Thursday, September 28, 2023 - Back on the Trail - 8.86 miles - Km 14 to Km 0 - 1158’ total vertical up - 1152’ down - 4 hrs 52 minutes - Darling Creek to Pachena Bay

Boy, did it rain last night!  I was sound asleep when it started about midnight, but the drumming on my tent slowly woke me up. At first I ignored it, but I eventually realized I should check the margins of the tent to make sure no water was leaking in. A quick look with my headlamp showed all was dry, yet I did raise the edges of the bathtub floor to make sure the water stayed out, then went back to sleep, or at least tried to. The drumming of the rain was intense and loud. 

I dozed off and on the rest of the night. At 5:30am I realized I had not written about the two days and three nights spent at Nitinath so I cranked up my iPhone and got caught up. 

Lying there in the tent everything was damp. Nothing worse than damp nylon. Nothing had taken a direct hit from rain, but the humidity must have been about 120%. I was warm and very comfortable on my sleeping pad, my down quilt thrown over me, but it was clammy. 

I saw Malcolm walk by the front of my tent about 7:00am, said good morning, and began getting out of bed. I packed everything before emerging from the tent, then wandered up to the bear box to get my food. Bones was now up, as was Malcolm Jr. 

Once fed and packed we headed out, about 8:55am. First order of business was crossing the Darling River. There is no bridge and although I walked a bit inland looking for rocks to hop I ended up wading the river. My socks and shoes were already totally wet having not dried a bit overnight so the shock of wading the stream wasn’t a big deal. We were on the beach for a Kilometer to Michigan Creek. The sun was out with a few clouds in the sky. A gorgeous morning. We rock hopped Michigan Creek and then walked down the beach a bit to some hanging bouys that we thought marked the entrance to the trail. Malcolm was a bit in the lead and followed a faint path off the beach that quickly dead ended. We retraced our steps back to the river and found the trail leading up and out of the campsite. It was muddy and steep at first but soon reached the plateau. The trail was a real trail!  Well maintained, easy to stride out on for the most part and well brushed. We stopped at Pachena Lighthouse, met the keepers and admired the view, warming ourselves in the sun. 

About a Kilometer further down the trail was a side trail that lead to an overlook out onto a large flat rock area about 2-3 acres in size. This was covered in Sea Lions barking, growling and lazing in the sunshine. We found a nice place to sit and watch and spent 15-20 minutes admiring these huge, lumbering animals. Back on the trail we moved non-stop for an hour until my stomach cried out for lunch. We all stopped and Malcolm and I had a Michelle Shake, then it was off again. We would have liked to walk the beach the last Kilometer to the car but the tide was in so we climbed up the three ladders and down the four we had already played on a week ago to reach the car. 

The bus driver that had ferried us a week ago was outside the office and consented to take our picture. Malcolm Jr wanted to take a last swim in the ocean. Us three old guys changed out of our wet shoes and loaded up while Malcom swam. 

We drove into Bamafield looking for free showers. We found a grocery store to get coins for the showers back at the Pachena Point Campground, then back to the campground to take showers. Nice hot water but cold air once out of the hot spray. 

Clean and loaded into the car, it was a long drive to Port Alberni where we stopped at the Dog Mountain Brewery for dinner. I had a green salad with chicken breast. Back in the car we drove to Naniamo, caught the 8:15pm ferry to Tsawwannen. The drive to Anacortes was interrupted with a quick stop for gas north of Mt. Vernon at Bow Hill. Bones and I washed windows while Malcolm pumped gas and then we completed the journey to Malcolm’s house, dropping Malcolm Jr. off at his house about midnight. Bones drove his car to Malcolm’s house and we got to bed about 12:15am.  Long day.  Great trip.

Friday morning we were up about 7:45am. Malcolm prepared toast and an omelet for us for breakfast, then Bones and I loaded up our cars and drove for home.  I stopped at the grandkids house about 12:45pm and played with Junie, Izzy and Sam until Sam went down for his nap at 2:20pm. Junie, Izzy and I loaded into the white van and picked Robby up from school. I was showing Robby the photos of conchs, sea lions, seagulls, kelp and the rest of the trip when Sally arrived. She and I left shortly, went to tour their new house and then drove our separate cars home, me in the Caldwell’s Prius, her in our Prius.  What a great 10 days!

Chuck fills his water bottle at Michigan Creek

Pachena Point Lighthouse

Chuck descends a long ladder

Sea Lions on the rocks separated by a large surge channel

Close up of the Sea Lions

Malcolm, Bones and Malcolm Jr and their Gnome at the finish of the trail

Wednesday, September 27, 2023 - Back on the Trail - 12.25 miles - Km 32 to Km 14 - 869’ total vertical up - 1004’ down - 7 hrs 38 minutes - Nitinath to Darling Creek

No use getting up early for two reasons. The boat across the Nitinath Narrows doesn’t start making the crossing until 9:30am and the tides are not favorable further up the beach until after noon. Our start got pushed back a bit further because Shelly and Carl in the Crab Shack didn’t open until after nine and were a bit slow getting breakfast going and computing our acculturated bill. We didn’t load into the boat until 10:15am. No matter. Low tide wasn’t until 12:30pm and the 2.7m tide to allow crossing the beaches didn’t happen until after 2:30pm. 

Malcolm, Malcolm and Bones enjoyed a sausage, scrambled egg and hash brown breakfast. I ate my standard, and delicious, cereal for breakfast. Hippi Doug took us across the now quickly running inlet, tied up at the “dock” on the other side and we gingerly walked the narrow plank from floating dock to shore, glad to see it had roofing nailed to its slippery surface. Malcolm Jr and Bones headed up the trail first, Malcom and I lagged behind for a minute, started hiking, then realized we had not started our recording devices, got them recording and then started out again. 

We were in the woods for the first few Kilometers, from Km 32 to 29, then dropped to the beach at Tsquadra Pt. We walked the beach, a mixture of soft, grainy sand and bedrock to Tsusiat Pt. Here the tide did not allow us to round the outside of the point so we took a short trail up over the neck of the point and dropped onto the beach on the other side. Malcolm took to the forest trail (he found it easier on his right knee which beach walking seemed to aggravate) while Malcolm Jr, Bones and I stayed on the beach to Tsusiat Falls. Malcolm dropped down off the trail to join us. Here we ate lunch at the base of the falls, Malcolm Jr went for a swim in the pool at the base of the falls, M & M played a little frisbee and Bones visited the facilities before we climbed back up to the forest trail and continued on to the Klanawa Cable Car river crossing. I got out ahead and had to wait about ten minutes for the rest to catch up. While on the platform for the cable car I helped two people crossing from the other side by pulling on the ropes to bring them across.  Malcolm and Bones arrived as they finished their crossing, doing just one man to the car at a time. The second man noticed his bear spray was missing. Bones and I loaded ourselves into the car and started across, telling him we would send the bear spray back if we found it on the other side. 

This must be the longest cable car on the trail, and the most difficult to pull up the last half to the platform. We found the bear spray and sent it back, but then couldn’t find Bone’s trekking pole. We concluded we much have dropped it in the river on the crossing. M & M soon followed and we were back on the beach again for over 3 Kilometers. There was no forest alternative on this stretch, (Km 23 to Km 20). 

A series of cliffs and headlands forces the trail back into the forest for Km 20 to Km 17. Here, for the first time, we found real trail, not the root tangled, stump blocked, boardwalk mess the previous days had presented. We were able to cruise and covered the 3 Km quickly, At Km 17 we dropped back to the beach and pulled into Darling River campsite at about 6:00pm. Malcolm thought he would take the trail for this section, but returned to the beach in less than a Kilometer when the forest proved a little more difficult walking than the beach. 

Due to all the rain the fire ban had been lifted. Once tents were up and dinners cooked we all sat by the fire I had started and enjoyed the warmth and light. A couple ladies camping further up the beach joined us around the fire for about 15 minutes. Bones sang a John Prine song and then I trundled off to bed. What a great day.

Looking out to the ocean through Nititath Narrows

Chuck on the trail high above the surf

Chuck up on the trail

Malcolm Jr, Chuck and Bones walking the pristine beach. Notice the arch of rock on the point. Tide was too high for us to go through it. We had to pass over the treed isthmus.

Longest cable car crossing of the trip

An old anchor graces the shore

Chuck and Malcolm lounging in the chairs overlooking Valencia Point, named after the ship that wrecked here

Bones and Chuck enjoy the one and only campfire they were allowed to build on the hike. At least the pounding rain made for one good thing.

Our camp on the beach at the Darling River

All the camps had composting toilets. Climbing ladders to go #2 seemed natural after all the other ladders we had to climb during the days of hiking

Malcolm, Bones, Malcolm Jr and Hippie Doug crossing the Nititath Narrows to continue our hike after a two day layover to wait out the storm.

This is the "dock" and "gangplank to get to shore on the north side of the narrows

Malcolm strides out on the beach

The surf was high, big and pounding. We didn't get to pass through "Hole in the Rock" pictured here

Malcolm Jr and Bones rounding a point just before Tsusiat Falls with the tide still threatening

Tsusiat Falls

Malcolm hides his pack in a bear box. The ladders leading up and down from the forest trail to the beach are partially visible in the background

The violent storm dislodged great masses of kelp which washed ashore

Conchs in the end of a cut log on the trail

Wednesday was a gorgeous, sunny day.

Chuck inspects the dislodged kelp piles

Chuck and Malcolm on the WCT high above the beach

Monday and Tuesday, September 25 & 26, 2023 - Hiding From the Storm - 0.00 miles - 0’ total vertical up - 0’ down - Zeroing at Nitinat

There are lots of reasons to take a zero. Most usually involve a need of rest or resupply or injury healing time. On this trip it was to avoid bad weather. 

A storm has been building off the coast of Vancouver Island for most of the week leading up to this hike. We have watched each day, wishing it would go away or that the weather services were wrong. Friday was gorgeous, as forecast. Saturday rained all morning as forecast, but gave us an unexpected dry afternoon. Sunday was supposed to be rain free until late in the afternoon, and it was. Monday and Tuesday were to be nasty with a strong storm surge and heavy rains. And they were. So we spent both days and the three nights bookending those days at Nitinat. We had a cabin with no electricity, four queen sized bunk beds, a propane heater and a couple chairs and tables. We were comfortable and dry. But it seemed noisy here. The roar of the ocean was loud and unremitting. The storm had worked the ocean to a frenzy. We sat in our cabin or out on the deck or down at the Crab Shack and watched water flow into the “lake” from the ocean all day long, regardless which way the tide was supposed to be going, due to the storm surge. The water level in the estuary was full, the water was right up to the branches of the shoreline trees that hang over the water surface, close to the water line. Foam and debris were carried into the “lake” as they called it, from the ocean all day. 

Both days were exceedingly relaxed days. Up about 8:00am. Breakfast of cereal on my bunk. Down to the Crab Shack to sit around the wood stove and chat with people. I watched 6 episodes of “Stranger Things” during the two days. Played cribbage with Malcolm. 

We spent a lot of time hanging in our room just talking. Super nice. Got to know Bones better, as well as catch up with Malcolm. Super fun people to be around.

On Tuesday there was a break in the rain.  We hiked south on the trail about a mile, retracing our steps, and then left the mail trail to follow a connecting route to the ocean shore. Here we found the surf pounding, 12 foot or better waves smashing into the rocks and up surge channels. We hung out for over an hour just marveling at the waves and making phone calls home. In Nitinath we didn’t have any cell service. Here we had nearly four bars. It gave Malcolm a chance to catch up with Michelle on the John Muir Trail and to find where she had been the past few days and what her plans were going forward. I connected with Andy, he was at Disneyland, and with Sally. 

Back at the Crab Shack Malcolm and I started a Crib game while waiting for crab dinner. We had to suspend play when the crab was served but finished once we had the table wiped down. A Canadian hiker named Delaney wanted to play the winner. Malcolm scored 23 on his first hand against Delaney and never looked back, double skunking him. His friend, Kenny wanted in on the action so we played a game of four handed, Malcolm and I against Delaney and Kenny, Yanks versus the Canucks. There was much playful banter about cheating as Malcolm and I pulled ahead. Kenny was spouting political complaints about our two left leaning leaders, Trudeau and Biden while we countered. At times it felt slightly hostile. It didn’t help that at the end of the game, when boxing up the cards I accidentally dropped a card on my lap that I didn’t notice until I scooted back. Of course it was an ace. More semi friendly jiving about cheating occurred, especially now that they had the “evidence”. 

During these two days the sound of the pounding surge of surf out on the ocean filled the air. It wasn’t until after the storm had passed Wednesday morning that we noticed how quiet it had become that we realized how big and unusual the storm surge had been. 

We had the chance to interact with Sam and his wife Hazel, both 1st nation natives of Canada while we were in the Crab Shack. Sam's brother, Carl started the Crab Shack 23 years ago. On Monday Carl and his wife Shelly took over the duties of cooking and tallying food orders to tabs. Both women were a little standoffish unless they were talking about themselves or their families. Carl and Sam were both jovial men, good story tellers and liked to sit around the wood stove and bs. It was fun to get to know them a bit. The only non-native worker was Hippie Doug. We aren't quite sure how he got into this self proclaimed nepotism group enterprise, but he was well liked and an industrious worker. The first night at the Crab Shack he had a few beers and loosened up a bit.

The group of 7 that had rode across the Gordon RIver at the start of the trail had arrived Tuesday morning at the Crab Shack with tales of horror. The night before they had been camping on the beach. The storm surge had created waves and tide so high that at least one washed under their tents and lifted their sleeping pads off the ground.  Pouring down rain, windy and now a wave threatening to wash them out to sea in the dark. They had had enough and were taking the boat up the Nitinat Lake to the other end and bailing out of the rest of the hike. It made our decision to hike quick and hole up in Nitinat seem all the more appropriate. 

It seemed like we should pack up and get ready to go Tuesday night for an early start on Wednesday, but the first boat ride across the narrows doesn't go until 9:30am and the tides won't allow us on the beaches until after 2:00pm. We just went to bed and planned to pack up in the morning.

Tuesday afternoon south a mile from Nititat, on the beach watching the storm surf pound the coastline

The Crab Shack and dock

Bones and Malcolm taking it easy in the Crab Shack as rain falls outside.

Cabin #1, our home for three nights while the rain fell, the wind blew and the ocean pounded the coastline. In the background is the narrows that connects the ocean to Lake Nitinat. The storm surge pushed the water inland all day Monday and Tuesday, filling the 30Km long lake to capacity.

Malcolm and Malcolm drying out and enjoying the warmth of the Crab Shack as Sunday comes to a close.

The Crab Shack floating on its log pontoons in the Nitinat Lake. We saw seals, otters, salmon and birds during our stay.

The deck on the front of Cabin #1, overlooking the narrows. The foam can be seen streaming into the lake from the ocean. Malcolm Jr set up his tent on the deck so he could sleep outside. Dry and comfortable.

Ryan lowering the live crab pot over the side. If you ordered crab to eat, up came the cage, out came a crab and shortly you were eating it. Doesn't get any fresher.

Malcolm, Malcom and Bones enjoying a whole crab each

Malcolm outside the Crab Shack on the slippery deck

Hippie Doug pilots the boat across the narrows on Wednesday morning, the Crab Shack receding into the distance.

Sunday, September 24, 2023 - Racing a Storm - 11.86 miles - 958 total vertical up - 741’ down - 6hrs 30 minutes - Bonilla to Nitinat

Glorious sleep!!  It took me a while to fall asleep last night. I had cramping on my right shin that wouldn’t leave me alone. I massaged it, took ibuprofen and a Benadryl and it eventually gave me a break and let me doze off. About three pee wake ups during the night and it was 7:30am. My tent was pitched perfectly on loose, deep, large grained sand. Lots of room inside. Mattress was inflated perfectly. So comfortable. Bliss. I spent an hour writing yesterday’s blog and finally emerged from my tent about 8:30am. As is my practice, I pack everything in my pack while still in my tent, then step out, roll up the tent and put it in the outside pocket and I am ready to go. 

I found Malcolm at our cooking station amongst the driftwood logs under the tarp having his morning coffee. I joined him, getting out my “Morning Sunrise” almond base cereal and having it for breakfast. He talked about a 9:00am “wheels up”, but it slipped by as he continued to pack. I had the tarp down and stored and was ready to go. My shoes were still sopping wet from yesterday’s romp through the mud in the rain, so I had put on my wet socks to make a matched set. Malcolm’s right knee started giving him pain year afternoon and was better after the night’s rest, but still talking to him. We set off down the beach, our first landmark ahead was Carnahan River and the cable car across it. Malcolm Jr. was a few minutes behind as was Bones. 

We climbed the ladder to get off the beach up to the cable car, loaded ourselves in it and shoved off. It was a hard pull to get up to the unload station. Bones had arrived at the loading station and was waiting on the other side. We sent the car back, held it for him while he loaded on, and helped pull him across the river. We had been walking toward the Carnahan Lighthouse, it off in the distance, white against dark green evergreens, standing out on the point. When we got to Carmahan Point we scaled ladders to gain the high ground and followed the forest path thru the trees until we had beach access again. Malcolm and I were up ahead of Bones and Malcolm Jr by quite a bit. We hadn’t seen them for a few hours. Once on the beach we felt the wind had freshened, but it wasn’t cold. We were still in T-shirts and shorts. We could see white objects in the distance down the shore. We weren’t sure what they were. The footing was at times very grippy sandstone, sometimes slippery rock, then firm sand and occasionally soft sand. As we approached the white objects we found they were tents, Teddy Roosevelt type. Up the beach a bit further we found the hamburger shack. The proprietors have to pack in all their goods, so prices are steep. $37 for a burger and coleslaw. We stopped in to say hi, then continued on. The path split in just 100 yards, beach or forest. We chose forest because the tide was a bit too high yet. The path was overgrown and the salal tore at our clothing and packs as we pushed through. In about a kilometer we dropped back to the beach. 

It was now noon. I suggested a stop for lunch and within a couple hundred yards found a rock shelf to duck behind to block the wind while I ate. Malcolm wasn’t hungry having eaten the equivalent of two breakfasts a few hours earlier. 

While stopped, Malcolm Jr and Bones caught up. I ate and Jr taped Sr’s sore knee. We were soon off. We rounded a point and had to ladder up off the beach to make it around a point for about half a mile. While traversing the top of the cliff’s edge Malcolm pulled out his phone to take a photo. It slipped out of his hands and flew off the cliff’s edge. Luckily, it got caught in the shrubbery about six feet down. He was at the rear of the line, maybe 30’ behind so he yelled to get us to stop, then climbed over the edge to retrieve his phone. I came running to see what the yelling was about only to just his arm reaching up from the abyss and his son reaching for him. I didn’t know what was going on, but from my perspective, Malcolm had fallen off and Malcolm Jr was trying to save him. 

The trail returned to the beach and followed the shoreline up to the Cheewhat River. Here we headed inland to cross a suspension bridge. From here on we are on trail and boardwalk all the way to Nitinat and the infamous Crab Shack. The boardwalk decks through this section were particularly slippery. Neither Malcolm nor I took a tumble off the decking, but we each slipped numerous times and we’re extra careful with foot placements and balance. 

We had been casually racing the approaching storm that we had been tracking for close to a week and now it was catching up with us. A gentle rain started when we’re five minutes from the Crab Shack. Upon arrival, we walked under their covered area and shed our packs out of the rain, then walked down the ramps to the Crab Shack to inquire about extending our nights of lodging. 

The Crab Shack is a three sided building suspended on floating logs in the Nitinat River, tied to the south shore. The open side faces the river. The open area has a big wood stove in the middle of the 15’x15’ room with one table against the bank side wall. Plastic patio chair surrounding the wood stove are filled with hikers. Hanging from the rafters are numerous coat hangers adorned with wet socks and boots basking in the heat rising from the stove below. Facing inward, to the left is a high counter and opening to the kitchen beyond. Here Hazel and Ryan are cooking up food and tallying the money. 62 year old Sam, a retired fish and wildlife agent and Hippie Doug tend to the boats that ferry hikers across the river, the wood stove fire and spin tales and stories when around the stove during lulls in their duties, share their reefers and take turns being the town drunk. 

We were able to negotiate three nights in cabin one. It sits above the “lake” with a commanding view. The lake is extremely affected by the tides at this point, only 500 meters from the ocean.  The water surges in and out with the changing of the tides rushing past the front of our cabin at remarkable speeds. 

Both Malcolm and Bones went down to enjoy a crab and salmon dinner after we had settled in. I, not wanting to shell out $40 for dinner had my curry rice and chicken dinner up on the deck of our cabin. 

My shoes have been absolutely soaked for two days. I asked Bones if he could hang them over the wood stove for me when he went down. I spent an hour cooking and eating and watching an old episode of Stranger Things on my phone, then walked barefoot down to the Shack to enjoy the company of our hosts, other hikers and companions. 

I talked with Sam and Hippie Doug for a while, learning about the surrounding area. I was right by the stove, warming and drying my toes. Malcolm and I had a long discussion about our history with cars. It was now half an hour past hiker midnight (8:00pm) so I headed for bed by headlamp, still bare foot, my shoes still drying. What an amazing day!!

Heading up the beach

Lighthouse on point in distance 

Bones and long cable car

Lots of beach walking

Around a point

Getting off the beach to round a headland 

Looking down

Trail on bluff where Malcolm dropped his phone

In the Crab Shack


Our cabin #1 for three nights

Nitinat Lake/Inlet from our cabin

At night in the crab shack