Trip report by BestHike editor Rick McCharles.
Day 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | gear | video | WCT info
June 12, 2021
Cribs to Cullite
My good camera died permanently 💀 the previous day. So I have fewer photos from the last 3 days.
Cribs is unique. I love the weird natural rock breakwater.
Here’s the campsite.
Pit toilets are excellent on the the WCT by the way. Some of the best I’ve seen around the world.
Again, I started on the beach in my water shoes. The weather steadily improving.
The iconic image of the West Coast Trail for me is a sea stack. Most of those are on the Port Renfrew end.
Wolves are common on beaches here now. We saw many prints.
In fact, a woman from Carmanah Light Station was interviewing hikers and recording what wildlife they’d seen.
I climbed the stairs up to the Light Station, even though visiting was still not allowed due to COVID.
It doesn’t take long to walk around. And drop back to the beach.
NOTE – I was told the very WORST inland trail of all right now is the section heading towards Bamfield from the Light Station. I was also told it would be CLOSED until improvements could be made.
Nearby is legendary Chez Monique’s, a popular snack bar on the trail for decades. Monique Knighton ran that — but died New Year’s Eve 2017 at age-78.
Rumour had been that it would not reopen for 2021.
SURPRISED I was to find a family at the old location. They hoped to reopen to some extent this season when supplies arrived.
It’s a pretty beach walk from here.
The weather kept improving.
Bonilla Point. Vancouver Point,
Cablecar over Walbran Creek.
From Walbran to Cullite I stayed up on the inland trail, bypassing Adrenaline Surge, the most infamous on the WCT.
I actually like the ladders, each time considering how the trail must have been before they were constructed.
This was my first time crossing the magnificent new suspension bridge over Logan Creek. While this climate could quickly overgrow most of the manmade structures, this bridge will survive for hundreds of years.
One more cable car. And I dropped down to camp.
Arriving late yet again, there were only two obvious campsites left at Cullite.
But mine was a good one. Mostly sheltered from the rain.
Guys from my shuttle van camped 4 of 5 nights at the same spots as me. They got a big fire roaring every night.
A big fire to try to dry their hiking boots. Not the best footwear for the WCT in my opinion.
Next day I saw a hiker had abandoned his.
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