That’s what the people of Haida Gwaii say it feels like on this northernmost of the B.C. islands. Huge red cedars grow here and the Haida people used them for building strong homes, canoes that are works of art, and immense totems.
For millennia, the Haida were the fiercest of the First Nations people. They paddled their canoes up and down the coast, pillaging every village they came upon. Their reign ended in the 1770’s, when Europeans arrived and learned the abundance of timber and sea otters. In exchange, the Europeans traded guns and fatal diseases, intentionally.
But like other conquered people, they kept their culture and language secretly alive. Haida Gwaii is like a forest castle, and the moat is the ocean. The moat is calm on the east side but angry as heck on the west side. Today Haida Gwaii is thought of as a place where everyone says “hi” and no one locks their trucks or homes.
The totems are awesome!!!
Xhaaidlagha Gwaayaai... y'all have reinspired me to finish the factional novel I started years ago that was partly based on the ancient civilizations of the Haida First Nations! -Jerry
The anemones are an amazing color. Is that because they are in colder water? I’ve never seen that color before.
Looks like a nice quiet place. Amazing photos. Who are your new friends?