Red tape & paperwork

There is some paperwork to be done before hiking the PCT. Not that much in fact, and it’s fairly simple, but the different formalities need to follow a certain order because some of them require having completed the others before they can be started. I give you the list of those formalities here, but more importantly I give you the SEQUENCE you need to follow. Obviously what I’m addressing here is only the admin stuff directly linked with hiking the PCT. Whatever you need to do at a personal level (taking a break from your job, gathering the money, subletting or leaving your house etc.) is entirely up to you and depends on your specific case, so I won’t talk about it.

Here’s the sequence at a glance, then I’ll give you the details of each step:

  1. For non-US citizens only: having a valid passport
  2. For non-US citizens only: getting a visa to stay in the US for more than 3 months
  3. Getting a thru-hiking permit
  4. Buying plane tickets
  5. Getting a Canada PCT entry permit
  6. Booking acomodation in San Diego
  7. Downloading the California fire permit
  8. Buying an insurance policy for your adventure
  1. Having a passport that is valid for the complete duration of your stay in the US.
  2. Getting a visa to stay in the US for more than 3 months
    Unless you are a very, very fast hiker and you plan to complete your thru-hike in less than 3 months, in and out of the US including your time in San Diego, you are going to stay on American territory for over 90 days. Consequently, the simple ESTA procedure for stays under 90 days doesn’t apply and you’ll need to apply for a long-term touristic visa (or what the American custom administration calls a non-immigrant visa).
    What you’re looking for is a B2 visa. It allows you to stay in the US for leisure or for medical tourism for up to 6 months. You need to apply online and schedule an interview at the American Consulate nearest to your home. If at the end of the interview the visa is granted to you, the cost is 120€ (when I applied in 2018 I paid this sum directly at the Consulate, but apparently this has changed – see detailed steps below). It is valid for a period of 10 years from the day of issue, the 6-month period running only from the day you enter American territory. Here are the steps you need to follow for your visa application (for France you’ll also find all the details on the website of the American Embassy). The procedure described here is the one for people applying from France, given as a general guideline. I suppose that American diplomatic services have the exact same procedure in every foreign country, but still I suggest you double-check on a per-country basis as the procedure might differ depending on where you live.
        1. Have a passport photograph ready that you will upload as an attachment to your visa application. Like all ID pictures, it must be no more than 6 months old, head fully uncovered, no sunglasses, no scarf, taken against a plain background etc. but there is more: it must be 2x2in (5x5cm)… that’s a weird format but don’t panic, the fact that you’ll send it digitally makes this all easier than it looks: just take the passport picture you have and change its format to 2x2in using any image editing software. For Windows users, Microsoft Paint does the trick, you don’t even need to download anything complicated. It’s perfectly accepted, that’s what I’ve done myself. The Embassy even has an online software on their website that allows applicants to do that, but it only works with Internet Explorer (!)
        2. On the page of the US Department of State, fill the online non-immigrant application form (DS-160). You’ll need your passport details, your expected dates of travel (at  this stage you don’t have your plane tickets yet, but approximate dates are tolerated), and most importantly you’ll need the exact dates of your last 5 stays in the US as well as all your travels to other countries in the past 5 years. Have this information ready beforehand, it will save you online time.
        3. The Embassy’s website says that you need to create an account and pay the visa fee online. In 2018 it didn’t work that way, I paid the fee directly at the Consulate after my visa was granted. So apparently this has changed and now applicants need to pay at this stage, meaning before the interview and before the visa is granted. I have no idea what happens to the funds if the visa is refused…
        1. Once you’ve submitted your application you will get a receipt as well as a link to schedule the date and time of the visa interview. If the online process doesn’t work, you also have the option to do that over the phone. You will then receive an invitation to go to the Consulate at the chosen date (their website says that in some cases no visa interview is needed but I don’t what the conditions are for this, and as a general rule I think you can expect to go to the Consulate).
        2. Go to the Consulate on the scheduled date for the visa interview. In my experience it’s a simple routine interview, which mainly consists in confirming the information you’ve already consigned in the online application form. The interviewing officer will basically ask you why you want to stay in the US for longer than 3 months, and all you need to do is explain them what you intend to do there.
        3. IMPORTANT: one of the things the interviewing officer needs to check is that you’re not trying to get to the US to work illegally. For this, they may ask you to prove that you can sustain yourself living abroad for 6 months without working. In other words, they want to know if you have enough savings. This is quite intrusive and unsettling, especially for us Europeans, but a good way of answering that question is to produce a bank statement showing the amount of your savings. I would also recommend you take this paper with you on the plane for when you cross the US border. It may sound completely illogical but even if the Consulate has granted you a visa, the custom officer at the border can run you through all of the same questions again and take the time they deem adequate to make sure you’re not trying to immigrate illegally. It happened to me when I landed in Detroit after the first leg of my trip. The officer at the border did not believe that I would be 6 months in the US just walking and not working, they kept me in an office asking me the same questions in loop mode for over 2 hours and then they released me… after my correspondence flight had left. Of course mobile web didn’t work at that place of the airport so I couldn’t show them my banking statement from my mobile app. Having a paper statement with me (which I didn’t) would have solved the issue in no time and I wouldn’t have missed my flight.
        4. At the Consulate they will immediately let you know if your application is successful. Once the interview is over you can go back home, your passport will be mailed to you within a few days with your B2 visa in it.
  3. Getting a long-distance hiking permit and a start date
    The PCT passes through numerous state parks and protected wilderness areas. Walking through most of them requires a permit, and applying individually to all state parks would be complicated and time consuming. Fortunately, people who intend to hike more than 500 miles on the PCT can apply for a single thru-hiking permit, delivered by the PCTA.
    In order to avoid the trail being overcrowded at any given moment, authorities have decided to spread the start of hikers over the whole season, and the PCTA issues a maximum of 50 permits per day starting from Campo. Those permits are issued in 2 batches: the first 35 are available around the end of October and the remaining 15 around mid-January.
    The thru-hiking permit is free. To get it you’ll need to go on the PCTA website’s permits page where they display the exact date and time where permits are released (be careful though, it’s Pacific time, i.e. the time in Los Angeles). On the day of release you need to be online at the given time but don’t panic about being the first one to click: I haven’t heard of anyone being forced to postpone their trip by a year because they didn’t get a permit. Most often, symbolic dates are chosen first: Mondays, April 1st and 15, May 1st and 15… So if you’re flexible enough on your start date, pick a Tuesday or the 3rd or 4th of the month and you won’t have any trouble getting a permit.
    Once you’ve picked your start date, the application form opens.
    The procedure is very simple and all the steps are clearly described on the PCTA website. Once finished, you will be given codes to connect and follow the status of your application. The actual permit is sent by e-mail fairly late, but on the online portal you’ll be able to see when your application is approved, and that’s when you can get to the next step of your planning.

    Once on the trail, you must have your permit with you at all times, printed and signed. Rangers actually check hikers, and they are allowed to force those who don’t have a permit to leave the trail. Personally I’ve been controlled 3 times.

  4. Buying your plane tickets
    If you’ve been granted a thru-hiking permit at the October session, it will probably be somewhat too early to buy plane tickets as airlines usually start selling about 5 months in advance. But If you have applied at the January session, you will receive confirmation of your permit in the first weeks of February, and that’s about the right time to buy plane tickets for mid-April to mid-May.
    The closest (American) city to Campo is San Diego. It’s the most natural choice for the majority of hikers, and you’ll get there with a direct- or a correspondence-flight  depending on where you fly from. Some people also choose to land in Los Angeles, a bigger hub with more air traffic where it might be possible to get better fares.
  5. Getting a Canada PCT entry permit
    There is no border post on the PCT, but hikers must carry a permit to enter Canadian territory via the trail. This permit is free and on this page you’ll find all the instructions on how to apply for it. You’ll need to download this document, print it, fill it in capital letters and sign it, scan it to a pdf file and then send it to the indicated e-mail address along with a scan copy of your passport and driving license if you have one.
    In the fields “Itinerary, length of stay while in Canada” and “Purpose of your trip to Canada” you can simply indicate that you are hiking the PCT, and maybe stay a few days in Vancouver if you plan to do so. Your entry date can be approximate, however you need to indicate the exact date and place where you will start your PCT hike.
  6. Booking acomodation in San Diego
    Please see the page (coming soon!) dedicated to this topic for in-depth information.
  7. Downloading your California fire permit
    This is just a formality in comparison with all the rest, but still it has to be done. I’ve never been asked to produce it by the rangers who controlled me, but in theory every hiker should carry it with them, just like their thru-hiking permit. It’s free and granted to everyone, all you have to do to get it is visit this page where you will be asked to watch a short educational video about fire hazards and how to mitigate them. After which you’ll be asked to answer a short quiz with 4 or 5 questions to prove that you have watched and understood the video, and then you’ll be able to download your fire permit.
  8. Purchase a specific insurance to cover you during your trip
    I believe that having an insurance that will cover you, from the first to the last day of your trip, against the risks of such endeavor, is an absolute must. It occurred to me that this topic is often ignored or very misunderstood, that’s why the next page is entirely dedicated to it.
  1. Having a passport that is valid for the complete duration of your stay in the US.
  2. Getting a visa to stay in the US for more than 3 months
    Unless you are a very, very fast hiker and you plan to complete your thru-hike in less than 3 months, in and out of the US including your time in San Diego, you are going to stay on American territory for over 90 days. Consequently, the simple ESTA procedure for stays under 90 days doesn’t apply and you’ll need to apply for a long-term touristic visa (or what the American custom administration calls a non-immigrant visa).
    What you’re looking for is a B2 visa. It allows you to stay in the US for leisure or for medical tourism for up to 6 months. You need to apply online and schedule an interview at the American Consulate nearest to your home. If at the end of the interview the visa is granted to you, the cost is 120€ (when I applied in 2018 I paid this sum directly at the Consulate, but apparently this has changed – see detailed steps below). It is valid for a period of 10 years from the day of issue, the 6-month period running only from the day you enter American territory. Here are the steps you need to follow for your visa application (for France you’ll also find all the details on the website of the American Embassy). The procedure described here is the one for people applying from France, given as a general guideline. I suppose that American diplomatic services have the exact same procedure in every foreign country, but still I suggest you double-check on a per-country basis as the procedure might differ depending on where you live.
        1. Have a passport photograph ready that you will upload as an attachment to your visa application. Like all ID pictures, it must be no more than 6 months old, head fully uncovered, no sunglasses, no scarf, taken against a plain background etc. but there is more: it must be 2x2in (5x5cm)… that’s a weird format but don’t panic, the fact that you’ll send it digitally makes this all easier than it looks: just take the passport picture you have and change its format to 2x2in using any image editing software. For Windows users, Microsoft Paint does the trick, you don’t even need to download anything complicated. It’s perfectly accepted, that’s what I’ve done myself. The Embassy even has an online software on their website that allows applicants to do that, but it only works with Internet Explorer (!)
        2. On the page of the US Department of State, fill the online non-immigrant application form (DS-160). You’ll need your passport details, your expected dates of travel (at  this stage you don’t have your plane tickets yet, but approximate dates are tolerated), and most importantly you’ll need the exact dates of your last 5 stays in the US as well as all your travels to other countries in the past 5 years. Have this information ready beforehand, it will save you online time.
        3. The Embassy’s website says that you need to create an account and pay the visa fee online. In 2018 it didn’t work that way, I paid the fee directly at the Consulate after my visa was granted. So apparently this has changed and now applicants need to pay at this stage, meaning before the interview and before the visa is granted. I have no idea what happens to the funds if the visa is refused…
  2.  
  1. Getting a long-distance hiking permit and a start date
    The PCT passes through numerous state parks and protected wilderness areas. Walking through most of them requires a permit, and applying individually to all state parks would be complicated and time consuming. Fortunately, people who intend to hike more than 500 miles on the PCT can apply for a single thru-hiking permit, delivered by the PCTA.
    In order to avoid the trail being overcrowded at any given moment, authorities have decided to spread the start of hikers over the whole season, and the PCTA issues a maximum of 50 permits per day starting from Campo. Those permits are issued in 2 batches: the first 35 are available around the end of October and the remaining 15 around mid-January.
    The thru-hiking permit is free. To get it you’ll need to go on the PCTA website’s permits page where they display the exact date and time where permits are released (be careful though, it’s Pacific time, i.e. the time in Los Angeles). On the day of release you need to be online at the given time but don’t panic about being the first one to click: I haven’t heard of anyone being forced to postpone their trip by a year because they didn’t get a permit. Most often, symbolic dates are chosen first: Mondays, April 1st and 15, May 1st and 15… So if you’re flexible enough on your start date, pick a Tuesday or the 3rd or 4th of the month and you won’t have any trouble getting a permit.
    Once you’ve picked your start date, the application form opens.
    The procedure is very simple and all the steps are clearly described on the PCTA website. Once finished, you will be given codes to connect and follow the status of your application. The actual permit is sent by e-mail fairly late, but on the online portal you’ll be able to see when your application is approved, and that’s when you can get to the next step of your planning.

    Once on the trail, you must have your permit with you at all times, printed and signed. Rangers actually check hikers, and they are allowed to force those who don’t have a permit to leave the trail. Personally I’ve been controlled 3 times.

  2. Buying your plane tickets
    If you’ve been granted a thru-hiking permit at the October session, it will probably be somewhat too early to buy plane tickets as airlines usually start selling about 5 months in advance. But If you have applied at the January session, you will receive confirmation of your permit in the first weeks of February, and that’s about the right time to buy plane tickets for mid-April to mid-May.
    The closest (American) city to Campo is San Diego. It’s the most natural choice for the majority of hikers, and you’ll get there with a direct- or a correspondence-flight  depending on where you fly from. Some people also choose to land in Los Angeles, a bigger hub with more air traffic where it might be possible to get better fares.
  3. Getting a Canada PCT entry permit
    There is no border post on the PCT, but hikers must carry a permit to enter Canadian territory via the trail. This permit is free and on this page you’ll find all the instructions on how to apply for it. You’ll need to download this document, print it, fill it in capital letters and sign it, scan it to a pdf file and then send it to the indicated e-mail address along with a scan copy of your passport and driving license if you have one.
    In the fields “Itinerary, length of stay while in Canada” and “Purpose of your trip to Canada” you can simply indicate that you are hiking the PCT, and maybe stay a few days in Vancouver if you plan to do so. Your entry date can be approximate, however you need to indicate the exact date and place where you will start your PCT hike.
  4. Booking acomodation in San Diego
    Please see the page (coming soon!) dedicated to this topic for in-depth information.
  5. Downloading your California fire permit
    This is just a formality in comparison with all the rest, but still it has to be done. I’ve never been asked to produce it by the rangers who controlled me, but in theory every hiker should carry it with them, just like their thru-hiking permit. It’s free and granted to everyone, all you have to do to get it is visit this page where you will be asked to watch a short educational video about fire hazards and how to mitigate them. After which you’ll be asked to answer a short quiz with 4 or 5 questions to prove that you have watched and understood the video, and then you’ll be able to download your fire permit.
  6. Purchase a specific insurance to cover you during your trip
    I believe that having an insurance that will cover you, from the first to the last day of your trip, against the risks of such endeavor, is an absolute must. It occurred to me that this topic is often ignored or very misunderstood, that’s why the next page is entirely dedicated to it.
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