[kerwinl]

I did this run/hike SOBO last year in early august, took me a little under 22 hours. I went SOBO as logistically it worked much better for me to get a pickup and shuttle to Seattle then circle back to my car at Stevens on my way home to the Wenatchee area after a weekend spent in Seattle with family. A few notes: 1.I rarely went more then a few miles without a stream to dip in for most of my day, except after leaving spectacle and heading to snoq, I filled up 2L here and was able to last until the snoq. I asked hikers that I passed during the day where there was and was not water so I could carry less during certain sections. 2. The talus section near SNOQ pass is the real deal with tired legs vs. the relatively smooth trails near stevens pass, be prepared to slow it down (this and the water sources issue, make an argument to be made for going NOBO). 3. Most hikers that I encountered passed going opposite direction stepped off the trail for me as I came by when they saw I only had a running vest on, never had to wait for people, it truly never was an issue. 4. Navigation was pretty effortless IMO, there are lots of signs and markers, but I carried a cal topo reference in case I needed to make a decision to choose alternate route, bail etc. 5. I went on a day where highs at Snoq pass were forecasted to be around 70 degrees, which was a bit warm for me personally for running, but allowed me to carry far less clothing and gear. I mitigated the heat by leaving Stevens pass at 2AM and completing the first half to Waptus lake before the heat of the day. The other advantage of starting so early is you get a lot of time on trail before the hikers break camp for the day. 6. IMO the catwalk at night was not a big deal, if your concerned about falling off the trail, lay down and take a quick nap, before resuming. 7. In comparison to other trail systems in my area the PCT is very smooth and buttery to run, with the exception of the talus near the catwalk. 8. I would never describe the trail as steep, honestly there were areas where I wish the climbs had been punchier to get it over with and start running again, but at the end of the day it can be nice when the legs get tired..

[Leaddog]

The Catwalk is only Hazardous if it is covered in Snow. Otherwise no big deal. When you Ascend up from Waptus Lake to the Escondido Tarns through the Waptus Burn that is the nasty part. Bring a Machete and go slow if it hasn't been cleared. This is if you Start at Stevens Pass. Going Down the Waptus Burn is even Worse. Hopefully it will be Cleared.I was Camped at Waptus Lake and a Girl came into Camp and asked for help. She had fallen descending the Burn and layed her leg open to Muscle. I offered to stitch it up, as she had a few days left to go. She just kept going after a fresh bandage and some Triple Antibiotic Ointment placed in the leg. BTW. This was Before Cell Phones.

[Joseph]

[hbb]

[dave allyn]

The first sentence in the original post said he was enjoying speed hiking. I think that's probably why he does it.

[Joseph]

[RumiDude]

[Jordan]

Most of my hiking life I said the same thing about trail runners and I have enjoyed all types of beautiful scenery slowly. Id argue that bachelor meadows, cub lake and the surrounding area is the most beautiful. Hiking alone, I have grown bored of the scenery in some ways and now get the most enjoyment from the struggle of the long push. I picked this trail for the length and ease of navigation in the dark, not the scenery. If all goes well next year I'll shoot for glacier peak circumnavigation.

[solohiker]

Everyone has their own ideal journey. I have mild nyctophobia (fear of dark) so 8hrs of hiking in darkness wouldn’t be part of an intended plan for me, but I totally get that not everyone has the same aversion. For that matter, when I misjudge timing and end up finishing after dark (typically in fall) it’s good for me to “face the fear” for the last mile or so, but I would never plan a full 8 hrs of hiking after dark. Oddly I prefer total darkness for sleeping, so I have no trouble backpacking, as long as I can get in the tent and go to sleep when it’s dark. I also love taking in the beauty of everywhere I hike so hiking in dark somewhere I’ve never been before would not be on my planned agenda, but again - others are free to have different goals. The way Jordan (OP) has described his/her plan (SB, starting mid-morning, daylight till ~ Waptus, dark till ~ Trap Pass and finishing in daylight does put some of the boring stretch of section J in the dark, although a few views I’d want to see if I went to the trouble to be there will be missed (and personally I think the most boring part is from Josephine Lk to Stevens). But it’s Jordan’s journey, not mine. There are a lot of great side trips off the PCT in the span from Waptus to Trap Pass, but that’s also a different type of journey than Jordan.

[Randito]

A couple of other notes: 1) Heading Southbound the long climbs are on North aspect hillsides -- e.g. heading south the climb up from Waptus to Escondito is relatively cool vs heading north climbing from Lemah Meadow to Escondito is on an sun exposed hillside with little shade. 2) The hillside across the head of the Gold Creek valley has almost no shade -- it is mostly a traverse -- but a sweaty one on a warm day -- and kind of a long stretch between places where you can find water to refill. Southbound, I refilled from a sketchy pond in the gap between Chikaman and Huckleberry after a hot sunny traverse. I had filled at Spectacle Lake -- refilling in the Park Lakes / Glacier Lake area would have required heading off the PCT a ways. 3) I found the Escondito tarns area to be very charming -- recommend savoring the scenery in this section over pushing for maximum pace. 4) The most potentially troublesome creek crossings are: 1) Three tributaries of the Cle Elum between Deception Pass and Catheral Rock 2) Lemah Creek if the footbridge is washed out. -- Water levels should be low enough August/September to be trouble free -- in July it could be challenging.

[Joseph]

[solohiker]

Harvey was not fond of trail-runners and definitely made that opinion known. The one time I bumped into him alone on Tiger I stopped running and sat and chatted a bit. I had already read what he thought of trail-runners and cared enough about him to want his respect more than I cared about finishing my daily run with a time to brag about. He was a good man.

[RumiDude]

[williswall]

I did a straight thru of section J about 20 years ago, N to S. I got a late start at Stevens, around 3 PM. I had not been on the PCT past the Kendall Katwalk but found no problems navigating the majority of the trail through the night. My only problem came towards the end, developing blisters because of the long stretches of rocks before the Katwalk.