Privacy Policy

Who are we?

Douglas “Grateful” Hark runs the PCT Passport, which supports the PCT Hiker Trash Foundation (a nonprofit in formation).
Questions about this policy or your information: pctpassport@gmail.com

What This Policy Covers

  • PCTPassport.com: this website.
  • The PCT Passport Substack at pcthikertrash.substack.com, where businesses, towns, and supporters subscribe.
  • PCTHikerTrash.com, which forwards to the PCT Passport Substack.
  • PCT2026.com and PCT2027.com, which forward to PCTMuseum.org, home of the PCT Hiker Trash Yearbook. PCTMuseum.org handles photo and story submissions made there.

Hikers
The PCT Hiker Trash Passport is free. No sign-up is required.
We don’t collect anything from you to receive a passport.

Website Visits
This site has no accounts, sign-up forms, or comments.
Like most websites, our web host keeps basic visit information such as IP address, browser type, and the pages viewed. We use it only to see how the site is doing and to keep it running.
The site may use a few basic cookies so pages load and work properly. We don’t use cookies to track you across other websites.

Subscribing on Substack
When you click a sign-up button on this site, you go to Substack.
Substack collects your email address and name to run your subscription.
Stripe processes paid subscriptions through Substack. We never see or store your card number.
Substack’s own privacy policy applies to its site and app: https://substack.com/privacy
Stripe’s privacy policy: https://stripe.com/privacy

Businesses, Towns and Trail Angels
After you subscribe, the welcome email links to the PCT Passport Business Form. It asks for things like:

  • Contact name and business name
  • Email address
  • Business address, closest trail town, and PCT mile
  • Services you offer, and how hikers can reach you
  • Website, Facebook page, and hours and season
  • Whether you want in on the Burger Blaze or a spot in the printed Passport

We use this to build your listing in the Downloadable PCT Passport PDF Guide and, if you choose a printed spot, in the printed Passport.
What hikers see in your listing is the business information you gave us for that purpose: your business name, town, services, address, hours, website or Facebook, and how to reach you.
Your contact name and email are only used to reach you about your listing and the Passport.
Your listing stays active as long as you’re subscribed.

The Burger Blaze
Hikers vote for the best burger on the PCT by scanning a QR code at the counter.
The QR code opens a short form with 5 questions about the location and the burger.
The form doesn’t ask for a name, email, or contact information.
Votes are used only to choose the Burger Blaze champions and to give participating locations feedback on their burgers.
The winner will be judged on votes, while also considering location on the trail.
Douglas “Grateful” Hark and at least one other person not connected to any Burger Blaze location will do the final judging.

What We Don’t Do
We don’t sell, rent, or trade your information. Ever.
We share it only with the services that run things for us (our web host, Substack and Stripe), or when the law requires it.

Your Choices

  • Unsubscribe any time from the link at the bottom of any Substack email, or from your Substack account settings.
  • See, fix, or remove the information we hold about you, or your listing, by emailing pctpassport@gmail.com.
  • If you unsubscribe, your digital listing will be removed from the Downloadable PDF Guide. A printed Passport can’t be changed after it goes to print.

Links to Other Sites
This site links to Substack, PCTMuseum.org, and other trail resources. When you follow a link, that site’s own privacy policy applies.

Changes to This Policy
As the Passport grows, we’ll update this page. The date below shows the latest version.

Last updated: October 2026

See you on the trail…
Douglas Hark, “Grateful”