In need of exploration and making sure that we were following safety protocol during the COVID-19 pandemic, we've been doing a number of outdoor activities with our dog like visiting beaches and doing hikes all around British Columbia. On a recent trip where we stayed at Cowichan Lake, we took an afternoon to do a combination of a hike that took us down to a beach with cascading cliffs, the perfect socially distanced afternoon activity.

Whether you're coming from Victoria or from the Cowichan Lake side like we were, it is a bit of a drive to get to Mystic Beach, but it is worth doing. From Victoria, the drive follows the southern-most coast of British Columbia and depending on the day, it's worth stopping along the way to bask in the beauty that is the Pacific Northwest! From Cowichan Lake, the drive is a lot windier and not quite as scenic, but beautiful nonetheless.

About Mystic Beach

• Type: Beach/Trail

• Length: 4.0 km

• Traffic: Moderate

• Route Type: Out & Back

Mystic Beach is located along the coast of Vancouver Island and it is just a little bit north from the southern-most part of the island. It's roughly an hour drive from Victoria (or an extremely windy drive from Cowichan Lake) so a lot of locals squeeze the trip out to Mystic Beach within a day or even just for the afternoon.

From the parking lot and the trailhead, there is a 2km hike to get to the beach. While the hike itself is easy enough as a whole, there are some steeper parts to be mindful of, especially if you're doing this hike with a dog. The steeper parts of the hike aren't much more than climbing stairs, so you should be okay as long as you and your dog are physically able to go up and down. Aside from the fitness part of it, there are areas to watch out for in terms of the footing and where you're walking.

For instance, there are parts of this trail where the path going down towards the beach is literally a large fallen tree that's been notched out to resemble a staircase. While it's certainly stable, you'll have to be careful with your footing. I've found that since dogs tend to be more sure-footed than humans, they will be able to scale up and down these parts faster than we can. For this reason, it might be worth bringing a longer leash in case they start pulling to get ahead too fast and we can't keep up.

Another thing to note is the suspension bridge in the middle of this trail. While most people won't even think twice about walking on a suspension bridge, it's certainly not the same for dogs. The floor of the suspension bridge is made up of metal grates where humans with shoes won't even notice the difference. However for dogs, these grates are wide enough that it's hard for them to walk across quickly. Their paws and toes will fit into the cracks, making it rather unstable and comfortable for them. A secondary issue is that dogs can and will see through the grates to the bottom, which could frighten them.

With Markus, we took it very slowly. He's had trouble with suspension bridges in the past and since he doesn't like being picked up (and we certainly weren't going to attempt to fight him on it on top of a suspension bridge), we were prepared to end the hike here and start heading back especially since we would've had to cross this bridge twice.

Fortunately the beginning and end parts of the grated walkway of the suspension bridge sits on top of dirt, so Markus only had to deal with walking on the grates and not so much about looking down into the water until later. Since we were going so slowly, people around us were overwhelmingly respectful to let us take our time and even praised him when he got to the end! We were incredibly.. grate.. ful. 

Aside from those few areas, the rest of the hike is fairly straightforward for both humans and dogs and waiting for you at the end of the trail is Mystic Beach. Considering we made the trip out on a muggy, cold and wet day, the beach was surprisingly busy even though the trail didn't feel like it was. There were plenty of people with tents who looked like they were camping along the beach and others who had picnic lunches setup. It looked like these people have been here for a while, which would explain why the trail didn't feel as busy as the beach.

At Mystic Beach, you can keep going down to see the majestic cascading rocks and cliffs. Surely, this is one of amazing things about living in the Pacific Northwest and it's something that's worth soaking in. Along with so many others (but properly socially distanced!) we sat on the beach and enjoyed the view of the water and the sun in the distance as the skies cleared up.

What we liked

• While there are some steeper areas and the suspension bridge is rather hard for some dogs, it's a fun hike to do.

• The beach at the end is beautiful and it's worth seeing the cascading cliffs towards the one end of the beach.

What we didn't like

• Such is being in nature, but there's little to no cellular reception here. If you need to download the map to the trailhead before you're out of reception.

Our Recommendation for Reactive Dogs

We didn't have any issues with other dogs while we were hiking the trail since it was very wide. There were some off-leash dogs once we got to the beach, but Markus didn't have an issue with them and they were mostly just running back and forth on the beach. If your dog's not great with off-leash dogs approaching them, just keep this in mind while preparing for your hike.

Aside from the steeper paths and the suspension bridge discussed above, another thing to consider is that while the trail is dog-friendly, there are often bears and cougars in the area. While it's unlikely that you're going to run into one, it is worth keeping an eye out for your dog, potentially put on a "bear bell" and not let them off-leash while on the trail.

Disclaimer

Markus is a reactive, but not aggressive dog. His instinct is to avoid other dogs and he may growl, bark or lunge if provoked, but will not attack. We normally do not have issues with leashed dogs when both sides are controlled, but we will be on guard when an oncoming dog is not leashed. There are varying levels to a dog’s reactivity and only you can decide if this park, trail or hotel is appropriate for your dog. Our visits generally will not include off-leash areas; most experiences shared on The Markus Project are within leashed or undefined areas.

Please remember that our past experience visiting a park, trail or hotel may not be the same as your experience at the same park, trail or hotel. We have no control of who visits the park and whether they adhere to park rules - like leashing their dogs on leash-required paths - or not. Please use your discretion with the information provided and with your personal knowledge of your dog’s reactivity when visiting these parks, trails or hotels.