The Lands Where the Mountains meet the Sea

Haida Gwaii is an odd place. On a normal day, you wouldn't know the exquisite beauty that surrounds you. Upon arrival to the islands, if one of the locals were to tell you there are many a mountains just on the horizon, some snow capped, some rock and craggy, others covered in sitka spruce, old and ancient cedars and sturdy hemlocks, you'd simply scoff and say they were off their rocker. Most mornings start off with a thick fog and haze that surrounds the sleepy town of Queen Charlotte like a blanket waiting to be removed after a peaceful night's rest. Throughout the day, 4 seasons can occur, with pockets of wild winds, icy rain, thick pillowy clouds that keep the mild temperatures trapped among the island boundaries. Once in a while warmth finds its way through, as the Sun's striking rays may find their way to heat up the Earth it looks upon. But some weeks, especially in Winter, this can be a rarity. Haida Gwaii is noted as one of the rainiest places in BC and Canada, even the World. It's thought that some years, it can rain 300 out of 365 days in a year.

That being said, on a few occasions since being here, I've been witness to a few of the rare days. The days Mother Nature decides to lift her veil and reveal some pretty magical specatacles of her inner workings. As the Haida like to think of this island as the place where "the land meets the sea" and often speak of the beautiful ways the two are interconnected, I've been able to see exactly what they are taking about. The last two days have housed some of the most spectacular landscape images I have seen, I couldn't take my eyes off the horizon as I rode my bike home from school today. The way the sun dances along the water and reflects off the slippery crevices along the rocks and the way the golden embers light up the sky like a fire at night as she sets over the hills at dusk really is magical. As a fellowclassmate who is local here puts it, on sunny days like this, its like a "little slice of heaven", just for us.

Now I can see why people stay here for as long as they do. It may rain, the storms may be plentiful and abundant, but all that is worth the wait when the fog does dissipate and reveal whats behind the veil.