Haida People: Spirits of the Sea

"In those days there wasn’t such thing as a dollar bill... The most important thing that ever existed was the food."
-John Yeltatzie, Gaawaas Eagle Clan, 1996.

Aboriginal peoples along North America’s coastlines have taken their food from the ocean for thousands of years.

Fish, shellfish and sea mammals were their staples. Berries, roots, eggs and birds were gathered and hunted to enrich this ocean diet.

Haida ancestors moved with the seasons to hunt, harvest and fish. In the warm months, they travelled by canoe to rivers like the Yakoun for the thousands of swimming sockeye there.

In old times, traditional equipment ensured a plentiful catch. Haida fishermen took their technically-advanced fishing weirs, nets and hooks with them to the open waters and rivers.