Gumbo was visiting the “misty isles”, Haida Gwaii, in British Columbia. Specifically, the remnants of the Haida village of Skedans. Sadly, not much remains of the village, captured at its prime in the above image (1878), rich with great totem art and beautiful longhouses. This puzzle proved challenging, as I thought it would largely because it’s from a remote and rarely visited place. It was correctly identified as “Haida Gwaii” by Roderick Simpson, with Jonathan L on the right track as well. Congratulations, guys!
Skedans is located on the northeastern shore of Louise Island, at the head of Cumshewa Inlet in Haida Gwaii (formerly called the Queen Charlotte Islands), off the coast of North Central British Columbia just south of the Alaska panhandle. That sounds really confusing, so to help you better orient yourself to this remote place, here are a few maps I think will help:
(Map showing relationship between Haida Gwaii and mainland B.C.)
(Map showing location of Skedans village)
Skedans is also known variously as Koona, Q’una, Koona LLnaagay, and K’uuna Llnagaay and several other names, all variants of its original name in the traditional Haida language. The name Skedans was given to the village by Anglo captains of the maritime fur trade who tended to refer to a village by its chief’s name. In recent years the original native names have become popular and replaced the Anglicized titles. That’s quite reasonable, but I find this grouping of names hard to pronounce so we’ll stick with Skedans in this blog.
Skedans village is located at sea level on a small peninsula framed by a sheer mountainous cliff. It was a good location for the Haida, a seafaring people who moved about in massive cedar canoes. In the summer they headed to temporary camps to hunt and fish, but in the winter they returned to their established villages, like Skedans. Fish and food were so plentiful that gathering sustenance didn’t take that long. So with time on their hands, the Haida turned their talents to wood-working and crafted some of the most beautiful and unique art in the world (note: the author is a huge fan of northwestern native art).
Skedans had more than 40 totem poles facing the sea, with sixteen long houses sheltering its residents. You see little evidence of that when you visit today. Most of the beautifully sculpted totem poles have fallen to the ground from rot; a few specimens were removed for preservation long ago (you can see examples in some of Canada’s finest museums, including the Royal BC Museum in Victoria). The longhouses are also gone, although you can still see the outlines of where they were situated. The village site is part of the Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve and Haida Heritage Site and is a Canadian National Historic Site. I think these historic photos, including the image at the top of this post, will help you appreciate what a remarkable place this was in the late 19th century.
(Skedans, late 19th century)
These remote Haida villages are not easy to get to, even today, as they are only approachable from the sea. Many people fly in by seaplane, then boat the last stretch to the villages. Gumbo was staying in Skidegate and took a ferry to Moresby Island where he engaged a guided tour on a Zodiac boat ride out to Skedans, with stops along the way to enjoy the rainforest and beautiful scenery of the area. Here’s what some of that trip was like…..
We saw some amazing scenery as we made our way to Moresby Island…
We came across this abandoned railroad bridge, itself returning to nature. In World War II the lightweight but strong sitka spruce were harvested and used in the manufacturing of aircraft. Howard Hughes’ “Spruce Goose” was made of sitka spruce…
We passed kelp forests, one of the richest ecosystems on the planet….
And landed on several beaches. On this one these moose tracks….
And everywhere a thick lush moss-covered forest with many ancient trees….
We came across ‘Seal Island’, appropriately named as you can see. The swells were large and powerful, but did not wash the seals off their perch…
Before landing at Skedans. Our guide gave the Haida Watchmen (a married couple during our visit) warning so they could put on their traditional costumes, and we waited for them to prepare themselves. As we waited, I took a photo from the beach….
About 5 minutes later, exact same spot and same view, the “Misty Isles” showed how they got their nickname as this thick fog rolled in from seemingly nowhere, obscuring the beautiful mountains….
A Haida Watchman (or in this case, a married couple) live at the site and welcomed our group….
They walked us around the village, their hand-embroidered robes so very beautiful….
And ended up at the best-known totem pole in Skedans, the Eagle Mortuary Totem, made famous by Canadian Group of Seven Artist Emily Carr in one of her many Totem paintings. The watchmen sang a song in Haidi, a prayer perhaps, a special ceremony I felt privileged to see…..
And then we could wander through the site on our own, taking photos and more importantly gathering precious memories….
Our stay ending with a pleasant visit from a gentle group of deer….
It was a very special day, not only because we had some sunshine (not common on Haida Gwaii) but mostly because of this amazing place! Skedans is just one of a number of sites that contain relics of old villages, including totems. It’s well worth seeing these if you can (and before the totems have all fallen).
(Map showing location of old Haida villages)
