A to Z West Coast TrailThe Pachena Point Lighthouse is an interesting bit of west coast history that you can visit. You can only see the grounds outside and not in the lighthouse itself. The view down from the 100 foot cliffs surrounding the lighthouse are beautiful and a vivid look at how powerful the crashing waves are. Pachena Point is the menacing point of land out to the left if you are standing next to the lighthouse.

West Coast Trail Shipwrecks

 Shipwreck on the West Coast TrailAlaskan at 4k Shipwreck on the West Coast TrailSoquel at 5k Shipwreck on the West Coast TrailSarah at 7k Shipwreck on the West Coast TrailBecherdass-Ambiadass at 8k Shipwreck on the West Coast TrailMichigan at 12k Shipwreck on the West Coast TrailUzbekistan at 13.8k Shipwreck on the West Coast TrailVarsity at 17.6k Shipwreck on the West Coast TrailValencia at 18.3k Shipwreck on the West Coast TrailJanet Cowan at 19k Shipwreck on the West Coast TrailRobert Lewers at 20k Shipwreck on the West Coast TrailWoodside at 20.2k Shipwreck on the West Coast TrailUncle John at 26.2k Shipwreck on the West Coast TrailVesta at 29k Shipwreck on the West Coast TrailRaita at 33k Shipwreck on the West Coast TrailSkagit at 34.2k Shipwreck on the West Coast TrailSanta Rita at 37k Shipwreck on the West Coast TrailDare at 39k Shipwreck on the West Coast TrailLizzie Marshall at 47k Shipwreck on the West Coast TrailPuritan at 48.5k Shipwreck on the West Coast TrailWempe Brothers at 49.4k Shipwreck on the West Coast TrailDuchess of Argyle at 58k Shipwreck on the West Coast TrailJohn Marshall at 62.3k Shipwreck on the West Coast TrailWilliam Tell at 64.2 Shipwreck on the West Coast TrailRevere at 69k Shipwreck on the West Coast TrailCyrus at 75k

West Coast Trail Campsites

Pachena Bay Campground West Coast Trail CampsitesMichigan Creek at 12k West Coast Trail CampsitesDarling River at 14k West Coast Trail CampsitesOrange Juice Creek at 15k West Coast Trail CampsitesTsocowis Creek at 16.5k West Coast Trail CampsitesKlanawa River at 23k West Coast Trail CampsitesTsusiat Falls at 25k West Coast Trail CampsitesCribs Creek at 42k West Coast Trail CampsitesCarmanah Creek at 46k West Coast Trail CampsitesBonilla Creek at 48k West Coast Trail CampsitesWalbran Creek at 53k West Coast Trail CampsitesCullite Cove at 58k West Coast Trail CampsitesCamper Bay at 62k Thrasher Cove - West Coast Trail CampsitesThrasher Cove at 70k Pacheedaht Campground

Pachena Point was originally named Beghadoss Point after the Becherdass-Ambiadass shipwreck that occurred here on July 27th, 1879. The name Beghadoss was the original name of the Becherdass-Ambiadass. When the lighthouse was completed in 1907 the name of the point and lighthouse were changed to Pachena Point and Pachena Point Lighthouse. The name is thought to come from the word pacheenah. A word that the Indigenous hunters along the coast used for seafoam. It is also reported that Pachena was easier for Canadians to pronounce than Beghadoss. It is a stark reminder to how treacherous the Graveyard of the Pacific is here, that despite the newly constructed lighthouse, shipwrecks continued to occur in the area. The Soquel wrecked near here in 1909, the Varsity in 1940 and the Uzbekistan in 1943!

Pachena Lighthouse West Coast Trail

Pachena Cable Pully

A short trail takes you to the lighthouse where you can do a tour of the outside. One surprising thing you encounter is a long cable pulley stretching down to the reef far below. This cable is used to receive supplies from boats that drop things off to this natural dock.

Pachena Lighthouse Pulley

The picture below was taken in the 1960's by Jack Hunting and is found in R. Bruce Scott's amazing book, Barkley Sound A History of the Pacific Rim National Park Area.  The cable pulley was used for hauling up freight in sling loads.  In calmer weather than shown below it was possible to offload from a boat onto the reef. 

The Gap Pachena Point

Pachena Lighthouse Miles To Sign

Next to the lighthouse there is a sign indicating how far and in what direction different countries are.

Pachena Lighthouse Sign

Visiting the Uzbekistan Shipwreck in 1944

A Royal British Columbia Museum video from 1944 of people hiking from the Pachena Point Lighthouse to the Uzbekistan shipwreck at the mouth of Darling River. The video was taken more than thirty years before the West Coast Trail was established as a National Park.

The Uzbekistan Shipwreck on the West Coast Trail

The Uzbekistan Shipwreck - West Coast Trail Graveyard of the PacificThe Uzbekistan was a steel steamship of 2569 tons. Built in 1937 in France and became a shipwreck on April 1st, 1943. A Russian ship, the Uzbekistan was part of the lend-lease program during World War II, where the US shipped war materials to Russia. She left Portland for Seattle to pick up a load of war materials destined for Vladivostok. On April 1st 1943 the Uzbekistan encountered stormy weather and bad visibility, mistaking the light at Swiftsure Bank for that of Umatilla Reef. She steered toward what was thought to be the Juan de Fuca Strait. Because of the strong northerly current, she was far north of her supposed location. At 11pm the Uzbekistan collided with the the rocky shelf just down from today's Darling River. The entire crew made it to shore safely and made camp. They then managed to hike their way to Bamfield and were eventually picked up by a Royal Canadian Navy ship.

Michigan and Uzbekistan Shipwreck Map

Today, if you are lucky you can spot the Uzbekistan's boilers and parts of her propulsion machinery at very low tide at the edge of the reef. You will more easily spot pieces of steel scattered around the mouth of Darling River.

The Uzbekistan shipwreck continued here...

Pachena Point Lighthouse on the West Coast Trail

The Pachena Point Lighthouse is found on the first or last day of the West Coast Trail. Shown on the map here it appears on the first day of the hike from the Pachena Bay trailhead in Bamfield to the Darling Falls campsite at 14km. 

Pachena to Darling Map Day 1

Day 1 Of the West Coast Trail continued here...

Owen Point, at about the 67km mark on the West Coast Trail is home to a stunningly colourful and well hidden area of sandstone caves carved out by the ocean. Centuries of crashing waves have gouged out huge, circular openings in the cliffs jutting out into the ...
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Darling Falls has to be the most overlooked and underrated feature of the West Coast Trail. It never even appeared in West Coast Trail guidebooks until recently and hardly any websites or blogs give it a mention. There are some good reasons for this. First, the ...
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Juan de Fuca Strait is the 154km long and 16km to 32km wide stretch of ocean that separates Vancouver Island from the northwest corner of Washington State. The international boundary between Canada and the United State runs down the centre of the strait. It was named ...
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Cribs Creek at 42k of the West Coast Trail is a beautiful, clean, and surprisingly emerald coloured creek that flows through the messy, beach campsite. The pretty creek is about the only nice part about this campsite. The beach is not great, it smells of ageing seaweed, ...
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Camper Bay campsite at the 62km mark of the West Coast Trail is very nice, similar to Cullite Cove there are cliffs on either side and a large creek flowing through. The downside is crowding due to the difficulty of the trail making it an almost essential campsite ...
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Walbran Creek at 53k is home to possibly the best, and most unappreciated campsites on the West Coast Trail. The Walbran Creek campsite encapsulates so much that makes the West Coast Trail truly wonderful. The expansive beach which seems purpose built for ...
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Carmanah Creek slowly flows through this wonderfully massive channel that cuts deep into the sand out to the ocean. There is a cable car crossing that connects to the forest on either side of the creek. Most West Coast Trail hikers pass the campsite here without ...
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