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With my time running out here in Vancouver I had found my challenge. I was reading an article on the best and most grueling hike in Canada and realized that it was in my reach. I did some research and within a few hours I was on a bus to take the ferry over to Vancouver Island.
The hike is called The West Coast Trail and it is located on the western coast of Vancouver Island. It is a 76km hike through the thick rainforest all along the pacific coastline. It used to be a rescue path for shipwrecked vessels but now is a world renowned hike. After doing my research I had learnt that it takes the average hiker 6 days to complete the trail and I only had 4 days to do it before I left Canada.
Just to get to the West Coast Trail I had taken 4 separate buses, 2 ferries and a whole days worth of traveling. I had arrived in Port Refrew at the head of the trail and met with a couple other backpackers doing the trail. To keep the trail rustic and not over crowded they only let
10 hikers enter the trail each day. Once seeing the others gear I knew this was the big leagues, this was not a nature hike, it was a challenge in British Columbia’s outback. I got my orientation for the trail and learnt that many areas were under cougar watch, wolf watch ,and bear watch and that solo hiking was not recommended at this time. Forgoing all the signs that I shouldn’t attempt this I continued and started off into the woods with my backpack and a ride home booked on the other side for 4 days from then.
The trail was not well maintained at all as I learnt quickly. There were boulders, trees, rivers, and mud pools at every corner. After about 5 minutes of trying to side step the mud I just gave up and walked straight through the knee deep mud pools. My feet were going to be wet for the next 4 days. Some parts of the hike the path was practically a river and you had to just walk right through it. The first day I hiked 13 km to a beautiful camping spot called Campers Bay and
meet up with many other campers. These were designated camp sites, and were about the only other times I would see other hikers. There were people from all over the world doing this hike. It was really nice to meet up with other backpackers and here about their stories about trekking.
The first section was heavy rainforest with many log bridges and mud everywhere, at times I had felt like I was trekking through the amazon rainforest. The weather was also very on and off in this area, with it always raining at least a few hours a day. Id say the worst part was waking up in the rain and putting on wet socks, wet boots, wet pants, packing my gear in the rain and then continue to hike all day wet. By the second day I was beat, my feet were covered in blisters and my legs ached, but it was all part of the experience.
After about 2 days through the interior I was able to do some beach hiking, and hiking along the bluffs. You have to plan you routes very carefully because the tide rises 12 feet in one day and
you do not want to get stuck at the bottom of a bluff when it is rising. I was able to see some really nice scenery when the sun would shine through for parts of the day. This was my bliss, seeing the massive waves of the pacific crash into the rock walls, it made it all worth it. All along the beach there was parts of old shipwrecks and cougar footprints everywhere. It started to become very peaceful to be trekking by myself, although I would be hiking for 6-7 hours a day, the days still flew by.
In the middle of the trip I had realized that I was severely under prepared. I had not brought proper hiking boots, a gas stove (relying on building a fire in a rainforest is not the best idea), a sleeping mat and extra socks. This is what I get for packing an hour before running out the door. But I still made the best of it and enjoyed every second.
It was truly incredible to be able to walk all along the Pacific coast, Ever corner I turned was another picture perfect scenery setting (pictures don’t
do justice) and by the end of the trip I felt drunk off scenery. Every person I met (the far and few between) were from all sides of the globe. It was an accomplishment to complete this trek in just 4 days and it was a perfect way to say goodbye to my beautiful country.
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