Queen Charlotte Islands : Haida Gwaii

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The Queen Charlotte Islands, also referred to as Haida Gwaii (which translates as ‘place of wonder’), is a remote and rugged paradise comprised of a 150 or so mystic islands separated by Hecate Strait from the mainland coast of northern British Columbia, Canada by 55 to 130 km. The archipelago islands is the westernmost point of Canada sitting on the ledge of a 2800 metre continental shelf.

The Queen Charlottes is rich in Haida First Nation art and tradition. The archipelago region is also fortunate to have majestic forests, roaming wildlife like Black Bears and Sitka Deer, tall looming mountains, massive sandy beaches and raging clean rivers feeding fresh water lakes.

The islands cover 250 km (156 miles) north to south and, at its thickest, is less than 100 km (52 miles) east to west. The two main islands, Graham Island in the north and Moresby Island in the south, plus the Gwaii Haanas National Park make up most of Haida Gwaii region.

Most of the people living on the Queen Charlottes live on Graham and Moresby Islands. Graham Island is the largest, most accessible, of the islands comprising of 6 villages - Masset, Old Masset, Port Clements, Tlell, Skidegate, and Queen Charlotte City. Moresby Island has one main community named Sandspit Village.