Day 1 on the West Coast Trail hiking south from the Pachena trailhead is a fairly relaxing first day. Your first beach, Pachena Beach is a lovely, wide, sandy arch that stretches to a thick wall of forest on either end. As you look past the beautiful beach and size up the thick wilderness that hides the start of the trail, you can't help but be struck by the vast jungle rainforest. The trees are so thick that they spill over the ocean and you can't see even a few metres beyond the abrupt, rocky coastline.
The route from Darling River to Tsusiat Falls is just under 12 kilometres and quite a lot of that distance can be hiked on the beach. From Darling River you can take an inland route or walk along the beach. The beach route is very nice and few people hike the challenging inland route. Don't forget to jump in the pool at Darling Falls before you start hiking, you'll feel amazingly energized for the start of the trail!
The gap between official West Coast Trail campsites is quite large after Tsusiat Falls at 25km. The next campsite heading south is the crowded and ugly one at Cribs Creek at 41.5km, followed by Carmanah Creek at 46km. Tsusiat to Carmanah is a fairly long distance at 21km, but if you camp at Cribs Creek like everyone else, you only reduce the distance by only 5km. The 5km is almost entirely beach as well which is fairly relaxing.
After camping at Tsusiat Falls and Carmanah Creek, you start to fall in love with every new campsite. Tsusiat Falls with its sweeping ocean views with the occasional passing whales to its crashing falls just steps from your tent. At Carmanah Creek you have a terrific beach that goes on and on. On a sunny day it is a stunning West Coast Trail paradise very hard to leave.
Day 5 on the West Coast Trail is a stunning, very difficult and tremendously enjoyable day of hiking. Walbran Creek is gorgeous campsite to wake up to. Your tent will open up to a sweeping view of Juan de Fuca Strait, with the ocean just a dozen metres away. Waking up at Walbran is particularly nice as it exhibits so many great features of the West Coast Trail.
Day 6 on the West Coast Trail is another short, yet brutally challenging day hiking between Cullite Cove and Camper Bay. The ladders and mud sections are numerous as you snake your way through the thick rainforest. It is sometimes funny and sometimes worrying to see hikers coming toward you with a look agony and determination. A very fit person will find the trail difficult.
