West Coast Trail 2016

Preparing for the West Coast Trail

This coming summer I am booked to hike the West Coast Trail for the 4th time with the largest group yet.  Our group size is 10, and it just so happens that a family of 4 that I know are booked for the same dates,  more the merrier I guess.  

My WCT History

I have hiked this trail 3 times; the first was in 1989 as a young man with my 147th Venturer Scout Group, I was 17 and in the best shape of my life. I recall jogging most of the trail to get to the next great view point. We had a blast and to this day I am grateful for the patient leaders that invested so much of their personal time to help us have a great program. This trek was my final challenge prior to earning my Queen Venturer and Duke of Edinburgh's awards, honors I'm quite proud of.  

My second round was in 2011; you do the math, I was older and likely in the worst shape of my life, there was no jogging, mostly just surviving. On this trip I took my lovely wife and 3 other couples and though it was a much tougher experience, we all had the adventure of a lifetime. We became closer as friends and learned a lot about each other and ourselves. By the way, while I can still get my wife to camp with me, hiking is out, maybe I should of introduced her a little more gradually.

After the 2011 trip I couldn't find anyone that would do it again with me, so in August 2013 I hiked the trail solo. I was in better shape but still not great, hiking solo brings it's own challenges but once again, I had a blast.  The solo hike gave me a chance to get to know myself a little better and to meet knew people and make knew friends. I'm not sure I'm the biggest fan of hiking alone but it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be.

Like I said earlier, this year I will be hiking in a much larger group; it will consist of myself, my 5 kids, 6 friends and 2 of their children, that's 14 people total. I'm not sure how hiking with a group this size will go, but it should be interesting. I think our biggest challenge will be keeping a decent pace amongst the mud and ladders. I have planned a moderately aggressive schedule that I hope we can attain without injury.

Hiking with my kids

One special thing that is happening this time around is that my children are all coming with me. I have 5 kids, 2 daughters and 3 sons. My kids, ranging in age from 12 - 19, all enjoy the outdoors and I'm really excited that they all want to spend this much of their summer with their dear-old-dad.

I've been wanting to do this trail with my children for sometime, likely dating all the way back to when I hiked it the first time and was still only dreaming about who their mother would be. This last Christmas I told them all that all I wanted was for them to come with me on the WCT. It turns out they all decided to grant my wish, and I'm super excited.

Now that I've book our dates the big issue is how to outfit 6 people with everything they'll need, and keep it ultra light both gear wise and financially.

2016 Preparations

Well lets get started . . .
The first thing one needs to do is answer a couple question:

1. When I want to go? and,
2. Who I want to go with?

1. When do I want to go?

First you need to realize that there are only 3 seasons you are even aloud to hike the WCT, they are the two Shoulder Seasons and the Peak Season.

The Shoulder Seasons are from May 1 - June 14 and Sept 16 - 30. Some say the shoulder seasons are a great time to go but there is a greater risk of foul weather. The smaller crowds allow for a more secluded feel to your experience. Another benefit to going during the shoulder seasons is that's it's a lot easier to plan for the perfect date you want to hit the trail.

The Peak Season is from June 15 - Sept 15. I've only hiked in the peak seasons and had great success, however there is no guaranty of perfect weather, in fact just don't count on it. I have always enjoyed running into other hikers on the trail and have never felt as though it was over crowded. The parks do a great job of controlling the amount of hikers on the trail at any time.

The major down side experienced with peak season is the reservation process, if your reserving for a small group, it's not as big a deal but if your booking a larger group it can be a bit maddening trying to get dates you really want. This year was a nightmare, the website needs some overhauling, it can be a little confusing to orientate yourself through and they give a time limit to get all your info into the system, nothing's worse then frantically entering 10 people's info to realize you've run out of time and have lost your date. This year I didn't get my 1st, 2nd or 3rd choice, and ended up taking what ever I could get. It all worked out in the end, I just have to take an extra day off work and don't get the weekend to recoup prior to heading back into work. Oh well, it's still worth it.

I have a conspiracy theory that preference is given to a few of the professional guided tour groups who charge big money to have you follow them along the trail.  From what I understand you supply your own gear, food and winning personality and they are there to make you feel more confident. I'm really not against these outfits, if they are able to get you to pay that kind of money to help you feel more secure on the trail, more power to them. I just find it interesting that they are able to set there dates so early and never seem to have a problem nailing them with large groups. Rant over, sorry.

The West Coast Trail is closed from Oct 1 - April 30 due to prolonged periods of heavy rain, strong winds, high tides, large waves and short days. This being said apparently a small group did it and shared their experience on YouTube.  'm pretty sure it's not a wise thing to do, and if you do, you are on your own.

Here's a link to there video:

2. Who I want to go with?

The maximum group size you can book is 10 people, this is a big group when on any trail but on the WCT, it can be challenging to hike with groups of this size. The West Coast Trail provides many obstacles and when you have a large group each person has to get over the obstacle. As an example, take a ladder, it is recommended no more then two people on a ladder at a time, now add that to the fact that rarely does a ladder only come by itself, often it can be a set of 3, 4 or more ladders in a row. I'm not saying it's impossible but it will add time to your day on the trail. One way to combat this is to break your larger group into smaller hiking teams, this often happens anyway once everyone finds their comfortable hiking pace.

As I've noted before, I've hiked this trail alone and in groups, both experiences we're awesome.

Let's Do This

Once you've answered the first two questions it's time to get to work.  Here is my list of what you need to do next:

1. Meet with your group and go over what you're all getting into, you do not want any major surprises once on the trail, by that I mean, "YOU NEVER TOLD ME THIS TRAIL WAS SO HARD".  I have seen these conversations while on the trail and they are ugly. Unfortunately my wife was a little caught off guard when I took her but she handled it like a champ. I have seen other couples where one was not handling it so well while the other was ducking and diving. While I enjoyed the show I could tell that neither were enjoying themselves. This trail is tough, accept that from the beginning, it will make you hurt where you have never hurt before. Even as an experienced hiker I drag myself off this trail ready for Advil and a bed every time.
2. Reserve your planned dates. It's not an easy thing to do but worth the effort. In years past they have reserved spots for walk-on but this year for the first time in as long as I can remember, they are taking reservations for all spots for each day, not leaving any for walk-on. Another change this year was that they jumped up the Reservation dates to January, which I think came as a surprise to many people. I only new because I'm an over prepared person and was checking the site way before the expected registration day. 
• When you reserve you need to be prepared with the following info:
• preferred start dates - first choice and alternate dates;
• the number of hikers in your group;
• the names and emergency contacts for hikers;
• means of payment: Visa, MasterCard or American Express;
• the access point you plan to start from - Pachena Bay, Gordon River or Nitinat; and
• an email address to send confirmation and orientation information.
3. Be sure you have the required equipment. There are many opinions on this subject, some I feel over do it and tend to take way too much for the "what ifs", while others don't weigh the safety issues enough and find themselves having a miserable time because they don't have what they really need for this trail. I like to think of myself as an ultra light hiker and have found that this particular trail needs a fine balance in weighing your options. I have found that with proper consideration, a light weight hiker is able to safely hike this trail comfortably. I know I can hike this challenging trail with a base weight of 10 lbs, I know this because I've done it and really enjoyed my experience. I have also hiked this trail "ultra heavy" twice and those two times are what drove me to figure this "UL" thing out. 
4. Be sure you're physically up for the challenge. Training is important, go on a few overnight hikes and put some long kilometers under your feet. Proper fitness will significantly help you have an enjoyable time.  Learn how to stretch prior to your exercising, there is nothing worse then pulling a groin or straining your knees and ankles a few kms into your hike. As we get older our bodies need to be warmed up, every year I need to do a little more to get myself ready for the year's big hike.
5. Plan your transportation. However you plan to get to the trail, there are lots of options. I have driven and then caught the WCT express, I have driven and had someone move our vehicle and I have flown and again used the WCT express.  What ever way you plan on it will take some thought and will cost you $$$. This year we are fortunate enough to have some of our wives drop us off in Pachena Bay and pick us up in Port Renfrew. While we hike they will enjoy some of the more easy going activities Vancouver Island has to offer.
6. Plan your off-trail accommodations. What ever way you do it, you will likely spend a night or two before and after the trail, where and how you do this is as easy and spending more time in your tent or enjoying the comforts of fresh sheets and showers at any of the local accommodations on the Island. This time around we have booked nights at the Ramada in Nanaimo before and after the trail and one night at the Sea Beam Grappler House in Bamfield the night before we actually hit the trail. The night in Bamfield allows for us to go through the orientation the day before and hit the trail first thing in the morning.
7. Plan your time on the trail; how many days to complete, and where you'd like to stay along the way. Most people spend 5 - 7 days on the trail, I have done it in 4, 5, & 6 days. While it is doable in fewer days I think 6 is the perfect amount of time, allowing to you to set a pace that accommodates enjoying every part of the trail while not killing every day of your precious holiday time. Remember, part of your holiday will be used up getting to and from the trail unless your lucky enough to live on the Island. There are campsites all along the trail and all in my opinion are great, however, some come with better views and some are less crowded. When planning your time line it's important to evaluate how much you want to hike each day and plan your campsites accordingly. Remember when hiking the WCT you must also take into consideration the tides that if too high can cause delays.
8. Plan your menu. Nothing is better after a great day on the trail then a warm meal. Knowing this, I have made the mistake of taking too much food on this trail and I quickly realized that carrying a ton of food that you will never eat in 6 days sucks. Think through what you will really eat and don't let your eyes be bigger then your stomach. With careful preparation one can come up with an easy cook menu that will provide a high calorie/oz ratio. For me personally, unless I just must have a cooked breakfast, I like to take stuff I can eat quickly and get on the trail. No mess, no extra fuel for the stove and I can even eat as I'm hiking. Again lunch for me is no cook for the same reasons. Now comes dinner, I've tried the pure no cook on a camp and I just can't do it, I need something warm to lift my spirits when I've been properly beat. I'm not talking extravagant, I like to prepare meals that I only have to add hot water to. I like to control my sodium intake so I tend not to use the store bought meals any more, also a zip lock bag is a lot lighter than the store packaging both in weight and in cost. 
9. Become super excited because you're about to go on one hell of an adventure.

Well that's it for this post, stay tuned for future posts that will go into more detail of some of the points above.

If you have any questions, feel free to ask.

Happy Trails