An Oklahoma hiker just smashed the overall speed record on the 2,650-mile Pacific Crest Trail, becoming the fastest person to trek it end-to-end - and he did it without the aid of a support team.
Nick Fowler set out alone on July 8 from the trail's northern terminus at the Canadian border in the remote Washington mountains, determined to become the fastest person to hike the giant wilderness trail to its southern end at the Mexican border in the California desert.
He finished on Saturday night, completing the Herculean feat in 45 days, 17 hours and 47 minutes and having covered an average of 57 miles per day. That makes Fowler the fastest person ever to thru-hike the trail - in either direction.
On a phone call with the Chronicle from a friend's house in Washington State, Fowler said he was "trashed" - totally exhausted, deep in brain fog - and nursing a nasty toe injury he sustained during his trek. But overall, he reported feeling "extremely healthy."
What's remarkable about Fowler's approach is that he hiked in self-supported style, meaning he went solo the whole way and was not helped, as most other record-hopeful ultrarunners are, by traveling trail crews that set up camp, prepare meals and perform body treatments along their journeys.
NIck Fowler, a hiker from Oklahoma, just became the fastest person to trek the 2,650-mile Pacific Crest Trail. (Courtesy Nick Fowler)By comparison, French ultraunner Aurélien Sanchez set a supported speed record on the trail last month, completing it in 45 days, 20 hours and 11 minutes. Fowler bested that time by about two and a half hours.
"So amazing what he has done," Sanchez wrote in an email to the Chronicle.
Fowler paced Sanchez for a brief period during the Frenchman's record-setting hike, and the two men later crossed paths during their respective record attempts (Sanchez was traveling north). Sanchez lauded Fowler's "resilience" and "commitment" to the task.
"I don't consider that he beat my FKT (fastest known time)," Sanchez wrote in his email. "I consider that he improved all FKT(s) of the Pacific Crest Trail from history, and I see that as very much inspiring."
It was Fowler's second time on the trail. The 38-year-old entrepreneur had set a speed record on the PCT in 2023 - that year becoming the fastest person to travel the trail in self-supported fashion - but he encountered several setbacks along the 52-day trek and he thought he could do the whole thing faster. (His new record beats his previous record by a week.)
He spent last year training with a running coach, commissioned a customized hydration backpack, and meticulously planned out the logistics of another attempt.
Thru-hikers usually mail themselves resupply boxes to post offices and other stopovers along the trail, and Fowler made sure he provided himself with certain comforts during his trek.
"Anything I wished I had more of in '23, I gave it to myself this time," Fowler said.
He upped his daily intake from 10,000 calories to 12,000 calories, sucking down lots of bottled Starbucks Mocha Frappuccino beverages and other sugary drinks. He sliced dozens of tiny ventilation holes in his running shorts to keep himself dry and prevent chafing. He made sure he had new shoes to wear every 180 miles and fresh socks every 100 miles.
The niche crop of endurance athletes who attempt to set so-called "fastest known times" on the PCT generally travel for 16 hours per day - budgeting the remainder of their time for eating, sleeping and body treatments. Fowler said he made sure to push himself for 18 hours each day.
"I was moving slower but I was moving longer," he said.
By opting for a southbound hike, Fowler reached the Southern California desert at peak heat, when daytime temperatures routinely surpass 100 degrees Fahrenheit. In a voice memo from mid-August, Fowler said he was feeling fatigued.
"It's extremely hot, and I don't deal with heat very well," he said.
But he persevered.
By the end, Fowler had gone through about 15 pairs of running shoes and shed 15 pounds of body weight.
Fowler is quiet about his record attempts and expected to arrive at the southern terminus alone, then walk out of the desert and catch a train back to his car in Washington. Instead, he was surprised by his wife and 2-year-old son as well as a couple of close friends.
"That was a very special surprise," he said.
SubscribeThere’s more to San Francisco with the Chronicle. Subscribe today for just 25¢.This article originally published at Exclusive: This speed-hiker just smashed the record on the Pacific Crest Trail, hiking alone.
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