Kasaan

Julie
Jun 11, 2023
2 min read

Kasaan, or Gasa'aan, is a Haida village on east side of Prince of Wales Island in large Kasaan Bay, population of maybe 50 people. There is a small government dock we tied up to for the night. As soon as we arrived, we got off the boat and went for a walk. We ran into some friendly people walking their dogs, who suggested we take the gravel road to the totem park. We ended up walking further than necessary and eventually found the park. So good to stretch our legs!

Arriving at the government dock in Kasaan.

A welcoming totem at the end of the dock.

The Haida people migrated from the island of Haida Gwaii in the early 1700s to a different area within Kasaan Bay. They were a large community of about 500 people. When small pox, brought by European people, nearly wiped out their population, they moved to this location in 1880's. Many of the totems from the old village were moved to Kasaan in the 1930's, when the people established a totem park. The chief, called Son-I-Hat, built the the community house that he called Náayíwaans (Whale House), which has been restored by master carvers using traditional methods was rededicated in September 2016.

Sitka Black-Tailed Deer. Not shy at all.

Future totems.

The west entrance to the totem park. Charming!

Walking the trail in the totem park. It felt very sacred in this area--reminded us of walking amongst the Redwoods earlier this year. These trees are all second or third growth timber, but still pretty.