Another beautiful day on the coast. It was supposed to be raining all the time out here. It has not rained a drop and the sky is clear. Part of the reason no one hikes in May is due to the bad weather. I have been incredibly lucky and continue to be for the rest of the trip.
I am gunna try and make it to Cribs Beach at Km 42. Last night I camped at Cullite Km 58. That means a 16 Km hike today. It is a longer stretch then I did yesterday but the hiking is supposed to ease up a bit today and for the remained of the trip.
Even though I feel like I am not pushing myself and ending my days by 2—3pm, if I make Cribs tonight I will be a full day ahead of schedule.
I packed up and said goodbye to the group. I followed by path back along the river to the cable car I erroneously crossed yesterday and started up the ladders. This was the worst stretch of ladders as some sections had you going up the equivalent of a 20 story building. Still, it beat following switchbacks all the way up a hill, but it does get your heart pumping.
At the top I reached a boardwalk section that was a nice respite from the more grueling sections
At Logan creek I came to a pretty impressive suspension bridge
After Logan I headed back to the beach at Walbren. It was my intended campsite for tonight in the original plans but decided to push through. I ran into a group of women hiking the trail. Actually 2 were trail guides hiking with their friends on some days off. I was surprised people needed guides for this trail, but oh well. I was also surprised that they would hike a trail they have done 100 times on the day off.
I hiked with them for a couple Kms and they showed me some of the tidal pools that others tend to miss in route.
Above is a starfish that had just eaten and was blown up in the middle full of lunch
I said goodbye when they stopped for lunch and rounded the last point before Carmanah lighthouse where there was a place to buy food. Below is a picture of a skeleton of a sea lion, or seal, I cannot tell the difference from bones alone. The head is in the bottom right with the log going through the eye socket.
More beautiful scenery
Here is a stream I had to hop through with the lighthouse in the distance
Below are shots of a foodstand called Chez Monique's. Here you can get some amazing burgers or fish sandwiches. Ya, they cost $25, but it is a nice break from dehydrated meals and Clif bars. On a side note I think I am maxed out on Clif bars. I have been eating them for years and I can’t deal with them anymore. I may try some other protein bars but I think it is time to switch over to salami and cheese on the trail. Of course this means I will have to actually hang/hide my food from bears now, whereas in the past I was pretty lackadaisical about it.
A link to the burger spot and some pictures
Leaving the burger joint I was told I could skip some of the mud inland by climbing down behind the lighthouse and bounce over the rocks since it was low tide. Well I somehow screwed that up and tried to go around the point directly on rocks. These seals were checking me out, but all you can see are their heads
I got caught it a tight spot with waves crashing in, but I did not want to retreat unless absolutely necessary. Well it came pretty damn close to being necessary, but I found a way through an area where I had no business being
Some good shots of the shelf below
And here was a bald eagle. I don’t pack a high end camera with a nice lends so wildlife shooting is rarely any good
I made it to Cribs beach and was all alone. I set up the tent and hammock and relaxed for a few hours as some others found there way into the beach site. No fire tonight
Until Tomorrow
Darren
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