Trail to Discover British Columbia’s Indigenous Heritage Weaves Through Whistler-Blackcomb

Continued from previous page to protect you... We feel the prayers offered by the weaver and our ancestors, when we wear the robes.”

You have to wait a year before you can weave cedar bark and it can take three apprentices six months to weave a cedar mat, Dalilah tells us. “When we are sad, we don’t weave, otherwise it would transfer negative thoughts.”

We learn how mountain goat wool was used in Salish weaving, an ancient art form that dates back to the ice age. A mountain goat wool blanket in those times could mean the difference between surviving or succumbing to the elements. The inner wool of the mountain goat was gathered during spring molt, collected off of bushes from wool shed by the goat or from harvested animals. “It takes 5 to 10 years to collect enough for a blanket,” she tells us.

The wool was mixed with hair from a specially bred dog. Natural dyes were derived from plants, berries and clays. Intricate geometric designs reflected elements of nature and families held the rights to use those designs.

I am lucky to see a special photography exhibit on view: “Unceded –Photographic Journey into Belonging”. This temporary exhibit makes graphic the meaning of “unceded” – land that was considered stolen, taken by force, without a legal treaty. The photos show contemporary indigenous people in places like downtown Vancouver. But it is actually speaking more to the First Nations people, prodding them to see themselves in this modern world, but retaining their connection to their heritage. Unceded “doesn’t mean our people aren’t still there.”

I have a delightful lunch at Thunderbird Café, and survey a marvelous gift shop at the center before heading off to do a bit of sightseeing on Whistler’s famous Peak 2 Peak Gondola.

Squamish Lil’wat Cultural Centre, 4584 Blackcomb Way, Whistler, 1 866 441 SLCC (7522), https://slcc.ca/.

Peak 2 Peak Gondola

Considering how vast WhistlerBlackcomb is, it is actually surprisingly easy to get around (once I figure it out).

I take the Blackcomb Gondola from the base of Blackcomb Mountain for the ride to the top of Blackcomb Mountain. From here it is a short walk – skirting the skiers and snowboarders - to the Peak 2 Peak Gondola which links Blackcomb Mountain to Whistler Mountain. I’m feeling jealous of the skiers but I am sightseeing today and this is an absolutely gorgeous ride. A man I rride up the Blackcomb Gondola with tells me to look for special sightseeing gondolas that have a plexiglass bottom you can look through - we sightseers stand on a separate line so we get first dibs when the car comes around..

After opening on December 12, 2008, the massive gondola revolutionized the way skiers, riders and hikers experienced the mountains. The Peak 2 Peak Gondola, as part of the world’s longest continuous lift system, isn’t just to move skiers, it also gives summer guests access to Whistler Blackcomb’s high alpine for sightseeing, hiking and mountain-top dining.

The Peak 2 Peak Gondola travels 2.73 miles giving sightseers and hikers a serene aerial flight showcasing flora and fauna, Whistler and Blackcomb Mountains; the Coast Mountain Range’s many glaciers and peaks; and Whistler Village, surrounded by gemlike lakes.

It is notable that Whistler Blackcomb (now part of Vail Resorts, which means the resort is part of the Epic Pass) is consistently ranked one of the top ski resorts in North America.

Even this late in the season, the snow looks great and the trails look gorgeous– plenty of easy, intermediate trails!

Nutrition News

BY CHARLYN FARGO

Sometimes we make things harder than they need to be. If one of your goals is to be healthier, try walking -- no gym membership or fancy clothes required. The health benefits are amazing.

For years, we’ve thought to get any benefit, you had to walk 10,000 steps. It ends up that walking less than that has health benefits as well.

Here are a few of the studies:

Riding the Peak 2 Peak Gondola is such fun and the view so beautiful, that I actually ride it back and forth and back again for an hour before downloading via Whistler Village Gondola into Skiers Plaza in Whistler Village. (Whistler Blackcomb https://www. whistlerblackcomb.com/)

Audain Art Museum

Back down in the charming village, I pass lovely shops and eateries on my way to the Audain Art Museum. Outside is the invitation to see the “Masters of Print: Rembrandt and Beyond”- a clue that this is a world-class museum. I did not expect to see Rembrandt prints at Whistler. Nor did I expect to see what is arguably the world’s finest collection of First Nations masks, dating from the mid 1800s.

Sure enough, the Audain Art Museum delivers on its promise of a transformative experience for appreciating the art of British Columbia as well as exhibitions from around Canada and around the world. It’s in this part of the world but very much of the world. It is as local as local can be but brings the reaches of the globe into this small section of it.

The Audain Art Museum’s Permanent Collection of some 200 works - nearly all of it from the collection of Michael Audain and his wife, Yoshiko Karasawa, or purchased with their funding - is a visual journey through the history of art from coastal British Columbia.

Most astonishing is the room housing Audain’s collection of Northwest Coast First Nations masks. They are extraordinary because you see the individualism of the artist as well as the subject (many seem to be representations of actual people rather than mythic figures) and different techniques. I wonder if this reflects changes over time (spanning the mid 1800s to the present), regional differences and styles or perhaps just the artist’s own creativity.

Walking for Health

A study in JAMA Neurology found that walking about 10,000 steps a day was linked to less cardiovascular disease (heart disease, stroke and heart failure).

Still, the new research says you don’t have to take that many to get health benefits. For example, 9,800 steps lowers the risk of dementia by 50%, the research suggests, but taking just 3,800 a day lowers it by 25%.

A companion study in the journal

A truly monumental piece, an exquisitely carved red cedar “Dance Screen” (2010-2013) by Haida Chief 7idansuu (James Hart) who was a friend and collaborator of Bill Reid, takes up an entire wall of this room.

The next room has a huge collection of a beloved British Columbia artist, Emily Carr. You see her in her Impressionist phase, when she studied in France in 1911; how she incorporated First Nations elements into her landscapes when she returned in 1912. There are also post-war modernists including E.J. Hughes, Gordon Smith and Jack Shadbolt as well as works by internationally renowned, contemporary British Columbia artists including Jeff Wall, Dana Claxton, Marianne Nicolson, Rodney Graham and Stan Douglas.

I’m told that Audain had never even been to Whistler before, but his friend, who designed Whistler Village in the 1980s, encouraged him that he could build a museum in Whistler which would connect to nature, where people could quietly contemplate art. They worked with award-winning architects John and Patricia Patkau. The museum opened in 2016. (Open Thursday to Monday 11am – 6pm).

Audain Art Museum, 4350 Blackcomb Way, Whistler, British Columbia, Canada, V8E 1N3, info@ audainartmuseum.com 604-962-0413 , https://audainartmuseum.com/

Indigenous Tourism BC offers travel ideas, things to do, places to go, places to stay, and suggested itineraries and a trip planning app (https://www.indigenousbc.com/)

Next: Repurposing of Granville Island into an Arts, Cultural Destination

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Crossword Answers

JAMA Internal Medicine found that for every 2,000 steps a day, you could lower your risk of premature death by 8% to 11%.

A new study finds that walking 8,000 steps even one or two days a week has health benefits.

In this study of the walking habits of 3,202 adults, researchers found that participants didn’t have to walk 8,000 steps

Continued on page 5

BY CLAIRE LYNCH

Changing careers in midlife or at any time can be daunting but it can be fun, too. There are new opportunities and new challenges. I was speaking with three friends recently about this subject and I was very interested to hear what they were doing.

My friend, Jenna, set up her own pottery shop two years ago. She and her husband had raised two children then became empty nesters when the kids went off to college, got married and got full-time jobs. She had always loved doing pottery so when she thought about the next chapter of her life, Jenna knew immediately what she wanted to do.

One weekend when they were driving around, Jenna and her husband saw a “for rent” sign on a store in her home town. When they looked around inside, they knew that it would be perfect as a pottery shop. She could manage well with 1,300 square feet of space plus the wooden floors and ceilings gave it a nice ambiance.

For 20+ years Jenna had made pottery pieces at home but her house had become crowded with her various pieces of pottery. The store gave her a place to sell and showcase her pieces and a large room in the back was ideal for setting up her pottery wheel and her two kilns. She designed a logo and once she put her sign out front the customers started coming in. They liked the mugs, plates and large platters she made. They liked the pitchers, the vases and the large serving bowls that were perfect for holding huge servings of spaghetti and meatballs or whatever was being served for dinner.

Early in the mornings Jenna unlocks the door to her shop and spends hours making pottery and firing the pieces to her specifications in the kilns. When the time is up, Jenna opens the lid to the kiln and she says pulling out the finished piece is like opening presents