Failure is an opportunity to begin again more intelligently - Henry Ford
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Failure is an opportunity to begin again more intelligently - Henry Ford
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West Coast Trail Blisters and Bliss |
Backpacking Hiking and Camping |
How to lose stubborn body fat - natural bodybuilding champion reveals all the secrets... |
Day 5Walbran Creek to Camper Bay (9 KM)Still wearing my sleeping / camp clothes and haven't changed into my hiking clothes yet. That was some of the best advice I got the first day back at Michigan Creek, thanks anonymous Alpine Club of Edmonton chick. Oh, and by the way, if by chance you (the anonymous female hiker) happen to read this at some point, get ahold of me would you? Would love to get together with you for a tea or something and chat. In the background there you see Matt who was my tent pole savior. Thanks for the splint Matt! Camper Bay was one of the nicest places to camp that I've been to yet. Highly recommend it. Blisters and Bliss the book says that this is where the ladders really begin. So we expected the few KM's to take just as long but were also expecting quite the view from the Suspension Bridge at Logan Creek (KM 56). Two cable car crossing were on the roster for today, one at Cullite Creek and the other at Camper bay. Turns out the Camper Bay cable car was just as we were leaving heading south from Camper, but we didn't have to use it to get to the campsite. The last couple of clicks into Camper looked like a steady uphill climb based on the topo map we got when we registered (our trail bible). This section of the West Coast Trail was all inland. No beach boogie today. Note: You can click any image for a larger version
Ladders out of Walbran We got ladders right out of Walbran campsite. Climbed up quite a few sections and then it leveled out.
Out of the Rainforest into the Bog Again, you'll notice the change in scenery. The trees opened up and we left the rainforest behind for the time being and entered the bog. Things were very open here, which was quite unusual. I've seen this very picture on the net in a couple of other places, so I think everyone was thinking the same thing. Up till now, when we hiked inland, there was a constant drizzle and mist about. We were dripped on quite regularily and though that it was just a light rain every morning. When we got onto the beach, leaving the tree cover, we realized it was not raining, but rather the trees collected the moisture and then just dripped on us all morning. Leaving Walbran Creek and getting into this opening in the bog, we could see the sun and sky for almost the whole time we hiked. This picture can be very deceiving though. This was not an easy trek. I've always been "Mr Safety" and I took time placing each of my steps. In the picture above you see the boardwalk, but there was lots where this was not the case. It was a good challenging bit of work all through to the cable car at Cullite Creek.
Log Crossing Importance of Core StrengthThis is a picture of a log crossing to get over a ravine. The log is about a foot and a half wide with the top flattened slightly by the trail caretaker people (thank you to whomever you are). I want to preface this next bit by saying that over the previous four or five months I had begun training with a personal trainer who stresses the importance of core work over abdominal work. She explains that abs are not functional, they're just pretty. All the training I had been doing for the past months was core based. That is to say that everything I did in the gym was about helping me with balance and providing a core strength that would assist me on all my other lifts. When I train with her, she's always saying "engage the core" while I'm doing my exercises. Now, when I got to a log like this, I could hear her in the back of my mind saying "engage the core" and I did so. It made the crossing so much easier. Not hearing her I mean, but the core work I'd done and the improvements I'd made. Core strength is real world practical and it came to my advantage when I was doing these types of crossings. At one point doing a log crossing similar to this, but over a much higher ravine and a much longer log, I said to myself, "I'm sure the view is awesome, but I'm going to focus on core and placing my feet". There was only one place on the trail where I turtled and that was on some rocks that were covered with slick sea weed and I couldnt see the opening between two rocks. My foot went between them and I tipped over. Personal TrainersI'm going to finish this by saying that, after 12 years of training on my own and gaining a lot of mass and exercise skills, the single best thing I've done so far has been making the use of a personal trainer. I highly recommend it. As my trainer says, "when you're sick you go to a doctor [ or eat Sunrider and just don't get sick ]. When you're to appear in court, you see a lawyer. If you have a toothache, you see a dentist. Doesn't it make sense to see a fitness professional to help you achieve your personal fitness goals?" She's totally right. I have had so many gains and improvements in my body since she began training me. Get a Personal Trainer for yourself. There.. I'm done that rant.
Logan Creek Suspension Bridge Beautiful suspension bridge here. I caught up with my hiking partners here and got some pictures taken
Me on the bridge
View from the bridge Wasn't too impressed with the view. I had really thought it would be much higher and a better view, but whatever. We hiked on heading for the cable car at Cullite Creek and again, it continued to be quite the grind. My hiking partners got ahead of me, but I wasn't going to race them as I wanted to do this safely. Dont' get me wrong, I was not having a problem but these guys were constantly challenging each other and really driving each other on faster and faster. I just let them go, the silence was kinda nice anyway.
Cullite Creek Lunch Gotta love GORPCaught up with them at the cable car at Cullite Creek. We sat down on one side and spent about 45 minutes just eating. I broke out my GORP and had about 2000 calories worth. I still cant get over how much GORP I was eating. This amount of nuts is not a part of my traditional diet but my body was just burning up the fuel as it came in. Normally, I eat about 8 or 10 raw almonds with my meals, not handfulls, lol. I should mention that I noticed the amount of GORP I was going through almost from the beginning and quickly realized I did not bring enough for my energy needs. I had this thought in the back of my mind for the first couple of days until Moniques where I topped off my GORP with 4 baggies full. My recomendation for anyone who carries a lot of mass and knows they'll be burning a lot of fuel is to have a LOT more GORP than you think you'll need ! (or have extra money and just top off at Moniques). The GORP I brought along was an organic mix of Almonds, brazil, pumpkin seeds, pistachios and the like. All raw, none of that cooked, processed crap. Oh and carob chips too. We hydrated, ate and talked about the challenges we had just had in the past few clicks. Looking at the map, we expected a lot more ladders as the topo showed us dropping and gaining a lot of elevation over a short period of time, then the uphill grind ending up at Camper Bay. 4 clicks left to go for the day. We found that we were on schedule time wise compared to the other days, but covering less ground. A testament to the fact that the terrain was much more difficult.
Unloading the Cable Car All in all a good days hiking. Much harder and lots of ladders. We took about the same amount of time to go a lot less KM. I had expected a lot more ladders than there were. The Blisters and Bliss book describes it as "ladders to write home to your family about", and I just dont get it. Maybe I'm just in better shape than I'm giving myself credit for. Right from the start of the trail at Bamfield people told us the first three days were the easiest and it would get much harder. I'm still waiting.... Note: You can click any image for a larger version Trail Trip Log Navigation
Day 1 - Bamfield (KM 1) Other West Coast Trail information
The Official West Coast Trail Hiker Preparation Guide |
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