Trail Overview

Begin your hike at Willowbrae trailhead at the entrance to Wya Point Resort. The forest is thick with western hemlock, sitka spruce and western red cedars. This route leads down to the secluded, Halfmoon Bay. A great spot to warm up for the hike ahead and stop for your first snack and water break.

Continuing north along the Pacific Rim Coast Trail, you arrive at at what locals refer to as South Flo. Passing sharp cliffs of an ancient glacial moraine hike north across this coastline where you often are able to spot Grey Whales from shore. As you near the northern end of Florencia Bay, travel the Nuu-chah-nulth boardwalk and keep your eyes out to for unique carnivorous plants and twisted shore pines. Continue on to South Beach where we suggest is a great spot to stop for lunch. Here the wild and beautiful coastline is marked by jagged bluffs, a reminder of the ageless struggle between land and sea.

After lunch, you will pass Lismer Beach and reach the expanse of Wickaninnish Bay. Here you can take a break and visit the Kwistis Visitor Centre where you can find public washrooms, refill your water bottle and walk through the exhibit about the land, sea, sky and people of the area. When you ready to jump back to complete the Coast Trail you will continue north across Wickaninnish Beach and dunes until you reach the Combers Beach trail where you will jump back into the forest for the last section of the route.

The Wildside Trail Overview

Begin your trip at the First Street Dock in Tofino, where you can catch the 10:15am & 4:30pm scheduled water taxi for about $20. The Ahous Hakuum (water taxi) departs from the Lone Cone Office in Tofino & from the Ahous Fuel Stop on Flores Island daily. The boat ride from Tofino to Flores Island is approximately 30-45 minutes, with a lot of beautiful scenery along the way. Once you arrive in the village of Ahousaht on Flores Island, you begin the walk through town (15min) to reach the trailhead at you first beach of the route.

Continuing along the Wildside Trail, your hike will take you from one beautiful beach to the next, crossing over short hiking trails through ancient rainforests between the sandy shores. At the end of each beach, look out for fishing buoys hanging in the trees marking the entrance to the next trail section. These will be your route markers all the way to the end of the trail and back. Keep your eyes out for animal tracks in the sand as you hike, it is often to find many species that use this trails as well including wolves, bears and cougars! Half way across the trail you will come across Kutcous Creek, your first source of fresh water along the trail and a great place to stop for a snack. From here at low tide you can either wade across Kutcous Creek to shave approximately 1 hour off of your hike or if the tide is too high and you can't wade across, you can take the trail up the river to Kutcous Bridge where you will rejoin the trail. As you continue on, each little cove you cross, the scenery just keeps getting better and better.

At the 10km mark, you will be getting really close to the end of the trail as you hike through the last forest section of the route arriving shortly at the sandy Cow Bay in Flores Island Provincial Park. It is an absolute shame if you don't plan your time to at least enjoy a few hours relaxing at this beach before turning around and hiking back to catch the water taxi back from Ahousaht. There is endless beach combing to be had here at Cow Bay, and a great place to set up a hammock for a quick afternoon snooze. If you only have the one day to do this trek, you better hustle back as 22km is a big day of hiking even for experienced hikers. We highly recommend bringing along your camping gear and spending the night here at Cow Bay before taking the trail back to Ahousaht in the morning.