The cost of through hiking the PCT

That feels about right to me as all the big trails have become more mainstream, it’s not just dirt-bag hikers.  And, yeah, for ON-TRAIL expenses.  Not airfare there and back, that RT out of Reno or Eugene to fly home for a wedding or getting your tooth fixed.  Plus treating yourself while in town on a zero.

Those two engineers with the YouTube channel who prep all their own DH and FD food?  Yeah, they could less than half that, but they’ve got skills and organization talents most don’t.

The resupply stores (even the gas station mini marts) have wisened up and often offer high end freeze-dried meals as well instead of the old Knorr Sides & jerky. The opportunity to even spend so much per day is only a recent phenomenon.

What is the expected daily food budget? One has to be realistic when planning a long trek.

During my PCT hike I tried to stay out on the trail as much as possible and not go into towns. A daily ration in my re-supply package would look something like this (sorry, I had to delete the $ signs due to some weird formatting that happened):
Breakfast: 2 – Oatmeal package (0.50), Trail Mix package (1), Hot chocolate package (0.50)
Lunch: 16 – Peak Refuel freeze dried meal (15), drink mix (1)
Dinner: 16 – Peak Refuel freeze dried meal (15), drink mix (1)
Snacks: 18 – six assorted bars of 3 each
Electrolytes: 9 – 3 packs of Liquid IV + 1 Clif Bloks

That totals already 71/day for food alone and is not accounting for shipping re-supply packages & paying for their pick-up. Paying roughly 30 for the flat rate box and up to 15 for picking up my package with usually 5 days of food adds another 9 per day for a total of $80/day. Bulk purchase of some items – like bars – can lower the cost a little, but not by much. Buying them opportunistically at a gas station along the way makes them more expensive.

Mind you, this is only the daily cost for food. Add to that the cost for laundry, occasional stay in a hotel, ride into town, big meal in town and you end up at a considerably higher number. I’d say $70/day requires to be really careful with what you spend your money on.