Atl’ka7tsem/Howe Sound is a beautiful place to be at any time of day. However- I find there is one time when she really shines: eventide. Eventide is another word for evening, or dusk, when the world settles and colors come alive. The word itself is Middle English, from the Old English ǣfentīd, derived from ǣfen (“evening”) + tīd (“time”). It conjures the same peace and tranquility that the Sound itself breathes during this time of day.
A view from Collingwood Channel looking north is one of the best in Howe Sound. As you float on the sea with Keats Island/Lhek’tines to the left, Gambier Island/Cha7elkwnech in front, followed by Anvil/Lhaxwm, Mt. Garibaldi/Nch’kay and the mountains of the Sunshine Coast in behind, one gets a spectacular vista of some of Atl’ka7tsem’s best treasures. It is here, when the seas are calm, and the mountains fade into every shade of blue, that one can find true tranquility.
A family of orcas pass, they are led by the matriarch female, a mother who will stay with her offspring for her entire life. Her children and grandchildren will learn from her wisdom and knowledge on everything important in their lives: hunting grounds and strategies, territories, social etiquette, dialects and relationships. She leads her family through the Sound, a place they have lived and hunted for countless generations, and a place that holds their future in it’s hands.
For more information or to purchase prints of this painting please visit my shop: https://artbydi.ca/artwork/eventide/
