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Wilderness Backpacking Trails in British Columbia - Lesson 5 - This and That
By Robert Bannon

Using the word Trail when referring to backpacking in the British Columbia wilderness can be misleading and it almost caused us to omit an important piece of equipment. As experienced car campers and backyard barbecuers, we left a lot to be desired when it came to backpacking the real deal. We had taken some practice hikes and camping excursions and assumed that a trail was, in fact, a trail.

Not so on the West Coast Trail as we would find out. While tromping along various practise pathways, we would occasionally pick up stray limbs and branches and use them as hiking poles. We gave little or no thought to this as a legitimate need and studiously avoided looking at the displays of high tech, adjustable, ergonomic, high-priced and shiny-finished hiking poles sold in all of the camping shops. The night before we left for BC, I was assembling all of the equipment I was responsible for in my garage when I spied a pile of my son's old hockey sticks in the corner and on the spur of the moment, decided to cut two of them down and throw them in the trunk. No measuring, testing or anything else resembling planning and forethought about something that would literally save my life, more than once. I can only say that it would be foolhardy to attempt this feat without some sort of walking stick and suggest that you don't leave home without it. Bring a hiking pole, whether one of the commercially available ones, or you might also want to become known as the Hockey Stick Hikers, like we did.

In some ways, it seems a shame to sully the pristine, ancient growth forests with electronic gear like cell phones and cameras, but such is the world we inhabit. I suspect you won't make many friends with your cell or Blackberry constantly chiming with messages, but they will work a lot of the time on the West Coast Trail . More important I hope, will be your camera.

I strongly recommend a small digital with fully charged batteries and a replacement set, along with a small waterproof carrying case. Hang it from your belt and be prepared to pull it out at a moment's notice. You will find fellow hikers very accommodating about taking your pictures as a group and will often ask you to do the same for them. Check your batteries before you leave home and remember, there are no wall plugs in the wilderness - use regular batteries. Waterproof matches seem so obvious and toilet paper less so, but make sure you take some and wrap it in a plastic bag. There are environmentally friendly, outdoor toilet facilities at most of the designated campsites, but you rarely find any attendants to hand out towels and after shave.

We found pre packaged, moistened towelettes to be very handy for many purposes. Since showers are also very scarce on a back country wilderness hike in BC, you will need a biodegradable bar of soap for washing wherever you can and you might consider some bottled hand sanitizer. Don't forget to pack a pair of light-weight leather gloves. The sights, sounds and smells on the West Coast Trail are incredible and we will talk about them next time.

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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