Address
Ahousaht, Flores Island, BC

About

Located on the Western side of Flores Island, the Ahousaht Wildside Trail offers guests the opportunity to travel along an 11 km escape into the remote and pristine wilderness of the ʕaḥuusʔatḥ haḥuułii. A unique showcase of ʕaḥuusʔatḥ history and culture, the trail follows a route that has been used for hundreds of years by the ʕaḥuusʔatḥ people for spiritual purposes, the gathering of medicinal plants and seasonal foods, as well as the collection of wood and bark for cultural uses. Walking the Wildside Trail, guests pass through many historically rich and significant areas, each indicated along the way by signs created by Stanley Sam Sr. and painted by his son, Hutch Sam.

Before You Go

Visitors interested in exploring the entirety of the trail in a day are more than welcomed to do so, and have two options available: walk the trail one-way and arrange for a chartered pickup at the end of the 11 km trek, or hike to the end of the trail and back (22 km). For a one-way trip, plan to give yourself approximately 4-5 hours to complete the trek at a leisurely pace, including rest stops. Going both ways, plan for around 8-10 hours. Groups or individuals planning to hike both ways in a day should be mindful of their pacing to ensure that they give themselves enough time to complete the trail before dark. Regardless of approach, make sure to bring a backpack with food and plenty of water, layers (warm clothes, rain gear, and so on), and other hiking essentials (a compass or GPS, sun protection, first aid kit, headlamp or flashlight, fire starter, multi tool, emergency shelter and whistle). There are two places where guests can collect drinking water – Katkwuuwis River and the creek just outside of Cow Bay. As is the case when collecting drinking water from any natural source, it is important that you bring and use an appropriate filtering device – such as purification tabs or a filtering pump.

Access

The Ahousaht Wildside Trail is located on Flores Island and is accessed through the village of Ahousaht, which can be reached from Tofino via a 45 minute boat ride. There are two scheduled water taxis that run from Tofino to Ahoushat at 10:15 am and 4:30 pm. Otherwise, you can arrange transportation on the Ahous Hakuum, which departs from the MHSS office and the Ahous Fuel Stop on Flores daily.

Photo credit: Jaiden George.