Last night we departed the city lights of Vancouver as we start our northbound expedition. Sailing through the Salish Sea, we awoke surrounded by the mountains and trees of British Columbia. By afternoon, National Geographic Sea Lion dropped anchor at Desolation Sound Marine Park. Desolation Sound lies within the traditional territories of the Tla’amin, Homalco, and Klahoose First Nations who have lived in and stewarded these lands and waters for thousands of years. The sun and perfect weather beckoned us to explore, so we put down our kayaks and Zodiacs. With bald eagles overhead, sea lions in the water, and green forest surrounding us, it was a picturesque introduction to coastal British Columbia.
5/7/2025
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National Geographic Sea Bird
Daajing Giids, Haida Gwaii, Hecate Strait
After an evening cruising from SG̱ang Gwaay, National Geographic Sea Bird made one last stop this morning in Daajing Giids to drop off our cultural interpreters, DeeDee Crosby and Grace Garvie. At dock, we had two unique opportunities. The first, our daily morning stretch class had the opportunity to meet on land, and second, we welcomed the incredible artisan, Aay Aay, aboard. We were familiar with Aay Aay, who we had met two days prior as an interpreter at the Haida Heritage Center. His specialty is a revival of traditional Haida weaving. During Aay Aay’s time on board, he shared with us his personal story about discovering and mastering his art with spruce root, cedar, and wool weaving. He taught us how to hand spin the warp threads that would be the beginnings of a wool piece. After an artistic morning, we embarked on our journey across Hecate Strait to reach our next destination along our expedition, Alaska. This evening, I write as we make our way into Dixon Entrance preparing to wake up to the scenery of the famed Misty Fjords in the morning.
