We hiked Tonquin Trail Beach Hike on a quite afternoon and loved spending a few hours on this small but gorgeous beach!
The Tonquin Trail Beach Hike is tailor made for a relaxing day. It’s not far from the town of Tofino on Vancouver Island and it’s nice and easy. This hike is actually part of a network of trails going to different beaches. So if you have some time on your hands, there’s more to explore.
The trail starts off as a wide path through the trees, and before long you’ll come to a set of stairs leading down to the beach, (pictured below). The size of the beach varies greatly depending on the tide, and it was on the small side when we were there.
This beach isn’t know for tons of tide pools, but there are some in the rock outcroppings when the tide is low enough.
We were here at almost high tide, so we only got a peak at a few of the tide pools. And you’ll see me pictured below meandering around getting my hiking clothes soaked in the tide to check some of them out.
Again the tide will definitely dictate how much beach there is to go around. But since we were willing to get wet, we had a gorgeous slice of beach all to ourselves.
There’s lots of little spots like the above photo where there’s just a ‘slice‘ of beach between 2 rock outcroppings. Just be careful to watch for the tide so you don’t end up stranded!
There’s also a little rope swing tucked away back in the trees if you poke around a bit. All in all it was a fun little spot where we spent a couple of peaceful hours. Then we headed back to Tofino to get some burgers at Wolf in the Fog. (You can see a photo here in our post about Tofino).
It might sound strange but we also really enjoyed the wooded sections of the trail while hiking on Vancouver Island. They get so much more rain than we do. And the woods are just full of vibrant green and growing plants – very different from Montana!
At the beginning of the trail they have a nice helpful map. You might want to snap a photo in case you want to visit any of the other beaches as well.
We did both this hike, Schooner Cove, and kayaking on the sound earlier that morning all on the same day. So that tells you just how short and easy this trail is – definitely suitable for kids, and easy-going days! You may also enjoy the Wild Pacific Crest Lighthouse Trail.
Tonquin Trail in Vancouver Island Facts:
- It’s 3 km with only 91 stairs for elevation gain.
- The trailhead begins at the end of Tonquin Park Road.
- You’ll find a parking lot with the map and trail located at the end.