August, 2019
We are so grateful for the opportunity to travel to this remarkable part of our province. Formerly known as the Queen Charlotte Islands, named in 1787 after the ship the British fur trader George Dixon was on when he landed there. Of course he thought he could just name a place because he landed there with no respect given to the Haida who had lived there already for thousands of years.
Haida Gwaii means "Island of the People", which the Haida people continued to use and pushed for a long time to get their home's proper name officially recognized. It took until 2010 when the BC legislature passed the Haida Gwaii reconciliation Act which formally renamed the islands.
Skidegate
Taking advantage of the rain, we headed to Skidegate and the Haida Heritage Centre. This should be everyone’s first stop on a first visit to Haida Gwaii. After absorbing as much as we could about the culture and history here in Haida Gwaii, we popped into Ben Davidson’s gallery and got to chat with the artist himself. Nice that he sometimes collaborates with his dad, Robert Davidson who is one of the most important North Coast artists. He is known for carving and raising the first pole on Haida Gwaii in 1969, after the potlatch ban of 1884. Robert is credited with bringing Haida art and culture back to the forefront of its communities and now the world.
We are now tucked into the cozy Alaska View Lodge in Masset to reflect on the day.
Tim Boyko’s Sgang Gwaay pole at the Haida Heritage Centre. Raised in 2001, it represents one of the six villages of Skidegate.
Part of Ronald Wilson’s T’aanuu pole at the Heritage Centre.
Part of Jim Hart’s K’uuna pole.
I call it "Inukshuk with Antler" (artist unknown) at Balance Rock beach.
Some playful soul installed a bunch of swings along the beach. All was well until Adam came along and pushed me high into the sky!
Balance Rock.
Looks like it’s raining over there.
An homage to the past glory of a tree.
Old Masset
From hippy culture and old boats to beautiful poles and phenomenal artists, tiny Old Masset has it all. Old Masset is one of two villages where the Haida regrouped after suffering severely declining numbers thanks to Smallpox. We were told that this little town raised an incredible number of world-class Haida artists. We were fortunate enough to meet a few of them over the course of a few hours! We stumbled upon Jim Hart’s studio where he was working with his team on a few remarkable and substantial commissions, we bumped into Corey Bulpitt, whose work already figures prominently in our home, and we met John Brent Bennett, an incredibly talented carver and print maker whose work is now heading to our home. Wow!
Moon over Naikoon: a bakery in a bus!
These young women crank a lot of deliciousness out of this tiny kitchen in a bus. Jody, on the right, is the granddaughter of Wendy who started it all. Jody's grandmother, Wendy, was in Nanaimo when her daughter (Paige) called and told her she’d love Haida Gwaii. So Wendy packed up her Corvette Stingray and drove through a snowstorm to get here. Unfortunately, the Corvette got stuck in the snow so grandma unpacked everything she could carry, plus her cat, and continued on. She made it to Haida Gwaii and started this bakery. She passed away four years ago and now her daughter, Paige, and granddaughter, Jody, come up from Nanaimo every summer to keep Moon Over Naikoon rising.
Seating in the back of the bus.
Perfect paint job: they had a BYOP party for their friends and community to decorate the exterior.
Old Masset marina.
Still seaworthy?
An old Haida pole, left to weather naturally and return to the earth when it is its time.
An unbelievable treat to stumble across Jim Hart's carving hut. Despite being one of the most famous Haida artists, Jim was so gracious and took the time to chat with us about his work.
Jim Hart and one of his team hard at work.
How’s that for a coat hook?
The Shark House pole carved by Reg Davidson in 1986 and, given the brightness of the colours, it's not surprising to learn that it was restored recently, in 2017. He carved it for his father, Claude Davidson who commissioned it for the potlatch where he became chief of Dadens. It was the first pole raised by a newly potlatched chief in over 100 years! And yes, this is the same Davidson family as Robert (Reg's brother) and Ben (Reg's uncle).
With Corey Bullpitt, in town to collaborate with Christian White on a pole.
Progressive Masset, complete with rainbow crosswalk and a real coffee shop with an espresso machine! And the flower power van from Alberta.
Oh, does Adam ever hate when I go beach combing... "You're not bringing those home are you? Where are we going to put them?!"
Goodnight from the beach outside Alaska View Lodge.
Tow Hill
Lots of outdoor time today with hiking, big trees and a beautiful sunset. Oh, and one more pole to share…
The end of Tow Hill Beach has the most spectacular lava rock formations, thanks to the old volcano that is now Tow Hill.
Easy to find Waldo...
Top of Tow Hill overlooking miles of beach below. No, we did not drive our little Chevy the 25 miles along Rose Spit. Apparently, every year a few cars get washed away when the tide comes in and surprises those who don’t know how to read ride tables.
Hollow log on the hike up Tow Hill. We learned that logs deteriorate from the inside out and poles that are hollowed out will stand 50-100 years longer than solid ones.
Green moss dripping down the rocks.
Someone can nap anywhere!
...and he wanted me to do a balancing pose. I said I was already balancing on an unstable projection.
Christian White’s pole at Hiellen, made from a 600 year old cedar. It’s 15.5 metres tall, not to mention the additional 3.4 metres in the ground to hold it up. It was inspired by a pole created in 1820 that fronted a chief’s house for 100 years. The original pole was painted by Emily Carr in 1911.
Big trees along Golden Spruce Trail in Port Clements. The trail was originally created for people to go see the famous, 300-year-old and 50m tall unusual, golden tree that was a symbol for many. In 1997, a former logger turned zealous environmental activist cut in down to protest logging. Not quite sure of the logic of that protest statement.
Really big trees. There are not many first growth forests anymore. We met a couple in here with a drone who were filming the impact of ongoing logging. They said there is a lot of clear-cutting still happening on Haida Gwaii and they want to raise awareness to stop it.
Bird house community! Zoom in and look at all the different ones.
Best name for a company that makes benches.
Sunset at Rainbow Wharf in Port Clements.
Tlell
Sitting at the beach in Tlell, an eagle perched on a spit, dusk settling in to the east, a picnic dinner of wine, cheese and hummus. A fire on the beach, gazing at a vast network of stars to cap it all off. Can you imagine a better late summer evening?
Walking through the woods to the Pesuta shipwreck at the end of East beach. When trees fall naturally across a maintained trail, they will cut out the section blocking the trail and leave the rest where it fell. Someone painstakingly counted the rings. This one was 150 years old.
...just sayin’...
The Pesuta shipwreck on East beach (Naikoon Provincial Park). The 264 foot log carrier ran aground in 1928. The locals used its cargo for building supplies and here’s what’s left ninety years later.
What’s left of the portholes on the Pesuka. I’ll never forget my Mom’s story as a young bride on an ocean trip with with my Dad. My Dad was quite particular about his packing...he had a system. She forgot to give him a pair of shoes to pack. Instead of batting her eyelashes and handing over the shoes (which would have resulted in a complete repack), she threw them out the porthole window.
A beach piano.
Continental rock?
So worth the trek out here to see this beautiful wreck
Slight detour...We didn’t quite make it back before the rising tide started flooding the beach part of the trail.
Blankets of moss.
We stayed at the 1-month-old Haida Gwaii Glamping Co. in Tlell, the dream come true of Alana Husby and her sister Nicole. Fantastic! Loved it! Can’t wait to come back!
The water in Tlell River (and other rivers) is quite red. A local told us it comes from the ground water passing through the spruce roots.
Write your caption here.
The beachfront at Haida Gwaii Glamping Co.
Warmth and happy glow from the fire on a cool night. Haida Gwaii is a quiet, magical place. the grid is patchy at best and that’s a good thing. The people here are so warm and welcoming. I’ll be back…