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| S'Gang Gwaay, Haida Gwaii |
Our second full
day in Haida Gwaii meant our second boat trip with Haida Style, this time with
a very early start, as we were heading right down to the southern end of the archipelago.
Our destination was Anthony Island, and the Haida village of S’Gang Gwaay, or Ninstints,
which is the name that white visitors gave it, based on the name of the village
Chief.
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| Rainforest, S'Gang Gwaay, Haida Gwaii |
Today, we were
on the covered boat with James, and as it was a bit bumpy, and the journey was
around 4.5 hours each way, we were quite glad of that. A few of our fellow
shipmates felt a bit queasy in the rough patches as it was. Nic was OK though,
as he had taken a tablet just in case, and I was don’t generally have any
problem with seasickness anyway.
It was a
long journey down to S’Gang Gwaay, and we were all pretty glad when we finally arrived,
even if we were a little disappointed that in order to avoid missing our slot
with the Watchmen, we didn’t have time to stop and watch the couple of
humpbacks that we had seen in the bay.
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| Watchman Kelsey, S'Gang Gwaay, Haida Gwaii |
The boats
and away from the village site, in order to avoid spoiling the experience in the
village, so to get there, we took a walk through the mysterious looking
rainforest, with its dark moss and ancient trees. The main trees here are cedar
spruce and hemlock, which we learned to tell apart by the patterns on their
bark.
We were
shown around the village by Patrick from Haida Style, and Kelsey, one of the Watchmen.
They gave us a great tour around, with lots of interesting information and some
lovely stories about the carvings on the totem poles.
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| Totems, S'Gang Gwaay, Haida Gwaii |
Like
Skedans, there were some remains of Haida Long Houses, and some collapsed and decaying
poles, but unlike that village, S’Gang Gwaay also has quite a number of memorial
poles that are still standing, and while the colours are long gone, the
intricate carvings are still very visible. It isn’t hard to see why this was
granted UNESCO World Heritage Site status.
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| Totems for guest Chief, S'Gang Gwaay, Haida Gwaii |
We loved
seeing the poles here. They may not be as well preserved as those that we might
see in a museum or gallery, but there is something far better about seeing them
still standing in the place that they were carved and raised, and where they
served their proper purpose.
Standing
here, they aren’t just a piece of artwork, they are a meaningful connection to
the
people that once inhabited the village, as well as a stark reminder that
those same people were decimated by disease brought by white colonists. Indeed,
one of the poles, which stands a little away from the rest, at the edge of the
village, is believed to be the mortuary pole of the Chief of another village,
where the smallpox wiped out almost everyone, and the few that remained were
allowed to join the village here.
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| Totems, S'Gang Gwaay, Haida Gwaii |
Now I’m
definitely not one of those people who goes to places and claims to be able to ‘feel
the spirituality’. But that doesn’t mean that I don’t recognise when a place is
meaningful, and S’Gang Gwaay certainly is that. It helps that Kelsey and
Patrick brought the stories to life so well, but even without that, there is
definitely a sense that you are somewhere quite special and unique. This was
certainly the highlight of Haida Gwaii for us.
But whilst
we did consider that the destination is worth the journey, if it felt like a
long way out to S’Gang Gwaay, it felt even further on the way back.
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| Steller Sea Lions, Haida Gwaii |
For a bit of
respite, we stopped off again at the rock where the steller sea lions haul out
and hung out with them for a while. We did think at one point, that we were
going to be ‘seen off’ by one of the big males. He seemed to be mouthing off at
us quite a bit, and made his way down to the water, as if he was threatening to
come over and deal with us.
I wouldn’t
say that he looked agitated by our presence – and certainly none of the others
did – and he didn’t even seem that aggressive, it just looked like a lot of
posturing. Perhaps he was trying to show off to the ladies or youngsters.
Anyhow, he did get in the water, but didn’t come anywhere near us, just went
and had a little swim around.
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| Haida Gwaii |
We finally
arrived back at Queen Charlotte later than expected, and glad that we had kept something
quick and easy to cook when we got home after our thirteen hour day.
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| S'Gang Gwaay, Haida Gwaii |
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| Remains of a Long House, S'Gang Gwaay, Haida Gwaii |
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| Totems, S'Gang Gwaay, Haida Gwaii |
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| Totems, S'Gang Gwaay, Haida Gwaii |
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| Totems, S'Gang Gwaay, Haida Gwaii |
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| Rain forest and totems, S'Gang Gwaay, Haida Gwaii |
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| S'Gang Gwaay, Haida Gwaii |
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| S'Gang Gwaay, Haida Gwaii |
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| Haida Gwaii |
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| Steller Sea Lions, Haida Gwaii |
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| Steller Sea Lions, Haida Gwaii |
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| Steller Sea Lions, Haida Gwaii |
