Heather on the West Coast Trail:
“Ribeka K, John A, Bob M, and Heather W did a glorious 9 day backpacking trip along the classic West Coast Trail of Vancouver Island from June 9-17. No wonder this hike is rated as #1 in the world – it is as stunningly gorgeous and amazing as everyone says. Our adventure included hiking pebble beaches, wandering around sandstone benches & cliffs, climbing up and down ladders on slopes in the forest, slipping along muddy trails and broken boardwalks, ambling on sandy beaches, negotiating cable cars, swinging on suspension bridges, and passing lighthouses, caves, arches, and rocky headlands. We marvelled at the many waterfalls, tide pools, whale sightings (four days!), sea stacks, sea otters, martins, bald eagles, sea lions, windswept trees and wildflowers. The trip included great campfires every night, heavy packs, jumping into amazing swimming holes, fantastic company, stupid amounts of food, and intense debates over jelly bean flavours. We were very lucky to have no rain for 8 days, and the fact that it hadn’t rained for almost a month resulted in mud only being up to our ankles instead of over our knees! Other highlights included the milkshakes & burgers in Bamfield, having the local water taxi drop us on a deserted beach for our last night camping, and AMAZING whale watching on the boat that took us back along our whole hiking route to Port Renfrew. If you go, do it before June 15 or after Sept 15, and don’t forget the marshmallows!”
