♪ ♪ Back on the beach now.

I've actually taken off my shoes and because walking on the sand in hiking boots just is a really good way to get blisters.

And I've already got some developing from the last beach walk.

So I am sans shoes.

I've got a little over a mile left to the channel where we're going to be crossing the ferry and then we're in for a treat.

♪ Welcome, everybody, to the Crab Shack.

This is my little surprise today.

You can get salmon, crab, halibut and some other things here.

It is a fantastic little retreat for anyone hiking the West Coast trailor just staying up in that area.

It just placed my order, got a beverage, and wanted to tell you a little bit more about this place.

So this crab track is open from May to September, the same period of time that the trail is open.

There are also cabins for rent here and tent sites that you can camp out here for a pretty reasonable price as well.

And you can get salmon, you can get halibut, ling cod, fresh crab.

And they also serve breakfast around 11 a.m..

So that's like a nice thing to do if you're coming from the other end.

This is actually run by one of the First Nations and it's a great place to come and support it.

They do only take cash,so make sure you bring some on the trail.

This looks delicious.

Back on the trail.

That was so good.

I had a delicious halibut, baked potato and feeling fantastic now and got a lot of mileage to do here.

The rest of the day,it's just about 1 p.m. and there's going to be a bit of a mix of forest and beach I do need to kind of keep moving so that I don't get stuck with the tides when I get back to the beach.

♪ walking through these old growth forests is just really cool because it's so beautiful.

It's really lush, really green,lots of big ferns.

And in a couple of weeks there are going to be so many berries.

You know, the trail is lined with salmon berries, which the bears love.

People don't usually like them,but they are edible.

I've also seen raspberries, blackberries and blueberries.

So it's just berry heaven along here.

And I'm lucky I'm not doing this later in the season because I probably wouldn't make it down the trail.

I'd just be eating berries the whole way.

♪ I am officially past the halfway mark.

Oh, and man, the section is bananas because a lot of it has not been properly trimmed for this season so it's really overgrown.

I opted not to do the beach because there was a choice here.

It's just about 4:30 high tides in an hour.

And according to the Tide charts,the beach access is actually impassable at high tide.

So I decided to do this part.

But it is a lot of bushwhacking.

♪ ♪ Oh, Hey, guys.

I am really tired now.

Just about out of water.

Couple kilometers left.

Hopefully there in about 90 minutes.

Oh, my God.

a ladder.

Stairs.

(exerted breathing) (stair steps) They're so small.

♪ ♪ Oh, made it to Cribbs creek!

I am just approaching kilometer 42, which has a popular campsite called Cribbs Creek.

There are a lot of tents here already.

So instead of camping here,I've actually made the decision to hike another four kilometers from here and stay at the next camp, say hopefully have a little bit more solitude and I'll get a jump start on two of the harder days, which are going to be the last two days on trail.

♪ This last little stretch of beach and we camp over there.

♪ Oh, my goodness.

What a day today.

Definitely feeling it in the shoulders after that really long journey today.

About 20 kilometers that I did today.

Thank goodness for that Crab Shack.

But a lot of beach walking today, a lot of forest,a lot of ladders, a lot of routes.

So definitely worked up the need for a good dinner and a good night's sleep.

♪ ♪ It is day four today, and I'm definitely feeling a bit more tired today than the last few days.

Getting a late start, too.

It's already past 8:30.

Usually been on the trail by then.

So this morning there are about seven straight kilometers of beach, which is a lot.

And and then I'll be in the forest for the last half of the day.

But it's going to be a slow slog in this kind of overcast weather this morning.

♪ ♪ One of the things I keep walking in are all these dried sea grasses.

And I really think that in a pinch,if you're in a survival situation, these are actually make a really good mattress.

Not only do they heat up from the sun, but they're really soft.

And if you had to lay somewhere,I would definitely make a bed of those.

♪ ♪ Wow.

That's really cool.

♪ Well, this trail certainly never stops surprising me.

How cool was that bridge?

That was really fun.

The views up there.

Absolutely phenomenal of the river below.

And you can see the ocean out there as well.

So pretty.

Now, so far on this trail,I have been super fortunate.

We're officially on the south end of the trail, which typically means a lot of mud and very wet conditions.

So there is some mud on this part of the trail.

And as you've seen so far,there are a lot of walkways that are in disrepair,a lot of ladders in disrepair.

So I think part of doing the West Coast trail is just making sure at all times you're watching your step.

So many roots as well from the trees.

So definitely you have to take things slowly.

But so far I have been absolutely super fortunate with the weather, have only had, you know, sunny or cloudy days, no rain.

Let's hope it stays that way.

♪ So this area that we're walking in is usually wet, much wetter.

You can see other mosses and stuff like that are actually kind of dying because there's been so little rainfall here.

It's great for me, but not so great for the wilderness here.

To show you how deep this mud is.

Oh.

Oh, my God.

Don't fall in.

♪ Couple kilometers left just less than two now to get to camp for the evening,which is called Camper.

All those ladders, man,I am feeling the glutes this evening.

It is another long down trail, about 18 kilometers today, so a little bit less than yesterday, but still a really big day.

Maybe six more to go.

Goodness.

I see.

Bear locker's woohoo.

We made it.

Long day.

♪ so this is my campsite here.

So this is camper.

And most people are camped over their.

And it was pretty full.

It's also incredibly windy and it's much windier on that side.

So even though I'm having to camp on just like a big pile of rocks, hoping this out will be a little bit more protected, ♪ ♪ Good morning, everybody.

It is the second to last day today.

I'm pretty excited.

This is usually one of the more exciting days for most people doing this trail.

Whether this is your second day or your second to last stay like me so today,we're going to start in the forest for a couple of kilometers and then we go out onto the coastline.

We are heading to a place called Thrasher,and to get there we have to traverse a bunch of boulders on the coastline and then some surge channels.

So you can only do this at low tide.

So it's really, really important that you time it correctly so that you have several hours when the tide is the lowest to traverse this area.

It's going to take a couple of hours to just go a few kilometers.

But I'm really excited.It should be really beautiful.

The weather is great again and I'm going to break down camp and then we're going to hit the trail.

♪ You know exactly how this day in the forest is starting, with a bunch of ladders.

And today or this morning, not having been warmed up yet.

They are feeling very challenging.

I'm sure we'll have a lot more in this couple kilometer stretch on our way to the beach.

♪ ♪ The backpacker obstacle course continues this morning with some plank walks, narrow tree walks and other things I probably should not be trying to walk across like this bridge.

It's really soft.

♪ You really have to constantly watch your step on this trail because there are slugs everywhere and this one is massive.

I mean, my God.

♪ I've just come out of the forest and it is time to hit the beach or the boulder field that is.

Which is coming up,this is one of the most exciting parts of this hike and probably one of the most beautiful as ♪ well.

♪ ♪ These little channels are surge channels and come high tide, this whole place will be underwater.

And these channels will become extremely dangerous as huge amounts of water rush through these narrow passages, making it an extremely dangerous place to be.

♪ ♪ This has got to be one of my favorite areas so far.

We are right now at Owen point.

And like this whole beach walk,this is inaccessible at high tides.

And I can't believe we almost skipped this and chose the forest.

This is just super magical.

There are seals off the coast here and these little sea caves are certainly super magical.

♪ ♪ This is definitely day five hair, I have made it to Thrasher, and this is my last campsite because tomorrow I will finish the trail.

That last section, though,out to Owen's point.

And two here along the coastline was pretty gnarly.

Definitely because the weather has been fantastic.

The trail is not as treacherous as it normally would be, but in rain,that section is pretty gnarly.

And especially if you're pushing the tides, you are going to have a not so fun time in that section.

But I've got a lot of time.

It's only 1:40 right now,so lots of the daylight left, I'm gonna go for a swim,make some food and just hang out.

♪ ♪ It's the last day on the West Coast trail today, day six.

And today, I'm going to be reaching the highest point on the trail, which means from the beach here,there's going to be a lot of ladders.

♪ ♪ These last few kilometers through the forest were some of the steepest on the trail.

And there's just one last ladder and one last ferry crossing to take me to the finish line at Gordon River.

♪ Hello.

♪ It's official.

I just finished the West Coast trail.

I am right now just sitting by the ocean here at Gordon's River, waiting for my shuttle to take me back to Victoria.

But this was just such an amazing hike.

Could not have asked for a more picture perfect weather.

Very unusual for the West Coast trail, as most people do experience a lot of rain and mud on this trail.

So really fortunate.

And here in Gordon's River is either the finish line or the starting line, depending on which direction you choose to do this hike.

I finished it in six days,so a little bit quicker than I had originally anticipated.

But I really hope you enjoyed following along on this super unique, rugged and beautiful trip.

As always, I'm Alice Ford, Never stop exploring.

♪ ♪