MENU

Tuesday, September 22, 2009

As promised...The West Coast!

Oh the West Coast. Where do I even begin to explain my love for this trip? It was seriously the most amazing thing I have ever done...and definately the hardest. Here's the play by play (accompanied by many, MANY pictures, as always):

Saturday:
Pile into Brandon's hutterite van at 7:00 AM and start the journey to Victoria. As many of you know, I'm quite the procrastinator, and I didn't even sleep the night before because I was busy doing last minute packing. At least it made the drive go alot quicker, since I was out cold for most of it! (Yes, I am a nominee for the Narcoleptic Nurse award, and yes, I was reminded of this habit several times throughout the trip...). We pulled into Vancouver just in time to catch the last ferry, then crashed in my Aunt Kara's sister Kami's basement in Victoria for the night. It was a bit of a long day, and sharing futons has never been so appealing...(did I mention that we lucked out bigtime by having such great hosts on the island? Well, we did.)

Sunday:
Church wasn't until 1:00, so we did a couple touristy things in the morning.

Photobucket
Included in these were Mile 0 of the Trans Canada, and the Terry Fox memorial. I believe this was the first time we busted out Brandon's mini tripod. Little did that we would use that little toy for about EVERY group shot on the trip!
Photobucket

Photobucket
We also headed down to the Harbor, walked around a little, and then headed to church. Oh the Victoria singles branch. They loved us. And were so friendly! Great people out there. After church we stopped for some of the BEST fish I've ever had (Red Fish Blue Fish is the place...check it out. You won't be disappointed.) I'm craving a Salmon Sandwhich right now.

After a little lunch, we hit the road again for Courtney, where we stayed with the Kramers. I hadn't seen these guys in years! I used to babysit their 5 kids when they lived in Raymond...its crazy how much they've all grown up! I mean, I remember their baptisms, and now they're teenagers? It was a shocker. So good to see them though, they're great. They even kicked all of their kids out of their beds so we didn't have to sleep on the floor! Like I said before, we lucked out with such great hosts.

Monday:
The day the real adventures began. We got up bright and early so we could make the drive on the GREAT logging roads out to Bamfield. After some last minute packing and orientation, we were ready to hit the trail! (Notice how clean and enthused we are...clearly day one!)
Photobucket
We figured that because Derek had done the trail twice he would be the designated Navigator. That was our first mistake. Not 10 minutes into our hike along the beach, we realized we had missed the markers to get onto the forest trail, and had to turn back...we just followed the maps from then on instead. haha.
Photobucket
The first part of day one was actually not bad at all. I expected much worse. As we were hiking we passed quite a few people who were on their last day that kept commenting on how clean we were. We didn't FEEL overly clean, or think that they looked overly dirty...it only took a few days before we REALLY understood.

Our first stop of the day was at about the 9k mark, where we took lunch at a little lookout. This place had so many sea lions! I have never seen these things so close up...but they are huge! And so lazy. I mean, all they do is lay out in the sun on some rocks, I swear.

Photobucket

Photobucket
After lunch, we hit the trail again, and stopped about another km down the trail at the Pachena Lighthouse. These lighthouses are pretty cool. They have houses on the same property where the operator (or whatever the technical term is) of the lighthouse lives and gets supplies flown/shipped in to them. Plus I'm pretty sure they don't pay any expenses. Sign me up for that job!
Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket
We hit the trail again, and at the 12 km mark, we headed down off the forest trail onto the beach trail. At first I thought the beach would be a piece of cake. Wrong. Wet sand + no gaitors = burning calves and major sand in the boots. I learned the importance of gaitors very quickly.

One thing about the West Coast Trail...the outhouses are amazing. Seriously, these things are high class. Built up all nice, open ceilings so you can actually breathe, and most of them even have windows so you can look out toward the ocean! I believe the term they used was "Loo with a View" How clever. And oh, you may wonder what those things hanging everywhere are for. They're the markers for the beach access. Whenever the trail switches to/from the forest to the beach, these things are hanging in the trees/wherever so that people know where to go.
Photobucket
I would like to introduce you to someone. My hero. This man had to be in his 60's. Hiking the West Coast Trail by himself. No tent, no stove. He slept under a tarp. He cooked all his meals over a fire. Like I said, my hero. We ran into him the first night at camp and figured that he would be slower than us and probably take a few more days than us to do the trail...wrong. Every time we'd think we were in front of him, we'd come around a corner, and there he'd be, taking a nap on the rocks. And Saturday morning when we took the ferry to the end of the trail, they mentioned that only one person had finished before us that morning. Yup, it was him. He amazes me.
Photobucket
After a long day of hiking, we finally set up camp at Tsocowis Creek, just past the 16 km mark. Can I just say that all of the camping was amazing? I mean really, right on the beach, ocean right there...what more could I ask for? This site even had a nice little waterfall next to it! We set up camp, hung out for a while, and made friends with some fellow hikers, including, of course, our hero, a group of Scouts from Ontario, and our good friend "Netherlands".
Photobucket
Here's a quick tip for all you backpackers: check your gear BEFORE you leave. I blew up this thermarest every night and I'm pretty sure it was flat every night before I had even fallen asleep...
Photobucket
The rest of the night we just hung around the fire (thank heaven fires are allowed on the West Coast or I would have died! Its the only place in BC that they are allowed right now...) and then headed to bed, just before the rain started. Day one: complete.

Tuesday:
Well it rained ALL Monday night, and we woke up to a tad bit of rain Tuesday morning. The only rain we had on the trip though, we definately lucked out with such PERFECT weather! We packed up camp, strapped on our gaitors, and were on our way!
Photobucket
We got back onto the forest trail for a bit, then headed back to the beach trail until we hit our first cable car!
Photobucket
The benefit to bringing 4 boys camping with you? You hardly have to do anything to pull yourself across a creek in a cable car. (Not to mention the fact that we never had to make fires, boil water, gather firewood...yeah, me and Britt had it pretty easy)
Photobucket
After the cable car, we stayed on the forest trail for a bit, and stopped at a nice little lookout for lunch. Complete with benches to rest your back against...it felt so good!
Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket
The beach hiking on day 2 was MUCH better than day 1. When the tides are low enough, you can go farther out and hike along the shelf. Which is nice, flat, hard, and AMAZING to hike on. If given the choice I would have hiked the whole West Coast along the shelf.
Photobucket
Here's a little glimpse of the boardwalk. These were a nice change at times, especially when we were hiking through the muddy bog. Oh but if only all of the boardwalks were as well maintained as this one was...
Photobucket
And here's that muddy bog that I referred to. And this wasn't even close to being the worst of it.
Photobucket
And what would the West Coast Trail be without the ladders? These things kicked my trash. Seriously. Imagine climbing ladder after ladder (I think our longest stretch was 8 in a row, about 30-50 rungs each) with a 40 pound pack on your back. It was killer. The worst ones were when they weren't on as steep of an angle. Then it was more like an army crawl, with my pack shoving my head down...
Photobucket

Photobucket
At about 25 km we got to Tsusiat Falls. I guess during normal years this waterfall is just huge, but since its been so dry on the coast this year, it was a little sparce.

Photobucket
Funny story at this stop: We're just sitting there, getting some water, minding our own business. When our good friend Netherlands comes prancing over from his campsite not too far away. In his spandex. He gives us a nice little wave, then wades out into the water and leans under the waterfall to fill up his bottles. Maybe you had to be there, but Brittany enjoyed it.
Photobucket

Photobucket
After about an 11 km day, we stopped and decided to set up camp, partly because we just wanted to play, and partly because we were going to get trapped by the tides anyways. We rolled into camp at about 3, which gave us plenty of time to relax.
Photobucket

Photobucket
See that little cave back in there? That's where we spent the night. We figured why set up tents if we didn't have to? And yes, that is my sleeping bag airing out on a stick.
Photobucket
Our nice little lookout. Shortly after this picture everyone decided to go do their own thing for a bit. Well, I decided I would cash out on this rock for a little nap. That was a great plan until the tides kept rising and a huge wave came and crashed on me, soaking me from head to toe. At least Cam and Brandon got a kick out of it.
Photobucket
Once the tides had started to go down, we ventured over to Hole in the Wall at Tsusiat Point. We had a great time just watching the waves crash up on the rocks, and racing the tides as we ran through the wall.
Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket
Now, there's a little note on the map for the trail that encourages hikers to minimize fires. Call us ignorant, illiterate, or just plain rebellious, but I'm pretty sure our fire from Tuesday night did NOT follow that counsel.
Photobucket
This thing was huge! We rounded up a ton of wood, and had a big bonfire. And let me tell you, it could pump out some serious heat. A little too much in fact. We had our clothes hanging on a stick next to the fire to dry, and they took a bit of a toll. The casaulties? Brandon's shorts and my socks. Brandon decided just to sacrifice his shorts...
Photobucket
Two days down, four to go.

Wednesday:
Good morning sunshines...?
Photobucket
Surprisingly, I slept REALLY well in that little cave. I think I was out before my head even hit the pillow, and I slept like a baby the entire night.

We packed up camp fairly early, and headed out by about 8:30 so we could catch the first ferry.

Wednesday was the day of good food. The ferry dock is on the Native Reserve, and they sell fresh crab and salmon there. Let me tell you, this seafood is to DIE for! And worth every penny.
Photobucket

Photobucket
Yup, I'm craving salmon again.
Photobucket
Luckily we had caught the first ferry, because this became a busy little place after we ordered our food!
Photobucket

Photobucket
A quick little seafood brunch, complete with gatorade and diet coke (for Britt) and we were on our way again!
Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket
And its back to the beach hiking!
Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket
Pretty sure me and Brandon almost died taking this picture. Only a couple of seconds after it was taken a massive wave came and engulfed the entire rock...we were lucky to get away before it swept us away with it!
Photobucket
Group photo op! I love this one!
Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket
I think the hardest part of this trail was on day 3...the stairs/ladders up to Carmanah lighthouse. I thought I was going to die. There had to have been 300 stairs and at least 3 or 4 ladders if I remember right. After that I knew I could do anything. Or that if it got any harder, I WOULD die. haha. In fact, once we all got to the lighthouse we were laying on the lawn and some random lady comes up to us, "You guys look exhausted...especially you!" (pointing to me. Thank you...?)

Our next stop was Monique's, a little burger shack on the beach run by some lady on the Reserve. Unfortunately, there were only 3 burger patties left, but my veggie burger with cheese (aka omlette on toast) still tasted mighty fine...even if it was oozing mustard everywhere.
Photobucket

Photobucket
If I remember right, it was while we were sitting here eating when the topic of the Adrenaline Surge came up...

Derek: "So uh...you guys, there's this thing called the Adrenaline surge, I tried it with my dad when I was younger but we couldn't do it, and uh...I kinda want to try it."

Everyone else: "Yeah, sure! Why not?"

So I get out my map.

Me: "Dangerous surge channel at waterfall, hikers stay on the trail between Logan and Walbran Creeks and do not attempt to cross Adrenaline surge channel. That's what we're talking about?"

Derek:"Um, yeah. That's the place"

So we all agree that we're going to try it. A bunch of geniouses we are, I tell ya. Little did we know the adventures that we had agreed on for the next day...
Photobucket
haha. I had to throw this picture in here. Brandon was SURE that there was a beached whale out on the rocks. Close Brando, close. Driftwood is easily mistaken for a whale, I know.
Photobucket
One of my favorite pictures, compliments of Brandon. I wish I had taken more pictures of our campsite this night, because it was a dream. Right by the waterfall (where we all took a nice, COLD little shower), tucked nicely in some trees, and NOBODY else around. It was a great place to crash after a long, 21 km day.
Photobucket
Thursday:
The word of the day? Sketch. We had our day planned JUST right so we could get to the Adrenaline Surge right at low tide. A few morning stretches and we were good to go!
Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket
We hiked along the shelf until Walbran Creek, where the trail heads up into the trees. Except for us. We kept hiking along the shelf until we got to the Adrenaline Surge. I'm not going to lie, the farther we got away from the actual trail, the more I doubted our decision to attempt the Adrenaline Surge. A fall into a tide pool that bashed my knee and I swear snapped my arm didn't help much either. Nor did jumping over a "mini" surge that was sketchy enough on its own (ask Cam...he was standing back to take a picture when the waves came crashing up to his ankles).

Really? We're going to do this? What if we can't and have to hike back along this shelf, once the tides have started to go up?

This is where 20% of me was all in, and the other 80% was my common sense kicking in telling me I was an idiot.

Photobucket
But hey, I give in easily to peer pressure, and once we got to the surge, I was ready to get it done.

Was the surge as sketchy as we thought? Yes. Definately. Maybe we even underestimated it. We were kind of on a time crunch when we got there, because we still had 2 km on hiking along the shelf once we were across, and we were kind of at a race against the tides. So we had to get things done quick.

Logan went first. He was the one with cramp ons, so we gave him a rope and had him shimmy across the wall to the other side. At one point he slipped a little and I was sure we were all going to have to turn back. He held the rope at one side and Brandon and Cam held the other side while Derek went across. Then it was my turn. I'm not going to lie, I was terrified, and had a death grip on that rope until I was safely across. Once I was on the other side, I went to put my pack down while Brittany crossed. She didn't quite have her footing, and as she started to go, fell into the surge! Luckily, she didn't let go of the rope and with the help of the boys was able to pull herself out. Then it was Brandon's turn, and then Cam.
Photobucket

Photobucket
These pictures just don't do it justice. Keep in mind that there is a waterfall above this, and those rocks are covered in super-slick moss. Throw a 40 pound pack and a lack of balance into the mix and its a little trickier than it looks!
Photobucket
Well, we did it! We conquered the Adrenaline Surge! And saved ourselves a long couple of hours hiking through the muddy bog. Was it worth it? Yes. Would I recommend it to anyone else? Definately not.
Photobucket
I think we took our longest lunch break yet on Thursday. After all, we HAD just done the Adrenaline Surge, we deserved a break! I think I even took a nice little nap...
Photobucket
After lunch we figured we'd continue with the theme of the day (Sketch) as we attempted to get back on the forest trail. It only took tackling a couple dead trees and shimmying up the ravine until we were back on track. And stopped for a few pictures on the suspension bridge (that we didn't actually cross...)
Photobucket

Photobucket
The next few kms were a bit of a beast. Back to the muddy bog. Km 60 was the worst of it...I think this picture portrays it perfectly:
Photobucket
Yup. A beast. Massive roots, slippery tree trunks, deep puddles of mud. It was an adventure all right. Plus the fact that I had ZERO balance because my pack was so tall, and I took a few good falls right into the mud. Needless to say, I was ready to be done for the day.

Side note: One of my favorite quotes from the day. Brandon had just lost his balance and fallen into the bushes:

Brandon: "Hey Brittany, I just fell into a bush"
Brittany: "Hey Brandon, I just fell into the Adrenaline Surge"

Top that. Oh wait, you can't.
Photobucket
We rolled into camp a little late, and there were a million people already there, so we kind of just pitched our tents in the middle of the beach. It was kind of chilly, so we made a fire, had some delicious desserts (peach pie and raspberry crumble...soo good!) and roasted our socks over the fire...all the usual campfire activities.
Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket
Another long day down, and only 2 to go!

Friday:
We packed up camp at Cullite Creek, and hit the trail. A few more ladders, a little more bog...just the usual. At about the 65 km mark we hit Beach Access A, where we headed back down onto the glorious shelf.

Photobucket

Photobucket
This picture is a little more typical of the boardwalks. They started off all nice, but the majority of them looked like this:
Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket
At about noon on Friday we got to Owen Point, where there is a little cove that you can walk through at low tide. We got there about an hour before low tide and wanted to beat the rush to our next campsite, so we just went up and over. Which turned out to be a great idea. We explored through some caves, slid down some rocks, and walked through the cove that was supposed to be "impassable".
Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket
The next little bit of the trail started to get interesting. We were hiking along the beach, but the rocks just got bigger and bigger, and soon we were jumping from boulder to boulder. Again, tall pack = terrible balance.
Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket
The Captain Morgan. Classic group shot.
Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket
Just taking a little lunch break in my nice recliner. Leaning against that rock felt so good on my back!
Photobucket
After our lunch break we were only a couple of kms away from camp, and Derek thought we might want to gather up some firewood, just in case pickings were slim when we got there. Well the boys got firewood all right!
Photobucket
I think Cam started to get a little frustrated, once he realized camp wasn't "just around the corner"

Cam:" Hey Derek, I've got an idea! Why don't we haul firewood through the hardest part of the trail?"

Thank you boys. We appreciated it!

We got into camp nice and early, about 2:00, which gave plenty of time for some lounging, and a nice afternoon nap. We carefully chose our campspots, or so we thought. When we were choosing a firepit, we failed to realize that the tides would keep rising, and that the spot we had chosen was the farthest down the beach. I think we sat for over an hour, just crossing our fingers that our fire wouldn't get washed away.
Photobucket
(Note the logs stacked on the one end...at one point the waves were coming up underneath those...good thing for us it didn't go any higher!)
Photobucket
Friday night was definately a highlight. We had gathered rocks and thrown them into the fire, so by night they were nice and hot. Then we all put on our swimsuits, huddled into a circle with the rocks in the middle, and sat on the edges of a tarp. Add a little water over the hot rocks and we had ourselves a heavenly sweat hut. It was soo hot in there! Once we had all the steam we could handle, we all broke out of the tarps and ran straight into the ocean. So much fun! Although I think other people at the campsite thought we were a little bit nuts...

Saturday:
LAST DAY! We took our time rolling out of bed and packed up camp, then headed out for our last 5 km.
Photobucket

Photobucket
And what a 5 km it was! Just imagine Bear's Hump. Only 5 times as long.
Photobucket
With ladders.
Photobucket

Photobucket
By this point, we understood the comments of those people in the beginning about how clean we were, and to enjoy the mud bogs and the ladders...we had been there, done that.
Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket
I had never been so happy to see a km marker as I was to see this one! We were finished!
Photobucket
And the tripod comes in handy once again!
Photobucket
A quick little ferry ride, and we were back in Port Renfrew.
Photobucket

Photobucket

Photobucket
And thank heaven the van was waiting for us! Instead of waiting for the shuttle, we gave the keys to a family we met on the trail that was headed the other direction, and had them drive it back for us. Good thing we have good judge of character?
Photobucket

We headed back into Victoria, got a hotel, and SHOWERED (I have NEVER wanted to shower so bad in my life!), then went and crashed the YSA bbq that was going on. I mean, free food? How could we pass that up? Then some of the YSA there gave us a little tour, took us up to a gorgeous lookout, and fed us delicious ice cream. AND we slept in real beds that night. It was a good day.

Sunday:
When we were at church the week before, we heard that Elder Oaks was speaking at a special meeting, so we went a listened to him. He gave a great talk, and he is so funny! We really lucked out being able to heard him before heading back. Then we hit the road, and began our lovely journey home. Roll in at 4 in the morning, and our trip was complete!

Well there you have it, the rundown of the West Coast Trail...#14 on my list. It was definately an experience of a lifetime, and very challenging at times. Lucky for me we had a great group that helped me along the way! I couldn't have asked for better people to go with. And if anyone's game for next year...give me a call!

12 comments :

  1. Holy crap Amy, that was awesome! I'm so thrilled that you got to do that, looks like you guys had a great adventure; I've always wanted to do the Trail! Count me in for next year!

    ReplyDelete
  2. amazing shots.
    these get me really excited, glad you guys went and liked it

    ReplyDelete
  3. wow you are amazing that was so fun to read!!! Great memories that is AWESOME!! You are my hero seriously! Great photos too !

    ReplyDelete
  4. That is amazing! Are married people allowed to come? I'm game!

    ReplyDelete
  5. longest post EVER! good one though.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Freak. I am in love. The pictures. The stories. Seriously. You are a rockstar.

    ReplyDelete
  7. i've been waiting for this post!! it looks like it was an amazing trip!

    ReplyDelete
  8. I can't even describe how cool this is.
    So I'll say this: Amy you are the coolest.
    What an amazing adventure. It looked dang hard, but so worth it!
    The pictures were amazing.

    ReplyDelete
  9. wow. I don't even know what to say, I'm amazed.

    ReplyDelete
  10. looks like you had such a fun time!! very cool ame!

    ReplyDelete