Our #1 hike in the world.
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Backpacking on Vancouver Island, Canada
Backpacking on Vancouver Island: The Essential Guide to the Best Multi-Day Trips and Day Hikes, was selected top guidebook at the 2024 Banff Mountain Book Competition.
Author Taryn Eyton.
I’m spending most of the year on Vancouver Island myself and can heartily recommend the destination and this guidebook.
In fact, the West Coast Trail on Vancouver Island is our #1 hike in the world.
OLYMPIC NATIONAL PARK in 4K
If you’ve never hiked temperate rainforest, plan a trip to Olympic National Park in Washington State.
There’s MUCH to do including some terrific coastal hiking.
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TOP 10 hikes ➙ West Coast Trail, BC, Canada
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.
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.
Hiking Cathedral Grove, Vancouver Island
Trip report by BestHike editor Rick McCharles
Click PLAY or get a glimpse on YouTube.
MacMillan Provincial Park is a 301-hectare (740-acre) provincial park in British Columbia, Canada. Located 25 km (16 mi) west of Qualicum Beach and 16 km (9.9 mi) east of Port Alberni, the park straddles Highway 4 and the Island Rail Corridor in central Vancouver Island.
The park is home to a famous, 157-hectare (390-acre) stand of ancient Douglas fir, known as Cathedral Grove, which draws visitors from all over the world.
… the only highway-accessible protected old-growth Douglas-fir forest in British Columbia.
In 2007 Cathedral Grove made the short list on CBC‘s competition Seven Wonders of Canada.
My video includes parts of both loops. AND some shots outside Cathedral Grove, in the Provincial park.
I stop every time I drive highway 4.
Dozens of times, so far.
It is a fantastic short day hike.
Learn to LOVE Hiking in the Rain 😀
Hiking in the rain can be miserable.
AND hiking in the rain can be wonderful.
You can hike the Pacific N.W. every day of the year. BUT many of those days will have a threat of rain.
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube. The joys and challenges of … wet weather.
TIPS:
- the RIGHT clothing (layers)
- long brim cap under long brim hood
- the RIGHT footwear
- the RIGHT backpack
- gear protected in dry bags
- electronics protected from water
- the RIGHT attitude
Having tried many systems over the years, I’m happiest now with …
- Helly Hansen LIFALOFT™ Hooded Insulator Jacket (washable)
- Columbia OutDry rain jacket
- Neoprene socks inside trail runners
No blisters. The shoes dry quickly. )My feet do get wrinkled after a couple of hours, however.)
If the rain really starts coming down, I’ll add an inexpensive Frogg Toggs waterproof jacket on top.
Since I bought a Hyperlite 3400 Windrider backpack, I’ve not used a pack cover. It’s quite rain resistant. Everything inside is protected from wet and water.
Check this REI post – How to Go Hiking in the Rain
Of course if lightning and thunder threaten, take shelter immediately.
Camping in the rain is definitely more challenging.
related – Miranda has some thoughts on Frogg Toggs. 😀
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
Dusky Track, New Zealand
Challenging. Terrible weather.
Swarming with sandflies.
But beautiful.
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
Surviving the Kalalau Trail, Hawaii
I met Blake and Eli cycling the Tuscany Trail in Italy.
World travellers, they’ve been living and working online from locations like Hawaii, Australia, Bali & Thailand.
Living the dream.
Click PLAY or watch one of their hikes on YouTube. Subscribe to the channel if you enjoy it.
Kalalau is one of our Top 10 coastal hikes in the world.
Hole in the Wall, Port Alberni BC
Hole in the Wall, a short day hike, is a is fast becoming a major attraction for the Vancouver Island community.
The hole is all that remains of a decades old water line.
Click PLAY or watch my 2023 video on YouTube. At dawn I had the waterfalls to myself.
Check in at the Port Alberni Visitor Centre for directions.
Parking can be difficult though the trail itself is only an easy 1.3km return walk.
Rather than following the normal route as posted on AllTrails Port Alberni Hole in the Wall, I walked instead from an industrial park end of Sherwood Road.
Definitely muddier and less traveled, I did find it interesting. Nobody else parked there.
Here are the rough trails as shown on Maps.me.
Click PLAY or get a glimpse of my 2021 hike on YouTube.
5 best hikes in the Caribbean
The Caribbean is not at all considered a hiking destination. But Lonely Planet does recommend these trails.
- Waitukubuli National Trail, Dominica (185km)
- Pico Turquino, Cuba (22.5-25km)
- Mt Christoffel, Curaçao (2.7km)
- Gros Piton Trail, St Lucia (4.7km)
- Dark View Falls, St Vincent (2.4km)
Details – The 5 best hikes in the Caribbean
Of those, we’re most interested in the long Waitukubuli Trail, officially opened in 2013.
Click PLAY or get a glimpse on YouTube.
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
besthike.com 