Adventures in the forest

Sunset at East Sooke Park

A couple of weekends ago, the weather was beautiful and sunny - perfect for a hike. Linh and Stewart called me up to go for a hike at East Sooke Park with their friends, and I accepted without any hesitation. Nice weekends in February are a rare thing in Victoria!

Thinking it was just a 10km hike, I figured it would take about 2-3 hours. After all, I can run 10k in less than an hour, so it shouldn't take that long, right? So I packed light - one apple, some chocolate to share with everyone, and one water bottle. As it was so nice out, I just wore two-long sleeved shirts and jeans.

The hike, the Coast Trail, is absolutely beautiful - hiking in and out of the forest, you get stunning views of the ocean, cliffs, mountains, and little islands. The views were breathtaking. Physically, it was quite demanding; we were constantly climbing up and down and jumping over little creeks. I don't think there was a flat bit during the entire hike. It was all good though - excellent company and great food. Lucky for me, everyone else was much more prepared - we had fresh carrot juice, cheese, bread, chocolate, fruit, and even wine! It is amazing how good food tastes after exercise and some fresh air. Too bad you can't bake that into a baguette. Taking time to admire the views and eat, the first part of the hike was very enjoyable.

But then we looked at the map and I started to worry. We had hardly done any of it after a few hours! Hiking up and down steep paths obviously took a lot longer than we had anticipated. Then Stewart revealed that the website had warned that the hike was "challenging" and that it would take 6-8 hours! Considering that we started at NOON, time was getting to be a concern...

We made some good time after that, but the sun was starting to set and we were still quite far off. As it started getting dark, everyone started to get a little nervous - it became harder to see the trail markers. Considering that we were sometimes very near the ocean and the paths were very narrow, we also started being a lot more cautious. Every sound in the forest became creepy or scary. All I could think of was "The Blairwitch Project!" Thank god it was a clear full moon and Sabine and Jorge had headlamps.

After about two hours of hiking in the dark, we finally made it to the parking lot, shivering and tired. However, that was not the end of the saga, as we were locked in the park! The gate was closed and we got a note on the car saying that we had to hike 4km to the nearest payphone and call the RCMP! We walked a ways until we found a house that didn't look too intimidating - and didn't have big scary dogs charging at us - and phoned the ranger. Glad we didn't make it to the payphone because apparently it is out of order! Why they don't have a phone IN the parking lot, I have no idea.

And finally, I got home TWELVE hours after I had left. I was just glad that there was an extra jacket and everyone else had enough food and water. I remember the first time I went to East Sooke Park, my friend was aghast that I had bought nothing with me, whereas I laughed at him for carrying food, water, a flashlight and a knife for a little walk in the park. Never again. From now on, I'll be well prepared when I go hiking - and I'm definitely buying a headlamp!