere: Pacific Crest Trail Hiking Advice from the Class of 2025
Heavy gear lists and untested kit
Respondents in 2025 advised going lighter, putting effort into shoes, and testing equipment on a week-long trip before the big one. They also expect some pieces to break and need replacing on the trail.
From Halfway Anywhere: Pacific Crest Trail Hiking Advice from the Class of 2025
Gear questions for Pacific Crest Trail
Do I need a permit to thru-hike the Pacific Crest Trail?
A continuous trip of 500 or more miles uses the PCT Long-distance Permit from the Pacific Crest Trail Association. The Forest Service also tells hikers to check each national forest for local passes and permits.
From USDA Forest Service
Do I need a bear canister for the Pacific Crest Trail?
In the Sierra, yes in practice. Yosemite requires a container and bans hanging food. The 2025 survey says northbound hikers must carry one north of Lone Pine, and a trail guide says most drop it at Sonora Pass or Echo Summit. Washington forests accept hanging within set heights.
From National Park Service, Yosemite National Park, Halfway Anywhere: Pacific Crest Trail Gear Guide (2025 Survey) and Halfway Anywhere: PCT Bear Canister Requirements
Do I need an ice axe on the Pacific Crest Trail?
It depends on the snow year and your start date. In 2025, an average snow year, 60.7 percent of hikers carried an axe and about half used microspikes. Respondents who started early warned about winter storms and said to know how to use the axe.
From Halfway Anywhere: Pacific Crest Trail Gear Guide (2025 Survey) and Halfway Anywhere: Pacific Crest Trail Hiking Advice from the Class of 2025
What water treatment do Pacific Crest Trail hikers use?
Nearly all use a filter. The 2025 survey found 97.6 percent used a squeeze, gravity or pump device, and only 2.4 percent used chemicals or UV. The author says boiling all water is unrealistic over such a long hike.
From Halfway Anywhere: Pacific Crest Trail Gear Guide (2025 Survey)
How heavy is a typical Pacific Crest Trail pack?
The 2025 class reported an average starting base weight of 17.76 pounds before food, water and consumables. Respondents later advised going lighter, with enough insulation for cold nights.
From Halfway Anywhere: Pacific Crest Trail Gear Guide (2025 Survey) and Halfway Anywhere: Pacific Crest Trail Hiking Advice from the Class of 2025
Sources
- Passes and Permits, Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail · USDA Forest Service · Agency
- Bears and Food Storage While Backpacking · National Park Service, Yosemite National Park · Agency
- Pacific Crest Trail Gear Guide (2025 Survey) · Halfway Anywhere, Tyler Fox · Blog
- Pacific Crest Trail Hiking Advice from the Class of 2025 · Halfway Anywhere, Tyler Fox · Blog
- PCT Bear Canister Requirements · Halfway Anywhere, Tyler Fox · Blog
- Complete Final PCT Gear List, Round Two · Halfway Anywhere, Tyler Fox · Blog
- PCT Gear List: What I Brought But Didn't Need · REI Co-op Journal, Aer Parris · Blog