We must hold dear to our hearts those rare moments when we are so dumbfounded by the raw beauty of a place, we cannot help but see ourselves as a mere thread in the vast fabric of nature. Places so grand often leave us feeling, well, insignificant, but, conversely, if the world that created something so stupendous also created us … I’d say we’re doing just fine.
breathtaking: Imagine hiking through fields of alpine wildflowers toward granite ridges with wild-looking mountain ranges as your backdrop. Bella Coola Heli Sports creates one of the most memorable outdoor rec experiences, hovering you above turquoise glaciers and sapphire lakes before dropping you off to explore a summit very few have visited. Bella Coola Heli Sports, 604-932-3000, www.bellacoolaheliskiing.com
bears & beavers: Tweedsmuir Park Lodge holds grizzly and black bear-watching tours that are most dramatic in August during salmon-spawning season but available year-round. Or, climb into a De Havilland Beaver float plane for a Tweedsmuir Air Services flightseeing tour of ancient ice fields and waterfalls, ending with a slow-paced hike overlooking Turner Lake Chain.
boat & bathe: To fully absorb the stunning B.C. coastline with its lush forests, ochre kelp and milky, aqua ocean, go by boat. Bella Coola Grizzly Tours navigates you, nautically, into the North and South Bentinck Arm and into a natural hot springs tucked into the shoreline. Bathe between rocks and rainy canopies while overlooking a watercolored vista. Bliss. Bella Coola Grizzly Tours, 1953 Mackenzie Hwy 20, Bella Coola, 250-982-0098, www.bcgrizzlytours.com
breathe: After being guided by Nuxalk First Nations deep into a rich, clear forest, you begin to breathe deeply and feel your body shift to a harmonious frequency. Guides explain and educate on petroglyphs thought to be between 5,000 and 10,000 years old, all the while telling stories of the beginning of time. You can’t avoid going back to the beautiful basics. bellacoola.ca
back in time: Once a booming business, the Tallheo Cannery Inn today provides a hauntingly beautiful snapshot in history. With its quaint 1920s guest home and general store holding authentic artifacts, it manages to clearly depict a way of life far and foreign from our own. Most magnificent is the loft above an abandoned cannery building where old fishing nets, dyed the colour of glacial waters, hang from rafters like an art installation. Tallheo Cannery Inn, PO Box 334, Bella Coola, 604-992-1424, www.bellacoolacannery.com
just because: For no other reason than it is delicious, make a quick stop at Bella Coola Valley Seafoods and grab some spring salmon jerky for a mid-excursion snack. Bella Coola Valley Seafoods, Saloompt River Rd., Hagensborg, 250-982-2713, bellacoola.ca
Handsome, lonesome, stupendous Bella Coola. Go. —Jackie Kai Ellis
share:
Be the first to comment