Hiking the 7,910-Mile Triple Crown of American Trails: David Getchel’s Quest

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This is a quest case study. (Read others or nominate yourself.)

Earlier this week, David Getchel began the second leg of his three part quest to hike the Triple Crown of American trails: the Pacific Crest Trail, the Appalachian Trail, and the Continental Divide Trail. Here's how it all began—and what's coming next.

I'm Dave, and I call Northern California home. Originally, my quest was to hike the Pacific Crest Trail (affectionately named the PCT ), a 2,650 mile trail spanning California, Oregon and Washington. Starting near San Diego I hiked through desert, lush forests and mountain ranges, encountering all types of weather. The PCT ends at the US/Canadian border. Most people hike for 4-6 months. There's a little bit of everything: alpine lakes miles from any road, long stretches without reliable water sources, and wide ranging wildlife. But while on the PCT, I decided to tackle the Triple Crown which includes the 2,160 mile Appalachian Trail, a 2,160 mile and the 3,100 Continental Divide Trail.

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