Our #1 hike in the world.
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(via Backpacker TV)
cycle hiking Mayne Island
Cycle hiking the Gulf Islands – trip report by site editor Rick McCharles
Mayne Island is a rustic 21-square-kilometre (8.1 sq mi) island in the southern Gulf Islands chain of British Columbia. …
… a population of 1071. Mount Parke in the south-central heart of the island is its highest peak at 255 meters (837 feet). …
I arrived early enough on Mayne to do some sightseeing. First stop, historic St. Mary Magdalen, Anglican Church.
Nearby on Georgina Point is the most scenic light station on the island, built 1885.
One species not endangered anywhere. Canadian geese. 🙂
The previous two nights I was hidden away in the trees. But this wild camping tent site was worthy of a photo. Perfect.
I packed up next morning, stashing my panniers in the the trees. And cycled to the most popular hike on the island – Mount Parke.
I did a loop: Haliday Ridge Trail to the (appropriately named) Old Gulch Trail to the Lowland Nature Trail. My best hike in the Gulf islands, so far.
On the Haliday ridge I left a Summit Stone in an Arbutus tree. It seemed appropriate.
A highlight was watching Turkey Vultures pretend to be Bald Eagles.
The vistas are magnificent up here. My best weather, so far.
I was starving by the time I got down off the ridge. Happily Farm Gate Store is located near the trailhead. I had a burrito, coffee and muffin. All unbelievably healthy. 🙂
The rest of the day would be easy.
I peddled on to Campbell Point.
And was quite impressed with the facilities at the Adachi Community Pavilion.
It was here that the Kosumi family lived. Until 1942 when the Canadian government rounded them and all the other Japanese immigrants on the island and moved them to an internment camp. 😦
Today, the Japanese Gardens, located near Dinner Bay, are dedicated to the memory and legacy of the Mayne Island’s Japanese-Canadian community.
Of all the beautiful retirement homes I’ve seen so far, this one caught my eye. Elegant simplicity.
So … in the end I did only the one big hike on Mayne. Island Parks and Recreation does produce a brochure. But most of the other walks are very short.
After all this good weather it began to POUR liquid sunshine while I waited for the ferry to Victoria.
Hmm. What does a cyclist do in the rain?
cycle hiking Pender Island
Cycle hiking the Gulf Islands – trip report by site editor Rick McCharles
Pender Island is home to about 2,250 permanent residents …
North Pender and South Pender, which are separated by a narrow canal originally dredged in 1903. In 1955 the islands were connected by a one lane bridge, as it remains today.
I arrived Pender very tired. And worried. My guidebook said it was one of the hilliest islands. A local cautioned me that many of the steep decent had dangerous right angle turns at the bottom.
Arriving we had a bit of excitement. Two bald eagles. They spend a lot of time on this perch.
So far on this trip I’d seen plenty of deer. Quail. Bald eagles. Some sort of mink. Turkey vultures. The largest garter snake of my life. …
I rode directly to the Roe Lake trailhead. Wild camped. Too tired to eat, I watched Game of Thrones on my laptop until tired enough to sleep.
Did not get out of the tent until 8am next morning. That’s sleeping-in for me this summer. I packed up. Then walked to the trail.
It was far better than I had anticipated.
At the start you might expect you could mountain bike that 1.5 km loop. Not so. There are some very rough sections.
Psyching up, I headed (literally) for the hills. But before I got far I happened upon Vanilla Leap Bakery Cafe. One of those west coast hippie establishments enjoyed by all.
Free wifi. Good coffee. I ended up staying perhaps 90 minutes.
THEN I (literally) headed for the hills. And they are rough. I pushed my heavy bike up most of them.
But I managed to cross the waters over to South Pender. I wanted to climb Mt Norman, the highest point on the islands at 244m.
It’s a short, steep slog up to a gorgeous viewpoint.
On the way down I managed to miss a turn, ending up at a different trailhead on Canal Road. Rather than admit my mistake, I walked Canal Road back to my bike. Creating my own loop trail. (Not recommended.) 🙂
Again I needed to psych up for the return to the ferry. On Pender it’s uphill each way.
I should have stashed the bike in the trees and stood by one of the Car Stops. These are official alternatives to hitch hiking on some Gulf Islands.
Rather than a bus, locals are encouraged to stop and give free rides to anyone standing at one of these places. Good idea. At your own risk, of course.
With time to kill before my 4:20 ferry I hung out at Port Browning Marina. Very posh.
On to Mayne Island. 🙂
cycle hiking Galiano Island
Cycle hiking the Gulf Islands – trip report by site editor Rick McCharles
Galeano Island is 27.5 km long, 6 km at its widest point, and 1.6 km across at its narrowest point …
… population of 1258 inhabitants. …
Seeing a campground an hour out from the ferry landing at Sturdies Bay, I went to check out Montague Harbour Marine Provincial Park.
Nice setup. But the cost was $25 / site for up to 4 people. I prefer the pricing model $10 / person.
So I turned my bike around and wild camped nearby.
In the morning I packed up early and rode back to the campground to make coffee. There’s a good hike there called the Gray Peninsula Trail. About 2km.
I cycled on to the Pebble Beach hike trailhead. Breakfast was cold pizza on this bench.
You reach the coast at Cable Bay. Then saunter over to Pebble Beach.
On a trail map it looked like I could cycle a mountain bike trail to Laughlin lake, the largest body of water on Galiano. That’s a bit risky on a hybrid bike. Happily, it worked.
Four guys in this boat arrived for a picnic. Boat and kayak are the best ways to get to Dionisio.
I returned via the dead end Bodega Beach Drive seeing only 2 vehicles in 3 hours. An ideal place to cycle.
The best hike on the island was yet to come – Bodega Ridge.
Bodega started much like any other hike, a welcoming soft temperate rain forest trail.
The fun starts when you get up on the ridge. A steep drop with marvellous views.
Galiano was a hard day for me. I could barely keep my eyes open on the ferry to Pender.
I’d like to return one day. Kayak to camp at Dionisio. And climb Mt Galiano, the highest point on the island.
hiking Ilha Grande, Brazil
Ilha Grande … remains largely undeveloped. …
The island, which is 193 km2 (75 sq mi) in area, is now a popular tourist destination that is noted for its scenic beauty, unspoilt tropical beaches, luxuriant vegetation and rugged landscape. The highest point is the 1,031 m (3,383 ft) Pico da Pedra D’Água. …
Ilha Grande is one of the most pristine remnants of Brazil’s Atlantic rainforest making it one of the richest ecosystems in the world. …
Small-scale ecotourism is being encouraged on the island. Although it has no roads and motorised vehicles banned, the island has more than 150 km (93 mi) of hiking trails …
Stingy Nomads circumambulated the island in 5 days.
… In 5 days we saw: many marmoset and howler monkeys, squirrels, one armadillo, many lizards, owls, bats, parrots, vultures, different tropical birds, humming birds, many spiders with their huge webs all over the jungle and butterflies. On the official web page it says you can also see sloths, we weren’t that lucky, and they warn you about poison snakes, we were lucky enough not to see any. …
Ilha Grande, trekking in the paradise
Cape Scott and the North Coast Trail
Cape Scott and the North Coast Trail is the first comprehensive guidebook about one of Vancouver Island’s most iconic destinations. Each year, thousands of backpackers and nature lovers head to the northern limits of Vancouver Island, bound for the jewel of the region: Cape Scott Provincial Park and the recently completed North Coast Trail. …
This part of the world is a fantastic wilderness. But we have serious reservations about the standard route – don’t hike the North Coast Trail
Besseggen Ridge, Norway
How does this vista look? 🙂
KATCH SILVA:
This Norway hike follows a ridge that has incredible views of glacial lakes surrounded by peaks on both sides. …
The Outbound – Hike the Besseggen Ridge
Sunshine Coast Trail – day 2
trip report by site editor Rick McCharles
Inland Lake to Tin Hat Mountain
day 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Sunshine Coast Trail information page
This was my toughest day. A steep scramble up to Confederation Hut on the same-named lake. Then a long descent down to Fiddlehead Landing Hut. And finally a steep slog up to the top of Tin Hat Mountain.
This is not Fiddlehead Landing Hut. Rather a floating holiday home next door.
Hiking temperate rain forest can be lovely. Soft mulch underfoot. Plenty of variety. Nurse logs. Good visibility even in the trees.
I didn’t see much wildlife. Other than garter snakes.
One snake was eating a banana slug. I’d believed NOTHING could eat a banana slug. 🙂
Lisa from Ontario had seen a bear near the start of SCT. But – in general – you don’t see much aside from birds.
… Fact is, I never made it to the top of the mountain. About an hour short of Tin Hat Hut I dropped my pack on the trail and set-up on the trail.
Could barely keep my eyes open. That was 7pm. I’d been almost all of 12 hours on my feet. Mostly climbing up or down.
day 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Sunshine Coast Trail information page
Sunshine Coast Trail – day 1
trip report by site editor Rick McCharles
Mowat Bay to Inland Lake
My camera had multiple problems on this trip. Photos are inconsistent, at best. 😦
day 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Sunshine Coast Trail information page
AT A GLANCE
- the best jumping off point for the SCT is Powell River, close to Vancouver B.C.
- the Sunshine Coast is less rainy than the rest of the lower mainland, but can still be very wet
- up to 180km (112mi)
- possible to hike hut to hut without carrying a tent
- huts “first-come, first-sleep”. Each can accommodate at least 12 hikers. More huts are being added.
- Canada’s longest hut to hut hiking trail
- NO permits or reservation required
- free 🙂
- it’s considered B.C.’s hidden gem of hiking routes. Many have not yet heard of this adventure.
- recommended to carry a tent as a back-up. There are many scenarios which might cause you not to reach the next hut on any given day.
I caught the 10am ferry from Comox, Vancouver Island to Powell River.
My plan was to do the big central section. About 90km.
July 2015 we’d hired a boat to drop us at the northern trailhead Sarah Point. But quit the hike at Manzanita Hut after only 2 days. Driven out by mosquitos and wasps.
Could have taken a local bus to a trailhead, but instead walked from the ferry about 5km through town to Mowat Bay.
Here’s pretty Cranberry Lake in Powell River town.
Lovely day to start a hike. 🙂
Mowat Bay is close to sea level. It’s uphill from here.
Alder loves to overgrow the relatively little used trails. Blow downs are more frequent than are volunteers with chain saws. It’s rugged and challenging hiking. But pretty.
I ended up paying $5 to camp on Anthony Island. I slept in my tent.
A Danish couple took the hut.
They made dough from flour. Then wrapped it around a green branch to cook over the open fire. A Danish tradition, I understand. Burnt on the outside, raw on the inside. 🙂
day 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Sunshine Coast Trail information page
Pembrokeshire Coast Path
Antti Rantanen did the 300km in Wales in 10 days. Wet. Weather.
Click PLAY or watch it on Vimeo.
Trip report:
That’s one of our top 10 coastal trails.
besthike.com 