Category: coastal

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BestHike #1 – West Coast Trail, British Columbia

West Coast Trail is our top hike in the world.

Click PLAY or watch a 1-minute preview on YouTube.

West Coast Trail

Challenging in many ways.

So much VARIETY in pristine Canadian coastal wilderness.

Mystic dawns and mind-blowing sunsets. Hidden pocket coves and weird coastal geology.

You’ll never forget the West Coast Trail.

WCT ladders

AT A GLANCE

  • 75 km (47 mi), 5-7 days Pachena Bay <> Gordon River
  • 3-5 day routes possible via Nitinaht Village trailhead
  • southwestern edge of Vancouver Island
  • Pacific Rim National Park
  • Permits required 
  • May 1 – September 30
  • extremely rugged, requires a high level of fitness
  • 6,000+ backpackers / year

Read more on our WCT information page.

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Top 10 Hiking Destinations ➙ New Zealand

There’s no debate.

The Land of the Long White Cloud Aotearoa is by far the single best hiking destination on Earth.

North Island? South Island? Both are great. And both much different.

New Zealand has EVERYTHING a hiker could want.

Rees-Dart Track

New Zealand is insanely great for hikers. It’s safe. It’s clean. Trails are not crowded. It’s terrific for kids.

There’s no risk of altitude sickness as the glaciated peaks are at low elevation.

Best months are mid-November through mid-April for most treks.

More information on our New Zealand information page.

Our favourite tramp in New Zealand is the volcanic Tongariro Circuit. You’ll feel like you’ve entered Mordor in Lord of the Rings.

Click PLAY or watch a 1 minute introduction on YouTube.

See our Tongariro Circuit Information page.

Start planning your New Zealand hiking vacation right now.

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‘Coasteering’ = Hiking / Swimming Rocky Coastlines

Coasteering is movement along the intertidal zone of a rocky coastline on foot or by swimming, without the aid of boats, surf boards or other craft.

Coasteering allows a person to move in the “impact zone” between a body of water and the coast where waves, tides, wind, rocks, cliffs, gullies, and caves come together.

The term was first used by Edward C Pyatt as the combination of the words “mountaineering” and “coast” and was adopted by Andy Middleton in Wales in 1985, who then made it a business idea. …

The rocky cliff coasts of western Britain provide the world’s principal location for organised guided coasteering, where it is available from over 100 activity centres. …

Coasteering may be included as one of the disciplines for a stage of an adventure race. …

Read more – UKC – Coasteering: The Wildest Way to Explore the Coast


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Cape Scott Trail, Vancouver Island

Trip report by BestHike editor Rick McCharles

I hiked the North Coast Trail in 2012.

Vowed to return to the beaches on the Cape Scott Trail. One day. The best part of the North Coast Trail.

In 2025 I waited for good weather. And headed back to this paradise.

The worst part of this adventure is the 60km drive in on a gravel road. Bring a good vehicle.

Highlights for many in this remote N.W. corner of Vancouver Island is wildlife. Especially bears and the quickly evolving coastal wolves.

The trail itself is super interesting. Plenty of boardwalk.

Some of the old growth trees were cut in the past. But there’s still plenty of fascinating greenery.

First stop is fantastic San Josef Bay (3-4km from the parking lot).

stunned at the magical scenery 😀

From there, I continued on to the biggest and best beach of all ➙ Nels Bight.

There are a couple of campsites on the way with platforms.

Continue to Nels if you have the time and energy.

This was close to where I camped in 2012.

Sunset was fantastic on the west coast.

Here’s the view from my tent.

No photo editing.

Pit toilets are decent.

Be sure to lock up all your food on arrival as bear sightings are almost guaranteed. (I saw only 1 bear next morning. Unlucky. Everyone else saw more.)

Weather on awakening was far more typical. Overcast with fog.

It can be very muddy. Bring good footwear.

On the return to the parking lot, I stopped to read signboards and visit the historical sites.

From 1896-1907 approximately 100 Danish settlers attempted to establish a self-governing farming and fishing community. It was extremely difficult.

A 7-foot-high dyke built to protect these flatlands was wiped out the 1st year.

Later, the government offered incentives to all. By 1912 more than 600 people were homesteading in the Cape Scott area. By 1917 most of the settlers had left the area, leaving behind whatever they could not easily pack out, including farm tools, buildings, stoves, machinery, and vehicles.

Walking out seemed to go more quickly than walking in. That often happens to me on out and back hikes.

Always a pleasure to hike temperate rain forest.

I do hope I get back to the beaches at least once more in this lifetime. 😀

2025
paradise - Nel's Bight, Cape Scott Trail, BC
2012

Surprisingly, I saw not one wolf in two days. I’d seen plenty in 2012.

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Dave Farrant Trail, Vancouver Island

Out of the Forest Campground at Telegraph Cove is the Dave Farrant Trail to Blinkhorn Point trailhead.

1st Viewpoint

The challenging trail is a labour of love from Dave Farrant himself, who hacked out a route with chainsaw while hanging from a rope over the cliff.

It’s steep and rugged.

The campground asks that you sign-in when setting off for this trail. I suspect some inexperienced hikers have gotten in trouble in the past.

I only went as far as the “bus stop” (outhouse) which marks the scramble up to first scenic overlook.

That was enough for me. I turned around rather than continue to the Blinkhorn Peninsula. I’d fallen once already — and once was enough.

Looking back, the trail was fun. Scrambling over fallen logs. Navigating trippy roots.

There are some huge old growth stumps to admire.