East Sooke Coastal Trail, Sooke BC
Posted by: 
arby101ca
N 48° 21.202 W 123° 42.129
10U E 447981 N 5355814
The East Sooke Coastal trail is a spectacular trail along the rugged coast of East Sooke Park, west of Victoria BC. The coastal trail, end to end, is a challenging but rewarding hike.
Waymark Code: WM9XDG
Location: British Columbia, Canada
Date Posted: 10/10/2010
Views: 9
The Coastal Trail is only 11 km (7 miles) on the map but it is a significant commitment usually taking fit hikers 6 hours to complete. The highest elevation is only 200 ft but the accumulated elevation gain is over 2300 ft. There are many ups and downs, twists and turns, picky cliff bands etc. that make progress slow. But the views are unforgettable. To do the trail end to end, a car shuffle or key exchange is required. We split our group with a minimum of three hikers starting from each end and exchanged keys. Loop hikes are possible from either end to avoid the logistical problems but nothing beats the end to end experience.
We started at the west end, Pike Road parking lot and ended at Aylard Farm. The first section is an easy pleasant walk in the park through the coastal forest to Iron Mine Bay. Here the rugged coastal trail begins. Other trails come in at various points from the interior routes. We passed O'Brian Point, the Cormorant Cliffs and other scenic spots arriving at the bluff above Cabin Point to meet the other group for lunch and a key exchange. Hundreds of Turkey Vultures soared overhead seeking lift and the right wind for crossing of Juan de Fuca Straits on their migration south. Perhaps Homeland Security is making their border crossings more difficult these days. The trail continued to the Trap Shack at Cabin Pont and on to Beechy Head. The last highlight was the petroglyphs at Alridge Point before the easier final section bringing us out at Aylard Farm.
The track log is posted on wikiloc at (
visit link) and more pictures on Picasa here (
visit link)