The Pacific Crest Trail runs over the mountain ranges dividing the west coast and the rest of the nation. There is a lot of history tied to the trail and it offers great hiking.
Pacific Crest Trail History
Running from the border with Mexico to the Canadian border, the Pacific Crest Trail was used by settlers in the 1800s looking for the good life in California, Oregon and Washington. This 2,500 mile trek offers a variety of environments including burning hot deserts and mountains peeks stacked up one after the other. Since most settlers came from the north, the trail area they encountered was definitely of the mountainous variety. While hikers of today will find it a beautiful and challenging trail, one can be sure many of the settlers had other opinions.
Ironically, the Pacific Crest Trail is really a relatively modern name. Prior to 1993, it was known as a general collection of trails running the route with parts of such trails as the John Muir Trail included as sections. If you could travel back in time, a settler would be baffled if you started talking about the trail.
Pacific Crest Trail From Here to There
Running from border to...