If you love nature, you will absolutely love coming here. It's worth the ferry ride and drive from…read moreVancouver. It's stunning, we did a few hikes, and they were all so different. They have the Forrest side, as well as the beach, so the variety of hikes are fantastic. Unfortunately we didn't have time to do the longer ones, but we were very satisfied with the ones we did. The boys enjoyed them, we didn't do hard ones, all were easy to moderate. We recommend the rainforest trail, radar hill (if it's clear), and south beach. I really recommend all if you have time.

If you are looking for the true West Coast Experience, this is it…read more The park consists of 3 Units: The Long Beach Unit The Broken Islands Unit The West Coast Trail Unit I have been to the Long Beach and West Coast Trail units, and plan to one day kayak the Broken Islands. Long Beach is a popular spot for those going to Tofino or Ucluelet, and is a pretty amazing beach. Even if you aren't into surfing, just watching the waves roll in and strolling the sandy beach is worth the trip. The West Coast Trail is a truly amazing experience. I have been twice now, and it's a tough, but rewarding right of passage. The trail is a 75 km trek across beach, up and down ladders, across rivers and trails through bog, forest and stunning scenery. Some people are so in love with the trail they do it every year. Despite the mud, roots, logs, and ladders! Or maybe because of them. It takes planning and money, though, so not for those who like to do things on a whim. The peak season is June 15th to September 15th, but the trail is open as early as May 1st and goes to September 30th. You won't ever catch me out there that early. I don't care if there are less people on the trail, the weather can be downright nasty! Reservations during the peak season are highly recommended, though there are limited spots available at each trail head for standby spots on the trail. The WCT is NOT for those with: A fear of heights Knee or back injuries Limited mobility Big egos and no experience Children accompanying The inability to clean up after themselves My only complaints about the WCT are the lack of info regarding parking areas at the trail heads, and ignorant people that do the trail with their kids (min age of 12 is still too young for this trail. 15 should be the minimum), or those who leave their garbage around (pack it in, pack it out, and burning your plastic food bags is not cool). Tips: Parking at the Pachena Bay trail head is not recommended, as there are many break-ins to vehicles that occur, despite being able to park on Parks Canada land. Parking in Port Renfrew for the Gordon River trail head is not on park land, and you either go to the Port Renfrew hotel in town, or the Gordon River Campground 1 min up the road from the trail head. This spot is also called Soft River (very confusing at 7:45 am). There are some places on the reserve (some guy's yard) that offer parking, too, but aren't open that early. Book the Trail Bus early to get to your trail head starting position. Park at the end you intend to finish, take the shuttle to your start. Hike back to your car. The shuttle picks up at the Port Renfrew Hotel (and trail head and Gordon River campground) and if you park there you can get a free ride back to your car from the trail head when you finish. This is your cheapest option. I parked at the Gordon River campground since it is closer to the trail head, not knowing you get the free ride back to the hotel. Despite being more expensive, it was safe. I accidentally left a window fully open, with all my friend's belongings in the trunk, and not a thing was touched. The bears didn't even take the half empty bag of Tostitos under the open window. Bonus! We ate these when we got back to the car.

Nice short hike for the kids. Gets you out to the ocean. Even have an outhouse along the way…read more Beautiful walk to a rock beach.

Ripple Rock Trail was an enjoyable day hike. It was easy at many points and a little more…read morechallenging at others. We took it at a leisurely pace and enjoyed all the trees, ferns, huckleberry picking & eating, and the viewpoints; many of which had large picnic tables to sit and relax at. The final view point would be a fantastic place for some food and beverages after hiking in. It had a great 180 degree view of the straight. Very dog friendly and well maintained trail. Very pleasant day on the trail. No issues with the parking lot.

We came here for camping and also to check out the caves here. It cost $30 to $50 a night to camp…read more The campsite was busy on the weekend and not so much on the weekdays. The campground is quite big. The outhouse was not bad. We also explored the caves. The tours take 2 hours approx. You can do a self-guided tour but if you do than you don't get to go inside past the gates in the caves Note that in the areas there are lots of dangerous wild animals. We heard that there was a deer that got taken out by a cayote.

This was my first time cave exploring and I had such a wonderful and memorable experience! This is…read moredefinitely one of the best highlights of the entire trip! We went on the guided 3 hour "Ice Age Adventure" tour. Our tour guide was amazing!! She was very educational with the history, facts, and preservation efforts. She was experienced, attentive and overall fun to be with. We explored a series of marble passages and crystal caverns created by the power of "The Ice Age". The experience was amazing! We were crawling and schootching through tight passage ways. We even climbed an underground waterfall!! Wow, the amazing crystals formations were breathtaking. My pictures do not do them justice; you simply just have to see it for yourself!! Dress warm, as it does get a little chilly inside the cave, wear boots or sturdy shoes and know you are going to get a little wet! Take a waterproof durable camera! Also, if possible some gloves can be very helpful. They provide the helmets with a light. Hydrate and have a balanced meal, you will be hiking to the cave as well as climbing and crawling inside. They offer an education center featuring geology information, a small museum and fossil display. They have a small theater, so visitors can learn more about this unique environment without having to enter the caves. Snacks and souvenirs can also be purchased. Other above-ground opportunities include a self-guided walk through the amazing surface geology on the new "Phil Whitfield Interpretive Trail" that highlights interesting surface features explained in a self-guiding brochure. The drive to Horne Lake Caves Provincial Park takes you on an unpaved road for a few miles; don't be worried, it is part of the adventure!! Great price for the experience, this is a MUST DO when visiting Beautiful Vancouver Island!!

This is a beautiful and easy 8k hike through the woods and along the water to the narrows…read more Tide pools reveal an abundance of sea life including an astounding PURPLE starfish! There's plenty of room to picnic on the rocks and watch the tide rush past. We saw a bear on the far shore and enjoyed it from our safe distance. Wear sturdy shoes and bring water along and especially don't forget your camera! Happy hiking :-)

I was recommended to this trail in Tofino and loved it!…read more Quite a busy 1 km trail within the forest. Bonus that your boots wont get muddy during the rainy season because the trail is on a boardwalk. You wont get scenic views of mountains, but you will get some wonderful views of majestic trees and moss covered streams. I'm not doing justice describing the view you see along the trail. It really is cool! The trail meanders and does go up and down steps so it may be steep in places. There are handrails during the places where there are steps. I'm definitely going back to check out this trail again!

We hiked this trail just north of Long Beach on a beautiful day. The 2km trail traverses through a…read morelush rainforest on boardwalks and over a number of streams via a series of wooden stair cases. When we arrived at the end of the trail, we discovered reaching the beach would involve clambering over a number of driftwood logs so we turned around and headed back. We were not a third of the way back when my wife slipped on one of the moss covered stairs, rolled her ankle and twisted her back. Fortunately her fall was into the soft, moss covered earth, but she ended up face to face to a 5 inch banana slug. We have taken several other trails in the Pacific Rim National Park and this was the best though you do have to be careful.

Very nice trail to take to go out to the lighthouse which is not much to see but, the views on the…read moreway there are awesome. Although it was a cloudy day the sights were beautiful.

Wonderfully engineered, well manicured and breath-taking views. This trail makes a great…read moredestination ever more enjoyable. Bravo

Among my favored trails in the Pacific Rim National Park, and one of few that doesn't end at a…read morebeach. It's nice and short (about 1km for each loop), a relatively easy hike, with many many beautiful things to look at throughout. The canopy also makes it a relatively drier hike in Tofino's generally wet weather. Loop A, on the east side of the highway, is a wooden boardwalk that meanders through a forest of primarily western red cedar and hemlock. This is also the older section of the forest. There are nurse logs (fallen trees with new trees growing on top of them) all over the place. Loop B, on the west side of the highway, is wooden boardwalk and stairs. Interpretive signs on the trail are full of all sorts of useful and interesting information. While the boardwalks are well-maintained, the only caution I have is that if the weather is rainy, the boardwalks can get a bit slippery, which can be a challenge for those with mobility issues. (I'd also imagine they can get icy in cooler weather.) Also, while they were quiet enough during our visit (April 2017,) they can get pretty busy during the high season, and the narrowness of the boardwalks makes passing other hikers a bit difficult.

I just walked these two loops yesterday (Feb 2013). These paths are truly beautiful. Too bad most…read morepeople will never get a chance to see these majestic rainforests... The only caution I have is that the paths have many stairs, and are not for the mobility challenged. Also, at this time of year the wooden boardwalks can be wet and slippery in spots.

An amazingly peaceful and serene spot to anchor or stern tie. To get in or out of the chain of…read moreislands you must time the currents perfectly for the time of day or it will be too strong to get in or out. Once in its spectacular. You can hike up to Newton Lake, an elevated lake on one of the mountains with fresh crystal clear blue water to cool off! Warmer than the ocean. We took some time to drop the crab traps and enjoyed watching an abundance of wildlife.