Musings

 

May 2025 found us in Prince Rupert backing onto a ferry to Skidegate on Haida Gwaii.  It's a challenge to back 44 feet of truck and trailer onto the BC Ferry Northern Adventure - down a long ramp with a curve in it.  It runs from the white building in the distance on the right hand side of the image (below) all the way onto the ferry.

View in the rear view mirror from the passenger seat - you can see we squeezed in.

 

We spent five nights in a campground near Massett on Graham Island.  Our first stop was the famous "Balance Rock", impressive on its own and more so that day heightened by the drama in the clouds.  Over the time we were there, we were fortunate with the weather - not always 'heavenly' on Haida Gwaii.

Morning sun illuminated Sitka Spruce trees as we drove south towards Skidegate to visit the Heritage Center, the place for an introduction to Haida culture. 

 

The magnificent museum features Haida stories, Haida artists, totems, canoes and more.

The adventure continued the next day with a zodiac tour to Skedans on Louise Island.  The tour company provided wet weather gear, pfds, and boots - though I was lucky enough to have a generous friend loan me her red boots, a significant fashion statement!  Getting onto and off of the zodiac was an acrobatic feat - and not an elegant manoeuvre.  

   

We circumnavigated Louise Island with stops at a beach for a picnic lunch and time to explore what foresters left behind.  They were harvesting Sitka Spruce for construction of the De Havilland Mosquito aircraft used in WWII.  

  

The ultimate destination was Skedans, a bustling Haida Village in the late 1800s, now a National Historic Village.  We saw fallen totems and evidence, now decaying, of Haida homes.  The number of people visiting Skedans at any one time is limited, and those who visit are greeted by Haida Watchman, custodians of the village site.

  

The forest walks and drives on Graham Island were magical.

 

The road above led to Tow Hill, a widely known and loved landmark at the north end of Graham Island.  The hill and unusual rock formations made for a memorable visit and captivated my lens:

    

    

  

Exciting to see migrating sandhill cranes in the wild!

  

Such peace, such beauty.

 

I will end this overdue edition of Musings with an invitation to visit Pender Island for the 29th Art off the Fence in July.  Details on the poster below.