The Wild West Coast
Lying along the wild west coast of
Vancouver Island, the most accessible parts of Pacific
Rim National Park offer visits to two distinct natural
environments, close enough to each other to visit on the
same vacation, but varied enough to attract people who
become entranced with one unit and stay for a few days, a
week, or more.
Long Beach Unit
The expansive string of beaches stretch 7
miles (11 km), in a rarely-broken strand of white sand,
between the villages of Ucluelet and Tofino. Along the
beach are temporary islands, pockets of trees and
underbrush which are raised twenty or thirty feet above
the sand floor, made into islands by the high tides and
then becoming part of the beach as the ocean recedes.
These "air islands" are the result of the constant
scouring and washing away of the earth. Standing on the
beach, one can only see to the horizon, beyond which lies
thousands of miles of Pacific and -- somewhere in the
distance -- the islands of Japan.
Some days the horizon is not visible, for
this is a truly wild coastline, often buffeted by wind,
rain, and high, pounding surf. Walking along Long Beach
in the rain is one of the greatest pleasures offered a
nature-lover anywhere, as is sitting in the hospitable
shelter of the Wickaninnish Center (a marine museum and
restaurant), gazing at the storms which frequently roll
in, casting huge piles of logs to the back of the beach
and creating a surreal backdrop to the gently-sloping
sand landscape.
Other beaches flank the main beach.
Florencia Bay, to the southeast, has a
crescent-shaped beach, the site of many shipwrecks over
the past 300 years. To the northwest -- beyond Portland
Point -- is another isolated stretch of beach, accessible
only by boat. Several stretches of beach are separated by
rocky headlands, jutting out into the ocean.
Long Beach -- to the north of the
Wickaninnish Centre -- is the most impressive of the Long
Beach unit, where the huge piles of driftwood logs are
stacked in disarray. Surfing is a popular activity on
Long Beach, but my favorite, and less exhausting, pastime
is strolling along the beaches looking for razor clams
and oysters, and watching the shore birds that dance with
the outgoing tides in their constant search for snacks.
Along the headlands are tidal pools, whichcontain a wide
variety of sea life including mussels, sea stars,
limpets, hermit crabs, varieties of seaweed and
barnacles.
There is no entrance gate to the Long Beach
unit. Parking charges are levied when using the park. The
best tactic is to purchase a day ticket from the machines
to avoid being caught on a overtime hiking excursion. The
day ticket may be used throughout the unit.
Other Park Units
Sitting at the verge where Barkley Sound
meets the Pacific Ocean is a boaters paradise: the
Broken Group Islands. This small, rocky archipelago
provides a wide range of coastal scenes including sandy
beaches, tidepools, caves, surge channels, and quiet
anchorages in sheltered bays between the islands. The
islands offer an overwhelming sense of peace and one-ness
with nature, available in few other places. Part of the
Pacific Rim National Park Reserve, the islands are
uninhabited by humans, except for the campers who find
their way to the archipelago during the summer months.
The third part of the park is the more
remote West Coast Trail, a magnificent hiking
trail along the Pacific Coast, accessible only during the
summer months, with reservations required months (or even
a year) in advance.
