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Wilderness Backpacking Trails in British Columbia Lesson 7 - A Special Experience
By Robert Bannon

For this edition of preparations necessary for backpacking a wilderness trail in BC, I must divide readers into two groups: the first group will have taken on a similar challenge related to an outdoor adventure and the second group hasn't yet. If you are a member of the first group, then you will have some familiarity with the feelings experienced when you take on a challenge that requires your entire mind, body and soul. You will have experienced that special bond that exists between humans and nature that no amount of reading or film watching can duplicate.

In many books, the authors attempt to duplicate the sights, sounds, smells and tastes they have witnessed first hand, but using words or pictures to explain something that goes beyond reporting it is like comparing a history textbook to actually living through it. The easiest way for me to illustrate this is asking you to describe the color red to someone who is blind. I'm not sure it can be done without an actual experiential frame of reference. Now that I have told you that it cannot be done, I will proceed to attempt to prepare you for an opportunity to live for a few days in a state of consciousness that seems surreal in some ways. It doesn't take long on the West Coast Trail to feel different; perhaps a sense of reverence begins to creep in as the hiker starts to appreciate the grandeur, the quiet and the absolutely wild beauty that surrounds him. It is something that arrives unnoticed for a while and then some sort of introspective moment shows itself. For me, it happened on day one when we took a snack break after a couple of hours of very strenuous packing and as I stood in silence, looking at the enormous trees and smelled the fresh vegetation mixed with the sound and smell of the ocean, it felt almost sacred.

Before we left for the trail, we had read a book that, among other things, talked about this same feeling with great respect and like most who haven't experienced it firsthand, we dismissed this ethereal notion as nothing more than some writer's fantasy. We dismissed it until we experienced it for ourselves. There is something special about being in the mountains or on a remote beach or standing among giant trees that connects us to the power of the natural world in a way that cannot be experienced in any other way. This sense of power was revealed in another way at night when sitting on the sand listening to the waves roar to shore and then looking up into the blackest of skies and seeing more stars than could be counted in a lifetime. It seems to bring a sense of the smallness of the universe and the infinity and unlimited size of it, at the same time. Our place in this spectacle along with our sense of importance gets challenged in a way that stays with us for life. This is available to anyone who decides to go backpacking on any of the world's wilderness trails and brings a sense of wonder and introspection.

Back to the two groups of people mentioned in the beginning and those of you who have put yourselves in a position to experience this on other trips know exactly what I am talking about. To those people who have not undertaken a challenge like this and intend to do it with an open heart and mind, the rest of us envy that first experience while at the same time, remembering our own first time. Remember to bring your camera and don't forget a notepad to record the special thoughts that will occur throughout the week in the wilderness. You will encounter people who are enjoying the same thoughts and sensations you are and you might want to keep a record of names and contact information. Good luck to all of you and our final installment will deal with a number of odds and ends to wrap up our exploration of wilderness backpacking trails in BC and in particular, the West Coast Trail.

I am Robert J. Bannon a published author, keen observer of the human condition and I recounted the entire story of our wilderness backpacking trail in my book The West Coast Trail: One Step at a Time. You can read an excerpt here: http://RobertJBannon.com/

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