I Call The Great Bear My Home

There are some things you can only learn when in a storm; it is a suffering I tell you, to have a sea so blue between your soul and you. Photo and caption by Jordan Wilson

The salt is in my blood, it courses through my veins; it is in my DNA, it is embedded in my brain. 

I travel the same waterways and walk through the same ancient forests as my people have done for over 14,000 years. Operating in the home of the Heiltsuk people, Pacific Wild has shown me the ropes and opened my eyes to the world of environmental conservation beyond the generations of teachings of Aboriginal stewardship.

Working in tandem with the First Nations people, Pacific Wild has helped to protect and preserve this coast that we are fortunate enough to call home. Having started as a S.E.A.S (Supporting Emerging Aboriginal Stewards) intern and taken on full time, I could not have asked for a better way to do my part to protect my homelands. As a descendent of the Heiltsuk people, I have an obligation to uphold the traditions and laws of my ancestors. After having been further immersed in environmental conservation issues, I am grateful for the opportunity to do my part.

Having just passed the one-year mark being with Pacific Wild, reflecting back on these wonderful experiences. My life will never be the same. When I travel this coast, I am no stranger to these waters or these ancient forests for even if I may never have been there, someone before me has amongst the generations, spanning over thousands of years. No day here you will have twice, there is always something new, more beauty to see. Something truly spectacular about this place is that, no matter which way you go there is some thing or some place that will take your breath away; spin the compass rose and experience 4 million years in the making, the beauty of the Great Bear.

 

“A big thank you to @iantmcallister for giving me my first Grizzly sighting.” Photo and caption by Jordan Wilson

With that being said, we still have a lot of work to do. From the smallest micro-organisms to the Kings of the Great Bear Rainforest, many of them are under constant threat.

From issues like the wolf cull, the grizzly bear trophy hunt, to cetacean entanglements; we need your help.

From sea to sky, come hell or high water; I will call this my home, so will my sons and my daughters.

I’ll be somewhere out there, on that deep blue godforsaken sea. The salt is in my blood, it courses through my veins; it is in my DNA, it is embedded in my brain. You will never find me where I cannot smell the salty breeze, it is forever my home, fair winds and calm seas.

Ph.D student Xavier Mouy and Jordan Wilson from the NGO Pacific Wild listen in on fish communicating in the Strait of Georgia. (Pacific Wild)