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Lone Cone Mountain
Lone Cone Mountain is a 7 kilometre round trip hike located on Meares Island just North of Tofino. The adventure begins when you leave the docks of Tofino and embark on a short but scenic water taxi to Meares Island where you are dropped off on the island to start your trek. A short walk up the road is the technical beginning of the hike, and from here the 3.5 kilometre and 730m incline begins. In the first kilometre and a half, the trail turns and winds through the relatively flat forest or occasional swamp and then slowly starts to increase in elevation. Over the next two kilometres the elevation starts to climb and along the way there are sections with fantastic views, lookout points and a somewhat challenging trail if you count having to hoist yourself over (and under) fallen trees, stumps, collapsed bridges and stagger up steep inclines with a rope to balance. Every hundred meters in elevation there is a sign congratulating you for completing another section of the trail, and towards the summit the signs become more and more welcoming to tiring legs.
Shortly after the 700 Meter marker the view begins to open up until you reach the summit where standing on the ledge provides a near 180 degree panorama of ocean, small islands and spot in the middle is the town of Tofino. While gasping at the scenery from the top there are three small lookout points, each providing a similar but varying view of the surrounding ocean and inlets below. At the top, looking down it is common to see eagles soaring beneath you, riding the air currents up into the sky and circling the summit.
On a clear day it is possible to see over 120 kilometres along the ocean and looking left from the first view point easy to spot the stretching white sands of Long Beach and even Ucluelet off in the distance.
The trail down is the same route taken to reach the summit, and although it may be faster descending, it is still a hike. In sections of the trail running down seems like an easier alternative due to the incline, but this may result in sliding or rolling down instead. Coming down the mountain the trail is full of views that may have gone unseen while climbing, many points where the ocean or even the town of Tofino seem to be in full frame through the trees which makes for a very nice descent. After passing through the same forest and mild swamp at the beginning of the trail, finally making it down to the road and then boarding the water taxi back to Tofino, make sure to look back and take in the size and new appreciation of the mountain just conquered.
Shortly after the 700 Meter marker the view begins to open up until you reach the summit where standing on the ledge provides a near 180 degree panorama of ocean, small islands and spot in the middle is the town of Tofino. While gasping at the scenery from the top there are three small lookout points, each providing a similar but varying view of the surrounding ocean and inlets below. At the top, looking down it is common to see eagles soaring beneath you, riding the air currents up into the sky and circling the summit.
On a clear day it is possible to see over 120 kilometres along the ocean and looking left from the first view point easy to spot the stretching white sands of Long Beach and even Ucluelet off in the distance.
The trail down is the same route taken to reach the summit, and although it may be faster descending, it is still a hike. In sections of the trail running down seems like an easier alternative due to the incline, but this may result in sliding or rolling down instead. Coming down the mountain the trail is full of views that may have gone unseen while climbing, many points where the ocean or even the town of Tofino seem to be in full frame through the trees which makes for a very nice descent. After passing through the same forest and mild swamp at the beginning of the trail, finally making it down to the road and then boarding the water taxi back to Tofino, make sure to look back and take in the size and new appreciation of the mountain just conquered.