It wasn’t easy deciding which backpack/sleeping bag/shelter I’d like to carry on my hike. I made many comparisons between different manufacturers and tried to pick out the best gear I can afford.

I first heard about the PCT while thru-hiking the Appalachian Trail in 2002. I recall being in the 501 shelter, meeting up with Bag of Tricks and (I think) Woody Woodpecker while cooking myself some dinner on my cat stove. Woody was telling me about his PCT hike in the previous year - how you have to watch out for Grizzly bears, cook away from your sleeping location, cross snow covered mountain passes. I liked the stories, but I haven’t thought much about the PCT back then. I was still a long way off from Katahdin, the northern end of the AT.