![]() It was low tide, which helps because you can walk more of the mudflat than high tide, but regardless it's a mucky start to the day. From there it was a bumpy trip through Nuchatlitz Marine Provincial Park to Louie Bay. We didn't. Instead we drove up-island and met our water taxi captain mid-morning. Sure, you can depart early enough, but only if you plan to overnight at Tahsis. It begins with the water taxi (we used Shorebird Expeditions - excellent service). That taught me it could be done in three nights if you plan it right. I circumnavigated Nootka Island on another occasion, and had previously hiked the trail once. I kayaked it again one time as part of a longer trip in unseasonably high surf and paid the price. With the constant turning I was unable to keep course by keeping sight of land. From there on I heard Nootka Island more than I saw it, and that's how I navigated. That meant the northwest swell knocked me askew by about 30 degrees from the stern with every wave. Then, when fully engulfed in thick fog, my rudder cable snapped. It was a beautiful morning on the coast until a line of white came nearer and nearer. The first time was a paddle down the outside of Nootka Island in the summer of 2003. ![]() This was to be my fifth visit along the outer coast of Nootka. That left us the option of a water taxi, and so Tahsis became our starting point and point of return. I would have tried that this last visit, but it was booked up, so there would be no escaping the island that way. So you can water taxi in, paddle in or fly in or take the Uchuck passenger freighter service out of Gold River. There are the crunching beaches, where each footfall means double the effort per step to compensate for the lost ground caused by sliding pebbles.īut most of all the Nootka Trail is about logistics. There are the rough bypasses where you have to scramble up bluffs and disappear into thick forest cover. There are the rough beaches where you have to jump from boulder to boulder. That and the extent of the beach make it one of the less demanding coastal hikes in British Columbia, but if you know British Columbia coastal hikes, you'll know that doesn't necessarily mean it is easy. It's about 36 km depending on where you start and how you measure the twists and turns. It's an interesting little trail that runs the outer length of Nootka Island from Louie Bay on the northwest to the old village site of Yuquot on the southeast. One of these days I'm going to figure the right way to hike the Nootka Trail.
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