More than 70 hikers evacuated from West Coast Trail amid heavy rains

Two days into a hike he’d looked forward to for 25 years, Patrick Laprise found himself on a boat full of hikers evacuating Vancouver Island’s West Coast Trail.

Unrelenting heavy rains had made some parts of the 75-kilometre popular multi-day hiking trail “impassable,” according to Parks Canada. 

To get to an evacuation point, Laprise said that he, his 15-year-old son, and a friend, spent the hike soaked through, and waded through knee-high mud on the trails, passed creeks running with four feet of water, and over a rotted bridge that broke beneath them. On the second day, his son turned his ankle, but the group kept going at a swift pace to make the last ferry out from the Crab Shack, a restaurant at the trail’s midpoint.

“It’s frightening kind of in those conditions, because we had to move fast, we were super cold, like there’s nothing, nobody that can help us,” said Laprise, who had flown in from Montreal for the hike.

The group is among more than 70 people evacuated since Sunday from the West Coast Trail by Carl and Shelley Edgar, owners of the Crab Shack and the Nitinat Wilderness Charters ferry off of the trail. The hike draws thousands of visitors each year, most of whom book months in advance.

Carl, who has operated the ferry crossing for 51 years, says he can’t remember a storm this severe on the trail during the month of July, noting that there’s typically one rain storm in August.

“Everyone came in and they were soaking wet from top to bottom, not a dry spot on any of them, and they’re just piling up at our Crab Shack dock right now,” he said on Tuesday morning.

“And there’s still more coming, my son is coming up with a boat as we speak.”

Shelley says they provide transportation for those coming to and from the trail, and usually help evacuate about four to eight people a week. 

She says they’ve seen most people cancelling or postponing their trips into the trail, on the guidance of Parks Canada, which said on Monday evening that crossing rivers and creeks on foot is not currently recommended.

Shelley also says she’s been working to help make arrangements with bus shuttle companies to try and help people change their plans, but it’s put a lot of pressure on their small family-run business.

“It’s been pretty mind boggling,” she said.

Parks Canada was not available for an interview and did not respond to questions prior to publication.

Michael Anderson, owner of the West Coast Trail Express bus, says he’s run extra busses to keep up with the demand, though cancellations have helped to create space.

Guardians from Huu-ay-aht First Nation are monitoring Darling Creek on their part of the trail, and advising hikers not to cross, according to Edward Johnson from the nation’s executive council.

However, he warned that it’s not just the creeks that are impacted by flash flooding.

“A lot of times the trail can turn into a creek itself, a little bit more mud,” said Johnson.

“Mother Nature at her finest, there.”

Heather Millar, a 61-year-old resident of Victoria, turned back to the Crab Shack on her second day on the trail. An experienced hiker, she felt uneasy as she passed eroded beaches, fast-moving creeks, and injured hikers.

Then, after having her dinner under a tarp, she found a drowned mouse.

“I thought, okay, that’s a sign – poor little mouse,” said Millar.

While she’s back in Victoria for now, Millar says she’s already planning her next trip out.

“I’m looking forward to hitting the West Coast Trail and doing the whole thing next year in good, sunny weather.”