Hiking the Juan de Fuca Trail – Part 1

July 3, 2017February 8, 2019 / Maria / 8 Comments

It’s a been awhile, so I figured it’s time to get back on the blog with a new post!

Emily was in town last week, which is a sure indication that we’re off on an adventure. I haven’t taken any extended holidays in BC since I’ve moved here (just the occasional long weekend), so I finally took a week off and we hit Vancouver Island to explore for the week.

Visiting Canada’s “gnarliest” tree on the way to Port Renfrew

Hiking and camping have quickly become my favourite Vancouver pastimes. Our first summer here in 2014 we tried some car camping, loved it, and proceeded to do a ton of car camping in 2015. We also started doing some intense hiking in 2015, which quickly got me interested in the idea of backcountry camping so that I could visit areas beyond where I could hike to in a day. I’ve since discovered there’s nothing quite like waking up and poking your head out your tent to a beautiful lake or forest view.

So 2016 was the summer I took up backcountry camping, but I kept it pretty low key – mostly lugging my backpack into a campsite and then doing day hiking from there so that I didn’t have to keep carrying around all my gear. It was a good transition into backcountry, but my heart just kept screaming “more, more, more” at me, so this year I attempted my first multi-day trek.

If you know much about hiking in BC, then you’ve probably heard of the West Coast Trail, which has quite the reputation around here and a pretty cult-like following. I’m definitely not ready for a 75km trek in intense coastal wilderness, so I opted to set my sights on the 47km Juan de Fuca Trail instead.

Starting the Juan de Fuca Trail

Both trails are located along the west coast of Vancouver Island. The West Coast Trail starts in Port Renfrew and heads north along the coast to Bamfield. It’s a national park and you have to register to hike the trail. There are only a limited number of people allowed on the trail at any given time and there are no exit points along the trail – so once you start, you’re committed to finishing. In contrast, the Juan de Fuca trail starts north of Sooke, at China Beach, and extends north to Port Renfrew, ending off near where the West Coast Trail begins. Juan de Fuca is a provincial park, so it doesn’t require any registration to do the trail, which can be a downside in the high season as campsites can get pretty full. However, it does have the benefit of having 2 exit points along the trail – so if you’re struggling, it is possible to bail out.

We thought the Juan de Fuca Trail sounded like a good intro to multi-day hiking and decided to attempt the trail in 4 days/3 nights. We thought this would be totally manageable and I was pretty optimistic about our abilities and thought we wouldn’t have too much trouble on the trail. Even though it was my first multi-day hike, I’ve done lots of hiking and I’ve always kept up a pretty good pace.

The Juan de Fuca definitely challenged us. I won’t say we were unprepared for it, we had good gear and realistic expectations about the trail, it was just a whole lot harder than we thought it would be!

Day 1 was a bit of a rough start for us. We stayed in Port Renfrew the night before and our plan was for me to drop the car off at one end at China Beach and then catch the bus back to Port Renfrew. Unfortunately, the bus only goes to Port Renfrew and not all the way to Botanical Beach (another 3km down the road), which is where the trail starts. Originally we planned to drop Emily at the beach with the bags and I would just walk the extra 3km to meet her, but it was raining when we got up and we didn’t want to make her wait for hours in the rain, so I met her in Port Renfrew instead.

Rain, Yay!

The most common route to hike the trail is starting at China Beach and ending at Port Renfrew. The harder section of the trail is supposed to be located at the China Beach end of the trail, so it’s recommended to get the hard part out of the way first. However, based on our itinerary, the longest day of hiking would be the Port Renfrew section, and the shortest day the China Beach section, so we decided to do the trail backwards to get the longest day out of the way first. Now that it’s all said and done, I definitely don’t have any regrets about our decision as the first day turned out to be a pretty challenging one.

It’s definitely disappointing to start a hike in the rain, but fortunately it was pretty light rain and it was the only rain in the 5-day forecast. We had hoped to eliminate the extra 3km along the paved road, but sometimes you can’t always win, so our longest day of 14km on the trail became 17km right off the bat. We did try to hitchhike the road as we went, but we only saw two cars and sadly neither stopped for us.

It was still raining when we reached the trailhead, but we made it in pretty good time and we had a nice first km along the trail to reach the coast. The first few km’s follow pretty close to the coast through the woods and weren’t too difficult, but gradually the trail started getting more and more challenging. It became more technical, it was slippery because of the rain, and the mud started building up along the trail, so it was pretty slow going.

An idea of what “technical” means

We were aiming to hike 14km of the trail on Day 1 to camp at Little Kuitshe Campsite, so we would be passing through another campsite, Payzant, at the halfway point. We’d hoped to make it to Payzant for lunch, but unfortunately it wasn’t in the cards and we found a rock looking out over the ocean at the 5km mark to have our lunch. Fortunately, it did stop raining around the same time though.

9km was a lot of hiking to do after lunch, so we didn’t rest too long before hitting the trail to make our way to Payzant. Similarly, we only stopped in Payzant long enough for a pee break before heading out again. The further we went, the more the trail started to deteriorate. And by deteriorate, I mean it got pretty muddy. I’m not sure quite what I was expecting the trail to be like, but it was definitely more technical than I had anticipated. Since it’s mostly through the woods along the coast, you’re always going up and down from one creek to the next. If there’s no suspension bridge (and they are limited), sometimes you have to go fairly far back into the woods to get around the creeks. So lots of climbing and lots of mud.

We passed quite a few people on the first day. I suspected the trail probably got pretty busy on the weekends, so we decided to start our hike on a Sunday to try and avoid the crowds. We passed a lot of people going the opposite direction who were finishing up the trail. We only encountered one group going the same direction as us and we kept passing back and forth on the trail.

Our lunch view

Since you don’t see that many people on the trail, it’s pretty common to have a quick chat with the people you pass about how their hike is going and what you can expect to find ahead and behind you. The main news on the trail on Day 1 was that some people had been seeing a black bear along the beach. There were reports of a lone male bear and of a female bear with two cubs. I’d read it was pretty likely we might see a bear while on the trail, so it didn’t bother me too much and I had my bear horn and bear spray on me.

Fortunately, just before we reached the bear, we ran into a group who gave us a heads up that it was right ahead, otherwise I think it may have given us a bit of a fright when we first saw it. They told us it seemed friendly enough and was just minding its own business at the end of the beach. It was a bit of a weird area because we were going along the bluffs through the woods, but because the tide was out, a large section of bare rock was exposed below the cliff. We could see the male bear hanging out by the water at the end of the rock. Unfortunately, it’s right at this section that the trail slopes back down and you have to go out on the rock in order to cross back up on to the trail. I don’t think it would have been a problem if the bear hadn’t decided to head back to the woods at the exact moment that were we’re getting ready to exit them.

I’ve seen black bears before, but never as big as this guy. I would compare him to the size of a grizzly, so he was pretty scary. I didn’t want to cut him off, so we went back up the trail where we could watch him from above. But we were nervous that he would start to climb the trail up to where we were, so I decided to break out the bear horn to dissuade him from coming our way. It was a great time to discover that my crappy bear horn doesn’t work – it’s not like I was depending on it to potentially save my life or anything. So I’ve learned not to get a cheap air horn from Army Navy and I will be investing in a decent one.

Mr. Bear

Since the air horn wasn’t going to be any help to us, we made noise by singing Ed Sheeran’s Castle on a Hill at the top of our lungs instead. This did the trick. We could tell the bear heard us and he didn’t seem too interested – instead he went the other way and popped back into the woods further up. We kept singing and waited him out for about 15 minutes before heading down the trail and back up into the woods on the other side. I was still worried he would be up on the trail ahead of us, so we continued singing girl guide songs for the better part of an hour until we finally ran into some people going the other way and reached the parked cars at Parkinson Creek, which is one of the 2 bail-out opportunities.

We were in much better spirits once we reached Parkinson’s and had only 4 km to go to the campsite. Our trail notes informed us there was a nice flat section ahead, so even though we were really tired and it was later in the day (4pm), we were optimistic we could reach the camp by 6pm since we were averaging about 2 km an hour.

Along the trail we’d passed some pretty muddy people and they kept commenting to us that we were so clean. We didn’t think we looked very clean, but we figured it was just because we were only on our first day on the trail and some of the people we passed were on their 3^rd or 4^th day. We should have realized it meant that the worst was still ahead. Our flat km turned out to be the worst km of the day as “flat” translates into “super muddy” when it gets wet or has been wet for a while. It rained the whole week prior to our trek, so it’s not surprising that it was pretty muddy.

Her face says it all

Km 10 was definitely the worst km of the entire trail. We’d still managed to stay somewhat clean (thank goodness for gaitors), but km 10 was another story entirely. The whole trail was totally covered in thick, wet mud, often mid to knee deep and impossible to go around. We tried our best to navigate it without getting our feet wet (it was the type of mud that’s about a foot deep with another foot of dirty water on top of it), but after km 10 took a whopping 50 minutes, we knew we had to just give into the mud and go straight through it or we’d never make it to the camp.

It was a pretty grueling last 4 km and we got entirely covered in mud. Emily somehow managed to get it all the way up to her crotch during one dark moment when she got stuck and I had to pull her out. Our feet were wet and our socks squished out mud every step we took, but at 6:30pm we finally strolled into the campsite. We hadn’t stopped or taken our packs off once during the last 2.5 hours, so when I finally took it off my spine actually bent me completely forward because it was so used to my 35lb pack and I had to hobble around for a minute before I could properly stand up straight.

Little Kuitshe Campsite

Little Kuitshe was definitely my least favourite of the 3 campsites we stayed in because it’s a wooded campsite and you can’t see the beach, but we found a really nice spot to pitch our tent that was complete with a home-made benched cooking area and a clothesline. It wasn’t hard to find a camping spot, but it was reasonably busy and by the end of the evening I think every campsite had been taken. There were 2 or 3 other groups that wondered in after us – but everyone else was hiking the opposite way and was on the final leg of their journey.

Emily led us in a nice yoga/stretching exercise and then we pitched the tent and got supper on the go. But we were zonked after 17km and 9.5 hours straight of hiking, so we hit the sack pretty fast. I still didn’t really know what to make of the trail after Day 1, I just hoped it would get easier on Day 2!

To Read Part II of this blog post, click here.

Here’s a few more pictures from Day 1:

Favourite Hikes in Southwestern BC

October 10, 2016December 17, 2024 / Maria / 7 Comments

I feel like I haven’t been in BC long enough to be advising anyone on hiking, but it’s become a favourite pastime of mine and since I moved here I’ve done 42 hikes (I counted!), so I’m going to share some of my favourites. (all photos taken my me!)

#10 Garibaldi Lake – I’m starting with Garibaldi Lake because it is easily one of the most popular day hikes and it was my first major hike (15+ km). I was totally blown away by the view at Garibaldi Lake, which both deepened my love of the outdoors and inspired me to take up backcountry camping this summer. The downside to this hike is that the trail to the lake is a bit of a slog. It starts with 6km of switchbacks, but the view at the end is phenomenal! (18km, 800m gain, 7 hours)

#9 Joffre Lakes – Another super popular hike – the best part about Joffre Lakes for me is that, unlike Garibaldi Lake, the entire hike is incredibly gorgeous! The scenery is so amazing throughout the entire hike, it’s almost overwhelming. What’s definitely overwhelming though is the crowds. Everyone knows this a relatively easy hike for the payoff and it’s been heavily marketed to tourists. I think it’s great to see so many people out enjoying the beautiful landscapes, but it does take away from the backcountry feel. I’d recommend doing on a weekday if possible. (11km, 350m gain, 5 hours)

#8 Hollyburn Mountain – I’ve only gone snowshoeing on Hollyburn Mountain, but it was so much fun! It’s a pretty steep walk up to the top, but it’s not a long distance. The steep ascent is worth it though because then you can participate in the fun tradition of sliding back down the whole thing on your bum, So make sure to bring a garbage bag with you! The view from the top looking out into the watershed is beautiful! (10km, 400m gain, 4 hours)

#7 Wedgemount Lake – Located just past Whistler, this is tough, steep hike. I did this as an overnighter and was totally pooped by the time we made it to the lake. There’s a breathtaking view of the valley as you make your way up to Wedgemount and a beautiful view of the lake from the top. It’s a scramble up to the top though, so expect to spend the better part of an hour climbing up loose rock. The highlight of Wedgemount for me though is the glacier, which is another 20-30 minute walk from the lake. (14km, 1200m gain, 7 hours)

#6 Elfin Lakes – The second most popular hike after Garibaldi Lake, which I just completed this past weekend. It’s a long trail at 22km, but it’s one of the easier hikes on the list. The trail is extremely well maintained and fairly easy along the entire length. It was pretty foggy on the day I visited, so I didn’t get the best view of the surrounding mountains, but there’s a beautiful walk along the ridge on the way there and a hut you can stay in overnight, which is super popular during the winter. (22km, 600m gain, 6 hours)

#5 Tenquille Lake – This is a tough one to get to without 4WD, which significantly shortens the hike along the service road, but has a beautiful view during the last few kilometers of the hike. This was my first foray into backcountry hiking and we camped overnight at the lake, which I would highly recommend! The views around the lake are incredible and I’d love to go back and explore more around the area. I was too early for most of the alpine flowers, but still got to see a few in the meadow! (14km, 6 hours)

#4 Semaphore Lakes – A short drive from Tenquille Lake, but the trailhead is much more easily accessible. It’s a short hike (which is nice if you’re trying backcountry for the first time), but it’s pretty steep, so don’t be deceived by the 3km length. The view at the top is amazing though and this is one place where it’s easy to escape the crowds (maybe I shouldn’t be boasting about it?). There’s several lakes to explore and you’ll be surrounded by beautiful snow-capped peaks and glaciers! (5km, 300m gain, 3 hours)

#3 Three Brothers Mountain– This hike is located in Manning Park and is part of the Heather Trail. We hiked the first 10 kilometres of the trail to climb up Three Brothers Mountain. What I loved about this hike is that it’s scenic the entire way, made even more amazing during late July/early August, when the meadows are covered in thousands of wildflowers. You do most of the elevation gain on the way up to the trailhead, so it’s not a difficult hike, just long. My favourite part was hiking along the ridge of Three Brothers Mountain with a 360 degree view all around! (21km, 500m gain, 6 hours)

#2 Brandywine Meadows/Mountain – Another hike that is made much easier with a 4WD, this was one of my favourites due to the incredibly low volume of people. I think we saw about 5 people the entire day, which is in stark contrast to most of the trails. The hike to the meadows is very short if you take 4WD the whole way up, so we decided to extend our hike up Brandywine Mountain where I stood on my first glacier! The view of the valley from the top is breathtaking. (12km, 1200m gain, 5 hours)

#1 Panorama Ridge – Definitely tops my list as one of the all-around best hikes. If you’re super intense, you can do Panorama as a 30km round-trip day hike, but we opted instead to camp at Garibaldi Lake overnight. Like I said, the hike to Garibaldi Lake is kind of boring until you reach the lake, but Panorama Ridge is scenic the whole way. You spend the first half of the hike looking out at the ridge, then you have an excellent view of Black Tusk until you reach the top where you are rewarded with the most amazing view of Garibaldi Lake and the surrounding mountains. (15km, 600m gain, 6 hours)

Continue to Part II.

Back to the Mountains

May 28, 2016 / Maria / 1 Comment

I’d intended for this to be my last blog post on the trip, but it turns out I had a lot to say on the Panama Canal, so I’ve split it into two blog posts, one for each of our last two stops: Boquete and Panama City.

After we left Bocas the weather improved and we didn’t see much rain for the rest of the trip. We took a shuttle bus from Bocas to Boquete, which is located in the mountains about midway between the Pacific and Atlantic Ocean, but still near the Costa Rican border.

I really liked Boquete and wished we had more time to spend there. The drive through the mountains is incredible; Boquete is located in a valley with the Rio Caldera flowing through the city and is surrounded by rolling green mountains. We didn’t have too much planned for Boquete, but we found a company that set us up on a tour for our first day there.

Boquete is a great area for wildlife lovers and hikers. It’s also known as one of the best locations to see the Resplendent Quetzal – a rare and beautiful bird. We went hiking along the Pipeline Trail on our first morning, which is named for the natural spring water that is piped down along the trail to the city. Our guide was a Panamanian named John who turned out to be one of the best guides to go with if you want to see quetzals. He’s actually writing a book on them and is excellent and seeing and hearing them. He can even do the quetzal call and near the end of the hike, a quetzal actually responded to his imitation of their call!

We started off at a pretty slow pace, observing and identifying the many birds that hang out in the valley. Eventually we picked up the pace to get higher up in the mountains in hopes of spotting the quetzal. In the end it didn’t take too long and John spotted two male quetzals for us! They were quite close and I got some great pictures of them on my camera and on my phone through John’s scope. Even Emily, who maintains she has no interest in birds, was impressed with the quetzal.

In the afternoon we visited the Cangilones de Gualaca, also known as the “mini-canyon”, which is a popular swimming spot among the locals. The canyon was formed where the river cuts through the rock in the dry season. In the wet season the water level can rise so high that the canyon becomes completely covered, so we were there at the perfect time. There’s a little waterfall at the start of the canyon and it’s very deep, so you can jump into the water pretty much anywhere throughout the canyon.

The bigger challenge is getting back out of the canyon. Some of the locals are great rock climbers, but even though we tried several times, Emily and I had no luck climbing out of the canyon. As Emily said, it’s too much work for vacation anyways, so we were forced to swim the entire length of the canyon anytime we wanted to get out. There were a few locals around since it was a Saturday, but we were the only tourists and had a great time relaxing in the canyon. A few of the local kids took an interest in us and Emily’s go-pro, but they were very disappointed it didn’t have a screen and they couldn’t see their photos.

On our second day in Boquete we struck out on our own. We decided to do a short hike to the lost waterfalls, which goes up the river to three separate waterfalls. The trail is not well maintained beyond the first two waterfalls, but we decided to do it anyways and were in quite a state when we finished. It climbs up and down pretty steeply and Emily got totally covered in mud. The waterfalls were very beautiful though and I personally loved the mountain vistas.

Our visit to Boquete reminded me that as pretty as beaches are, I really love the mountains. I guess that’s the Vancouverite in me coming out. Boquete had the most beautiful rolling green hills and I wish we had a car so that we could explore the area further. We also enjoyed that it was cooler up in the mountains and we even cooled down enough to hop in the Jacuzzi at our hotel in the evening, which is a great way to relax after hiking!

From Boquete we took a bus to David, one of Panama’s larger cities, where we caught our only domestic flight to Panama City. It’s only a short flight, but it was quite the experience! From the airport we could see rain and lightning off in the distance. It reached us just after we boarded the plane and we had a huge lightning show as we sat on the tarmac waiting to take off.

It was one of the scarier flights I’ve taken and the seatbelt sign remained on for the entire flight. We were in the clouds for most of the flight with flash lightning going off around us every 5-10 seconds. There was a lot of turbulence and the cabin was constantly flashing purple from the lightning outside our window. Occasionally we would climb above the clouds and see them illuminated by the lightning – it was an intense flight and we were certainly happy when we arrived!

Stay tuned for my last post on Panama City and one of our favourite attractions, the Panama Canal.

Maria