Hazards

• boardwalk (can be very slippery in wet conditions)
• some streams or rivers are crossed on cable cars (which may require more than 1 person to operate; keep fingers and hands away from pulleys)
• some streams are crossed on footlogs
• some streams/rivers must be forded (if near the beach wait for low tide; undo your hip belt when crossing; wear running shoes or sandals)
• headlands must be negotiated, this requires either timing to pass at a low, outgoing tide or using overland trails where available
• ladders which must be climbed to get around some obstacles
• surge channels are a coastal hazard where waves can fill rocky channels in seconds.
• suspension bridge crossings of some creeks or rivers

This trail is subject to severe west coast weather including copious amounts of rain at any time of the year. Fog, wind and cold can also occur at any time. The threat of hypothermia exists even during the summer due to fog and wind coupled with hiker fatigue. There are also some surge channels which cannot be crossed except with favorable tides. People have lost their lives in these surge channels! Some headlands must be negotiated at low tide. It is essential to have tide information and a watch in order to safely hike this trail. Ensure the tide information is stored in a waterproof bag. Also be alert for large ocean waves and swells. Many of the structures on the trail are showing their age, do not overload them! In particular do not have several people on any of the platforms at one time, just one or two people can easily move the cable cars across the rivers. To decrease the weight do not take your packs onto the platforms until you are ready to board the cable cars. This is a challenging trail, if you are a novice hiker this is not the trail for you, contact our club and do some of the easier backpacking trips before attempting this challenge. Should you be injured on this trail and be unable to continue Parks Canada will evacuate you provided the injury is legitimate. If possible wait at one of the following preferred evacution sites:

• Thrasher Cove
• Camper Bay
• Cullite Cove
• Logan Creek
• Carmanah Lighthouse
• Nitinat Narrows
• Tsocowis Creek
• Pachena Lighthouse

Watch for wardens patrolling offshore in red or grey inflatable boats. If you are seriously injured and are unable to travel to a preferred site, be prepared to signal your location with a bright colored tent, jacket, etc. You should be prepared to wait up to 24 hours due to rough seas, high winds and/or poor visibility.

Note:Parks Canada may recover all the costs associated with search, rescue and evacuation operations. NOTE: The entire Barkley Sound region was been closed to shell fish harvesting late in September 2000 with the closure expected to last at least until the end of October. The levels of toxin are extremely high. The closure extends over much of the western coast of Vancouver Island.