June 1, 2013 - Smith Inlet, Fitz-Hugh Sound to Shearwater- 60 Nautical Miles

In the Morning at 5 am we pulled anchor to continue up Fitz-Hugh Sound. The current is with us so our passage to Shearwater will be within our range of 60 nautical miles.  As we cruise along the wide body of water we see the spouts of Humpback Whales feeding at the entrances to inlets. BC Ferry "Northern Expedition"passed us on her way to Prince Rupert.  We recalled her predecessor "Queen of the North" that sunk when it crashed into Gil Island in the middle of the night in 2006.  Three members of the crew that were at the helm were fired and never to sail a ship again. They were accused of negligence when two of them left the helm because of some romantic entaglement.

We were tempted to stop and visit one of our favorite stops.  Namu, a former  BC Fish Packers Cannery. It was closed in the 1950's.  We have stopped many times to visit the caretakers that reside there now.  It was built on a former First Nation's Heiltsuk Tribe site that can trace in habitation for 10,000 years.  The bones removed from the site by Simon-Fraser University have been repatriated to scared grave sites.  If you look closely in the  foreground trees you can count 18 Bald Eagles.   

We pulled into Shearwater about 5pm.  We were tired and hungry !

 

We enjoyed a beautiful sunset after a great dinner at the Pub.

In the morning we came upon a Mural Artist in the process of painting  an historical  depiction  of renowned people of the area.  You never know what you are going to find in the wilderness !!!

Paul Ygartua has painted murals a the Expo 86 (UN Building), 2 at Chemainus, Cannes France, Gorliz Spain, and in many more locations.  He is also the artist who single handily painted the Beachcomber "Legends"mural in Surrey BC which with an area of 9000 square feet, is considered by the American website "AskART"to be the largest mural in the world painted by one artist.  Paul paints all of his murals single handily,  no graphs,  no projections,  no helpers.
It was an honor to watch him work!

The mural images represent important individuals that made a significant contribution to the historic founding of Bella Bella since the Hudson Bay Company established Fort McLoughlin trading post in 1833.  There has been native in habitation for 10,000 years in the area.