The PCT and all of the other longer “Thru” hikes like AT, CDT, etc have created their own on trail “lingo”. Below is a start to some of the PCT trail lingo that has been shared to me as a trail angel. Enjoy!
Hike Your Own Trail – HYOT – A definition that allows a hiker to define that they want from hiking the trail. This is to prevent others from judging you about how you should hike the trail to their standards.
Trail Legs – You earn these by hiking more and coming up to speed with hiking.
Trail Spice – When you food falls on the ground and gets dirt into it and you pick it back up and eat it. Dirt as a spice.
Town Day – A day where your resupply, shower, lodge, typically in a town or resort.
Type 2 fun – Fun in retro-spec. That long, hot day was not fun during the event but looking back it was fun.
10 for before 10 – Doing 10 miles before 10 AM
Trail Magic – There are many definitions of trail magic but it’s usually an event where free food, services, drinks are offered at a location where you typically would not expect them.
Trail Angel – A trail angel is the person who offers the trail magic or other hiker service or resource like driving or hosting.
FKT – Fastest Known Time – Each of the trails have their fasted known time to complete the trail in various modes – support, unsupported, etc.
Baseweight – The weight of your pack before you add food and water.
Cowboy camping – camping on the ground on a tarp without a tent
Cat hole– Hole you dig to do #2 in the woods.
Hiker Box – At many hosted locations, a hiker box exists where hikers can drop off or check out and take any extra items that others don’t want any more.
Loaner Clothes – A box of clothes that hikers wear while they are doing their laundry as they have no other clothes to wear.
Resupply – The term describing buy more food and items for the next trek.
Zero Day – Zero mile day – A total rest day.
Nero Day – Almost zero mile day
Puds – Pointless up and Down
Purist – Someone who thinks that to do the PCT requires hiking every single step of the trail and not missing or skipping a foot.
Ultra light hiker – a hiker with a base weight of 10 lbs or lighter.
Cold Soak – the method of not cooking meals but simply soaking them cold and eating them.
Calorie Counting – Hikers make sure they have enough calories, not too little
Sick – This word describes a camping site that is really good!
dope – Another word to describe a great camping site – a dope camp site
Triple Crown – When a hiker has completed the three long distance thru hiking trails in America – PCT, AT and CDT trails
PCT – Pacific Crest Trail
Stealth Camping – Camping where you should not be camping
Hitch Princess – This is the cute female hiker you have in your group or one your recruit to help you hitch rides more successfully. The technique is to put the Hitch Princess on the road for the motorist to stop and then have the other smelly and larger unshaved males slightly out of view but appear once a ride has been found.
Pink Blazing – This refers to speeding up or more often slowing down to connect with a new flame on the trail.
Yellow Blazing – This refers to walking or hitching a section via a road to save time or miles
Gram Weenie– Someone who weights every gram in their pack and does everything to eliminate any extra weight.
Trail Angel Central 