I keep hoping to have more pictures to share from Doug's stash of our summer on the B.C. coast, but as it's nearing winter I guess I better at least share a glimpse of Sonja as a bush baby.
We flew up to Vancouver to meet Doug on July 6th and then a few days later traveled on by plane to Bella Bella and then by boat to the remote Koeye River watershed, where we spent 6 weeks living and working. We were joined by 8 undergraduate students, and shared the beautiful beaches and river with up to 50 Heiltsuk First Nation youth campers, volunteers and travelers from around the world, and numerous First Nation families. So, not quite the peace and quiet you might have imagined, but a wonderfully enriching combination of new friendships and cultural experiences amidst one of the wildest places left in North America.
Sonja watched grizzlies walk the beach, ate fresh mussels cooked over a small cedar bark fire, learned that huckleberries are her favorite, but salmonberries, thimbleberries, and even salal berries are delicious, and learned the difference between a canoe and a kayak.
But best of all, she was absolutely mesmorized by Heilstuk traditional dances in the Big House every friday. By the end of the summer, she was out there with the rest of them. Here she is at practice during the week:
