Pulling research camp supplies up the Ursus River
Expeditions into Ursus Valley find evidence of intensive aboriginal use
In September of 1994, the Chief and Council of the Ahousaht First Nations sent Roseanne Charlie from their village on Flores Island into the Ursus Valley, a pristine part of their traditional territories. Along with three Wilderness Committee staff members, Roseanne explored and photographed the valley. That expedition recorded towering stands of Sitka spruce and ancient red cedar trees along the river's narrow floodplain and a startling abundance of fish and wildlife. Expedition members reported signs of elk, wolf, cougar, black bear and several species of trout and salmon. The many pools and braided back waters of the Ursus are particularly rich in coho salmon fingerlings. Said expedition leader , WCWC campaigner Joe Foy, "The Ursus is one of the ecological jewels of Clayoquot Sound."
“The Ursus is one of the ecological jewels of Clayoquot Sound”
Ahousaht Ursus research camp
Kurt John measures 2cm-wide chop marks left by canoe builders over 120 years ago
Inside of research tent with "Protect Ursus" mural by Rosealie Thomas
In December of 1994, the Chief and Council of Ahousaht, alarmed at the rapid pace of preparation for road building and logging plans in the Ursus, launched a second expedition to hunt down evidence of traditional aboriginal use of the valley's forests. Rosealie Thomas, Kurt John and Alex Ostepiul of Ahousaht village, together with Joe Foy of Western Canada Wilderness Committee's head office and Susan Jones of WCWC's Ahousaht office, constructed a base camp in the Ursus and began a preliminary survey of Aboriginal forest use as evidenced in Culturally Modified Trees CMT's).
CMT's are dead or living trees that have been scarred, chopped or cut down through aboriginal use for such purposes as canoe or plank making. Such trees can provide a history stretching back centuries of aboriginal activities in an area. With help of experts who joined the expedition-Steve and Matt Lawson of Wickaninnish Island, dendrochronologist Marion Parker and WCWC's mapping expert Ian Parfitt-thirty CMT's were discovered, recorded and mapped. Due to the timing of the expedition, only a very small area was surveyed.
Six of these CMT's were the remnants of canoe-building projects. By taking small, pencil-sized core samples out of hemlock trees which have grown out of the redcedar stumps and logs remaining after canoe construction, Marion Parker was able to determine the approximate time of canoe building. One canoe-building site was dated at sometime prior to 1869 and another was dated at prior to 1895. With further research, dates of modification could be obtained for all the thirty CMT sites discovered to date.
More studies will undoubtedly reveal the great extent of aboriginal use of the valley. Every canoe that was made in the Ursus Valley over the past several centuries has left its mark in the undisturbed, slowly decomposing redcedar stumps and logs left behind.
"One canoe building site was dated at sometimes prior to 1869 and another was dated at prior to 1895”
For nations around the world that are struggling with problems caused by collapsing fisheries and dwindling forest resources, the Ursus Valley reveals a rare and ancient record of sustainable forest harvest by the ancestors of the Ahousaht First nations, proven to have worked over time. The Ursus Valley to this day remains rich in fish, forests and wildlife despite centuries of traditional native logging. For the Ahousahts, the Ursus is a natural storehouse of history, a source of both learning and pride.
"Old growth forests are all we have left. It is a legacy for the generation of young people. We should treat it as our forefathers practiced, in First Nations, spirituality."
- Chief Earl Maquinna George
"It shouldn’t be construed as a limitation by the B.C. government that we may not have the complete history of the Ursus at this moment…undoubtedly our people view this as a very powerful and meaningful place."
- Nelson Keitlah, Chairman, Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council Central Region
WCWC Supports Aboriginal Title
Western Canada Wilderness Committee believes that social justice for First Nations is a prerequisite to lasting environmental protection. We support the work of indigenous peoples to safeguard their traditional homelands and ensure the survival of their cultures. We believe that the rights of indigenous peoples to their homelands are inalienable and their traditional stewardship of Earth's resources can serve as an example of how we can live in sustainable harmony with our natural world.
