Theresa, Tim, Melissa and I were lucky enough to secure a reservation for the West Coast Trail this year – over labor day weekend.
I'm really excited about it. It has been called the #1 best hike in the world by some, and one of the toughest trails in North America by others.
The WCT is a 47-mile long hike along the coast of Vancouver Island. Here are some of the aspsects that interest me the most:
- The trail has some interesting history, and is littered with ship wrecks.
- It's a combination of beach and forest hiking.
- Some exciting boulder and log scrambling at Owen Point
- Breathtaking views and sunsets
- Chance of seeing whales and sea lions
- Chance of not seeing bears and cougars 🙂
- Cable cars and suspension bridges
- Amazing old growth forests
There are maps available at: WCT Map Part 1 AND WCT Map Part 2.
Our current thinking is to fly from Lake Union to Victoria, stay over night – fueling up at Mountain Equipment Corp (as we can't bring fuel or meat into Ca)., then take the WCT Trail Suttle Bus to the trail head the next day.
Most people take 6-7 days to complete the trail. The fastest it's been done is in 2 days (1 night) by two triathlon runners. I'm thinking 5 days, 4 nights would be a decent goal.