NORTHERN BRITISH COLUMBIA - British Columbia: Including the Alaska Highway - page 627

Practicalities
Sandspit lacks the appeal of communities on Graham Island, but services are available.
Friendly Moresby Island Guest House (385 Beach Rd., 250/637-5300,
www.moresbyislandguesthouse.com , $50-85 s or d) is a popular kayakers' hangout across
the road from Shingle Bay. Some of the 10 rooms share bathrooms, but everyone has use of
a kitchen, laundry, and wide deck with water views.
Sandspit Visitor Centre is a small desk inside the airport terminal (250/637-5362,
9am-5pm daily in summer).
MM GWAII HAANAS NATIONAL PARK RESERVE
Renowned around the world for its ancient Haida villages dotted with totem poles, the
Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve encompasses the southern half of Moresby Island as
well as 137 smaller islands in the south of the archipelago—1,480 hectares (3,660 acres)
of land and 1,600 kilometers (1,000 miles) of coastline. It's a remarkable place. Ancient,
brooding totems and remnants of mighty Haida longhouses stand against a backdrop of
lush wilderness: dense trees, thick spongy moss, and rock-strewn beaches with incredibly
clear water. Colonies of nesting seabirds and an abundance of marine life—killer and minke
whales, sea lions, tufted puffins—all add to the atmosphere.
Jointly managed by Parks Canada and the Haida nation, the park was established in 1988
after a long, bitter struggle between the Haida and forestry companies. The area now pro-
tected was home to seafaring Haida for almost 10,000 years, but by the early 1900s, less
than 100 years after their first contact with whites, their communities were abandoned, the
inhabitants having been wiped out by disease or having moved to Old Massett and Skideg-
ate.
Nan Sdins (Ninstints) on tiny SGaang Gwaii (Anthony Island) near the south end of the
park, was once home to around 300 Haida and had been occupied for thousands of years
before the arrival of Europeans. Today, weathered totem poles stretch along the shoreline,
with the nearby ruins of cedar longhouses slowly being consumed by the surrounding rain-
forest. Anthony Island was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1981, 97 years after
the last Haida families had abandoned their remote home. Gandle K'in (Hotspring Island),
the site of another abandoned village, has the bonus of oceanfront hot pools that held spe-
cial healing and spiritual qualities to the Haida. Other well-known villages include Kuuna
(Skedans), closest to Sandspit; T'aanuu (Tanu); and Hik'yah (Windy Bay).