Aug. 13th, WCT Day 4: Cribbs Creek to Walbran Creek

Day 4: Cribbs Creek to Walbran Creek, 11km

A most beautiful day in terms of scenery. We spend the whole day going virtually all the time along various superb beaches. However what should I say: Despite all the beauty we decided to continue on and no break day at Carmanah or Bonilla Point. How come: We encountered some weird weather phenomenon in the morning with the air 100% wet and moisture saturated. It did not rain but the effect was the same, it was cool and wet. Thankfully it vanished after a while and later in the day the sun came out in full force again for a while. Also it would have been super handy if there was a weather forecast available at Carmanah Lighthouse but no such thing. We had by now developed enough respect for the trail that we felt we had to take every day without rain as a gift and move forward and not dawdle around and take more sunny days as a given.

Our first "wet" morning experience at Cribbs Creek. The air was full of moisture type fog I have never seen before in my life. Disclaimer: I have never lived near an ocean.

Cribbs Creek beach with moisture in the air

Packing up the tents and gear

On our way again: Already a full beach away from Cribbs Creek heading to Carmanah Point

A little island full of seals. Your could hear them from a long distance away

Going over flat rock very close to Carmanah Point

A tidal pool at Carmanah Point with 2 sea anemonies (the green flower like plants)

Going up the first ladders to Carmanah Lighthouse

View from Carmanah Lighthouse towards Bonilla Point (which are the rocks further back around the corner)

Another trail highlight: Bald Eagle sitting at the top of the left pine watching the sea and we were watching it. I have never seen an eagle this close in my life. On the actual jpg it is possible to zoom in and see it clear. Maybe that is possible on the blog picture as well.

Since we went up to the Lighthouse we obviously had to go down again. This time through the forest instead via ladders. The boardwalks were still moist and slippery.

Down at the Carmanah Beach heading towards "Chez Monique"

The "Monique" folks are fully stocked and temptation all around ...

A very decent burger (20$ or so if I recall correct)

They also had a very decent vegie burger

On our way again after "Monique" going along Carmanah Beach. The weather was still mixed.

View back to the Carmanah Lighthouse from Carmanah Beach

Crossing Carmanah Creek. We stopped considering the use of cable cars and implicit detours with the rivers and creeks this low ...

View back to Carmanah Lighthouse from very close to Bonilla Point

We had a longer break at Bonilla Point campground. However as mentioned even with the weather improving we decided to move on to Walbran Creek

A small section of Bonilla Point campground. There is supposedly a pond with a waterfall somewhere further back in the forest but I did not check it out since we decided to move on. The Langley/NZL group initially decided they wanted to stay here but also turned up later at Walbran because they were concerned about the weather and the remaining portion of the trail as well. According to them the pond was large enough to swim in it.

Heading towards Vancouver Point

View back from close to Walbran towards Vancouver Point at relatively low tide

Crossing Walbran Creek without having to take our shoes off. The bridge was rebuild the next day by folks heading north. We knew from talking with folks coming from the south that the bridge was functional and avoided a longer detour in the forest and the cable car. Even without this bridge we would have simply taken our shoes off and crossed. A lot of the creeks and rivers had very low water levels because of the draught. Such simple crossings are probably not possible in other years.

Taking a refreshing swim in the Walbran Creek pond. The sun at that time was out in full force again.

The pond at Walbran Creek. The weather worsened in the evening to the point that we used the tarp for the first time. It even started a tiny bit to rain.

Relaxing at Walbran Creek

Toby sitting underneath the tarp at our fire place

Our tents at Walbran Creek campground

We had a "luxury" camp at Walbran Creek. We arrived early and had plenty time to swim. Also time to get the tarp up when it looked as if rain was coming soon. And time for friendly chats with the Edmonton folks and the Langley folks. There were eagles flying higher up over the campground and in the evening a whole flock of sea gulls took a bath in the pond. The campground spreads over a larger area and around a corner so you had the impression of some privacy in the middle of all the beauty. We again had the feeling of experiencing a super day going along these diverse beaches. For sure in hindsight if someone planned to have a break day somewhere at Cribbs, Carmanah, Bonilla or Walbran would be ideal. At Walbran I checked my blisters and developing thick skins again. By now some where open and bloody but I still didn't care too much. I got from Barbara a blister pad for one of the open blisters and it worked well for the rest of the trip. I did not use anything for the blisters/thick skins developing between most of my toes on both feet. I just ignored them. It was the price I paid not using the gators on the 2nd day and collecting tiny stones during that time when walking on the beaches. The others had less blisters compared to me and started to use blister pads earlier. All of us were in reasonable shape with Anna starting to develop a bit of a cold probably because she stayed in the Tsusiat water pool too long.