Welcome to the Pacific Crest Trail Reassessment Initiative’s “Sharing the PCT” page.
The Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail (PCT) is a 2,663 mile, non-motorized, publicly owned recreational trail running from Mexico to Canada along the crest of the mountains in California, Oregon, and Washington. In 1988, the United States Forest Service (USFS) instituted a closure order banning the use of bicycles on the entire PCT. Since 2010, a growing number of members from the cycling and trails community have been working with USFS to reconsider the decision and potentially allow bicyclists to enjoy portions of the PCT that are outside federally designated Wilderness areas (where separate rules disallow bicycles). As early as 2013, the USFS will begin taking comments from the public about this effort.
The purpose of this website is to provide information about the trail and our initiative as well as guidance about how and when to get involved.
The PCT is loved by many, and for many different reasons. Whether your goal is adventure, solitude, exercise, physical achievement, freedom or time travel, the PCT can deliver it all. Understandably, trail users have deep personal, emotional and even spiritual connections to the trail and to the lands that surround it. “My trail” is a sentiment often expressed by PCT trail users and we think that people’s sense of ownership and deep care for the trail’s welfare are critical to the PCT’s future. But the PCT is nevertheless a public trail that belongs to the entire community of quiet, non-motorized travelers, including cyclists, and it is our shared responsibility to see that it is managed effectively, fairly, sustainably and in the spirit it was intended.
