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| (Kevin J. Smith / Maple Leaf Adventures) |
Along Canada’s West Coast there lies a unique archipelago
called the Haida Gwaii. This collection of 150 forested islands are a natural
and cultural paradise that is explored by few people. The Haida Gwaii are home
to more than 40 endemic species and sub-species and the waters are filled with
wildlife from whales to birds and otters. The First Nations cultures here have
inhabited these islands for possibly more than 10,000 years, living off the
bounty of the land and waters.
Our partner Maple Leaf Adventures is one of the few
tour companies to take people to these islands on board their classic schooner.
They were one of the founders of the Gwaii Haanas Tour Operators Association
and helped to develop a Code of Conduct to make sure that people respect the
fragile environment and rich cultures. Laura Waldo and her husband found this
special trip through SEEtheWILD and answered a few questions about their
experiences.
#1: Haida
Gwaii is known as the Galapagos of Canada – what interesting animals did you
encounter? And what was your most memorable wildlife experience?
This adventure was an amazing wildlife experience! Personally
I cannot get enough of whales and eagles and we weren't disappointed! We had a
wonderful naturalist on board who enjoyed sharing his knowledge of the variety
of species we encountered: eagles and humpback whales, bears, puffins, albatross,
otters and a mind blowing variety of avian species. We traveled with other
passengers who had a great love for birds and it was enlightening to be around
them and to "catch" their enthusiasm when puffins would perform
"fly-bys" and to learn how cool it was to see an albatross flying
within sight of land!
#2: For
those who aren’t familiar with these islands, would you recommend people visit
and if so, why?
Haida Gwaii is a magical place. In this day and age of large
cruise ships packed with people and "all you can eat and drink"
vacations, this type of "cruise" was wonderful! We loved, besides the
scenery and wildlife, how intimate we felt with the islands and the ocean. The
"Maple Leaf" was a wonderful way to get into areas and moor that most
people would never have the opportunity to do. Every day we would ride a zodiac
from the boat to land and explore...and what a place to explore! Where we live,
our forests are beautiful but sparse compared to the rain forests of the
Pacific Northwest; the sheer volume of life growing on top of life was awe
inspiring... nurse logs supporting a whole other generation of trees, fern, and
moss. The absolute size of the Sitka spruce was as amazing as the Giant Sequoia
in California... you could really feel the "aliveness" of the
forest...what a gift!
#3: This
year marks the 20th Anniversary of the Gwaii Haanas agreement which led to the
protection of the area. Can you share some of what you learned about this First
Nations culture?
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| (Maple Leaf Adventures) |
We knew nothing really of the First Nation Culture before our
trip. We had visited Native American reservations in the United States and we
were so saddened by the abject poverty, despair, and repression of the people
that lived there. Our experience of the First Nation culture on Haida Gwaii, however,
was a such an uplifting experience! To visit with people who are so very
proud of who they are, where they came from and are so furiously protective of
the land was a joy to see.
Having the experience of watching gifted carvers working on a
memorial pole, and visiting the Watchmen (and women and baby Raven!) who live
on the islands was such a unique experience, too. We had the opportunity to
visit the building where the Haida had staged a logging protest (which was
successful in halting the operations) and you could almost feel the energy,
hear the conversations, and smell the ceremonial fires they had while living
there. I had approached this trip as primarily a wildlife experience, but I was
so gladdened to have the experience to be immersed, even in such a short period
of time, into the Haida culture!
#4. Tell
us about the Maple Leaf. What is it like spending a week at sea in a classic
schooner?
The Maple Leaf is a wonderful schooner with an incredible
history. The absolute love that Kevin, the captain, has for her is obvious and
he is a fitting steward for her care! The crew were wonderfully
supportive...from the excellent, beautiful gourmet dishes served every meal to
the a wonderful deckhand, Skye, whom I convinced to jump into the 42 degree
ocean with a go-cam! The one thing that did not occur to me was the fact that we would
really not be physically moving our bodies while on the Maple Leaf. My hobby is
ultrarunning; so going from running 50-60 miles a week to 0 miles was a little
bit of a shock to my body! I will tell you, we started doing some short jogs on
any beach we came to!
#5. Maple
Leaf Adventures is known as a leader in responsible tourism. Can you tell us
how they work sustainability and wildlife education into their small ship cruises?
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| (Maple Leaf Adventures) |
The Maple Leaf crew does an incredible job of minimizing any
negative impact on the planet. As any one that has eaten at a restaurant can
see, the sheer amount of food waste that is generated is sobering. What was so
refreshing on the Maple Leaf was to observe how wonderfully the food was cooked
and prepared, how portions were given that were satisfying but not overdone,
and how there really was no waste. Left over fresh caught seafood was put back
into the crab traps for bait; and speaking of the traps, Kevin and the crew of
Maple Leaf made it a point to teach about sustainability; when emptying a crap
trap, each crab was carefully measured and any ones that were not of legal
size, were gently released.
I think one of the highlights of this trip was having a naturalist
on board, like Colin Bates, who had a passion and love for sharing his
knowledge of the natural world. When viewing whales, he brought up books on
deck for reference and discussion; when a rare bird would make an appearance,
he would immediately direct us where to scan and then discuss some of the
pretty cool facts of that species.
Finding a skeleton of a salmon laying in the
forest initiated a discussion on genetics; due to bears fishing and bringing
the salmon inland to eat and the carcass decomposing and feeding the soil, 25%
of the sitka spruce along the rivers have salmon DNA- how cool is that! In
fact, after showing us examples of the myriad of mosses, ferns and plants of an
area and demonstrating their evolution, he had us all lay down in the moss and
just “hang out”….called “mossing”…pretty incredible! I think I am
going to try that at home.
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