The West Coast Trail is not to be taken lightly, as once you’ve taken your first step onto the trail there’s no real exit point until you reach the other end (other than an emergency boat or helicopter), but that exactly what makes it’s such a thoroughly rewarding and worthwhile challenge for any experienced hiker.
There is a mid-point Trailhead, from the Nitinat Lake Visitor Centre, accessed by taking a water taxi down Nitinat Lake, but its just not right to only do half the trail.
The restricted (by pre-arranged permit) number of trekkers who take on this fantastic route and its remote nature make this a true wilderness experience. There’s only 25 permits sold for each of the two trailheads a day, so you will never set off in the same direction on any day with more than 24 other people, and once you enter the dense twisting forest trail you are soon alone, with only the abundant wildlife and often thunderous sea as your companions.
Most of the hiking is within the islands sub-tropical rainforest, but you will often find yourself spied on by a lone treetop bald eagle while trekking along large tracts of pristine beach.
It’s mere 75km doesn’t sound like much to tackle over 6 days, but unless you’re a little crazy, we do advise taking at least 6 days to hike this, literally, breath-taking and remote trail. The terrain is challenging and would be impassable without the well-constructed trail, which consists of raised wooden walkways, many series of large wooden ladders, suspension bridges, and most exciting of all, caged zip-lines for the river crossings.
Along the route are designated camp spots (camping outside of these areas is strictly forbidden), all with bear boxes for your food and near a good water source (take some cord with you, as you will have to hoist your food into the trees if the boxes are full).
The West Coast Trail is a carry in, carry out trek, which if unfamiliar to trekking in North America means exactly that. All food and non-human waste needs to be carried for the duration. So pack lightly and consider all food packaging carefully, but do take care to pack for all weather types - this is a fickle and unforgiving coastline, which can change from sun to storm in an instant.
Once you reach the Gordon River ferry point at Port Renfrew, thus completing the West Coast Trail, and drop your always too heavy backpack to the ground for the last time, the happiness and relief of knowing you’ve made it is instant. What’s strange and unexpected, as you ride the transfer bus back to Victoria for a well-earned bath, is the creeping sadness, as you realise that you’ve left one of the worlds’ best trekking trails behind you.
