What's Next? Hiking the Trans Canada Trail

Beyond the East Coast Trail

 

“When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the universe.”

 

John Muir, My First Summer in the Sierra

When we first began planning our hike along Newfoundland’s East Coast Trail, we knew that this journey was about more than completing one beautiful coastal route. It was about testing ourselves, our gear, our planning, and our ability to live, walk, document, bird, and blog from the trail day after day.

 

Now, having completed the East Coast Trail, we find ourselves standing at the end of one journey and the beginning of something much larger.

 

The East Coast Trail has been everything we hoped it would be, and far more demanding than we expected. It has given us dramatic coastal cliffs, rolling fog, cold rain, unexpected snow, strong winds, seabirds, whales, welcoming communities, muddy paths, hard lessons, and unforgettable views over the Atlantic Ocean. It has also given us the confidence to believe that the larger dream we have been discussing for several years may actually be possible.

 

The Trans Canada Trail

 

For us, this hike was never only about Newfoundland. The East Coast Trail is also part of the eastern section of the Trans Canada Trail, also known as The Great Trail. In that sense, walking this coastline has felt like our first real step onto a national pathway that stretches across the country from the Atlantic to the Pacific and north toward the Arctic.

 

Over the coming years, we hope to follow that pathway much farther.

 

Our plan is to spend the next three to four years hiking the Trans Canada Trail across Canada. Beginning in Newfoundland, we hope to continue west through the Atlantic provinces, across Quebec and Ontario, over the Prairies, through the mountains, and eventually toward the Pacific coast. From there, if time, resources, weather, and life allow, we hope to continue north.

 

We know this is an enormous undertaking. We know there will be difficult days, uncertain logistics, long road walks, weather we cannot control, and challenges we cannot yet imagine.

 

The East Coast Trail has already reminded us that maps and plans only carry you so far. At some point, you have to step onto the trail, adapt to what comes, and keep moving forward.

 

But it has also shown us why this matters.

 

Slow Travel Across Canada

 

As we walked along the coast of Newfoundland, we were constantly reminded of how much there is to notice when you slow down. Birds moving along the cliffs. Wildflowers blooming in the wind. Communities shaped by the sea. Weather arriving across the Atlantic before you are ready for it. Places that cannot be understood from a car window or a quick photograph.

That is part of why we are setting out to #Hike4Birds.  Through this journey, we hope to use our time on the Trans Canada Trail to promote bird conservation, nature connection, and time spent outdoors in Canada. We want to share the landscapes, communities, species, and protected places that make this country so extraordinary. We also hope to encourage others to step outside, walk a local trail, learn the birds in their neighbourhood, visit a conservation area, or simply spend more time paying attention to the natural world around them.

We do not yet know where this path will lead us, or whether everything we hope to do will be possible. What we do know is that the East Coast Trail has given us a beginning.  It has taught us that we can carry our home on our backs. It has shown us that our equipment can withstand cold, wet, windy nights. It has reminded us that plans need to be flexible, that landscapes deserve respect, and that even difficult days can become part of a larger story.

 

What's Next?

So what’s next?

 

Next, we continue preparing for the Trans Canada Trail which we hope to set out onto next year in the spring.  Which means we will be back in Newfoundland, continuing from the centre of the ECT at Cape Spear’s iconic lighthouse.

 

There are maps to study, gear choices to reconsider, communities to learn about, routes to research, and many kilometres of Canada waiting ahead. The East Coast Trail has been our preparation, our proving ground, and our introduction to The Great Trail.

 

Now the larger journey begins.

 

Thank you for following along as we hiked the East Coast Trail. We hope you will continue with us as we set out across Canada, one step, one bird, and one trail day at a time.

 

See you on The Great Trail.  This is just the start...

 

To Follow Along – www.comewalkwithus.online