Category Archives: Canada

I love a road trip! It was my first trip back to Canada for several years – thanks to life, and Covid19, and stuff. I had some painful business to deal with, so I had decided to reward myself afterwards with a long-dreamed-of trip to the magical islands of Haida Gwaii (see: Weekly Wanders Haida […]

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After the trees arrived in Haida Gwaii, SGaanuwee (Supernatural Beings) showed Haida kuuníisi (ancestors) how to carve gyaa’ang (monumental poles). The Haida word for monumental pole is related to the word gyaa’aa: “stand up”. After Haida carve, dance, and raise them, gyaaGang or gyaa’aang become living community members. Gyaagan.Ngaay – Monumental Poles of Haida Gwaii […]

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Haida Gwaii, the archipelago in Canada’s North Pacific waters off the coast of British Columbia (BC), is a wild and remote place. The woods and waterways abound in legends and memorials to the hardships of times past. Take the story of the Pezuta (The Pesuta Shipwreck Story). This ill-fated wood-hulled steam freighter was built in […]

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I loved just about every minute I stayed on Haida Gwaii, that archipelago off the coast of British Columbia (BC) in Canada’s North Pacific waters. I knew I would spend most of my time walking in the old-growth woods and exploring the Haida Nation’s cultural history; what I didn’t expect was to be wowed by […]

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Haida Gwaii, an archipelago off the northwestern coast of Canada’s British Columbia (BC), is a land of tall trees. And stories. The more I walked through the quiet and magical woods, and the more I learned about the mythical stories that originate here, the more enchanted I became. Haida Gwaii truly got under my skin! […]

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