Totem Poles

Last night we stayed at Seely Lake Provincial Park. I don't know why but I find these lakes so lovely. Perhaps it is because they seem so quiet and pure with very little wind to rumple them up so the reflections are quiet wonderful.

The next morning the sun was shinning and we headed down the road. For the next couple of says we would be stopping at old Indian Villages to see very old totem poles.Totem poles have no religious significance, however, show family ties to different clans such as the Bear, Wolf, or Raven clan.

The first village, Gitwangak, with a pop. of 405, had several totem poles and a museum that wasn't open. This village was more modern than the last one we visited and, consequently, more trashy. Litter was everywhere. It is a shame and seems to be representative of the poor. Not unlike poor small towns in Arizona or New Mexico on reservations. The Totems there were quite old and stood in their original locations. One can only imagine what the village must have been like.

The next village, Kasan, was definitely for tourists, manicured with large long houses and a museum. They even had a very nice RV park. These buildings are representative of how the Indians lived long ago. The paintings on the front of the long house represent the clan living there. About fifty people lived in each house, perhaps 5 to 6 families.

The weather has turned hot. We are officially out of the rain forest and in the interior where they have not had rain in some time. In fact, there are forest fires in several places. The next 2 nights we would stay on lakes in provincial parks. A lot of Canadians were enjoying the weather that would soon turn cold.

Tonight we will be in Prince George where we will stay in a commercial park with hookups. I need to go online and see where the forest fires are so I can plan a route home.