The little hummingbird family I fed over winter had babies!! Three little zippers have been growing up quick right in my backyard and it’s been a wonder to watch them. They make little ‘peeping’ sounds and just melt your heart. More might be on the way as well! Ah, quite the proud sugar daddy right now 😊
An aerial view over the stunning Carmanah Valley in Ditidaht territory. Flying over the south coast, one quickly realizes just how hard it is to find a view of unbroken wilderness like this.
Nearly everywhere you look is a patchwork of clearcuts, second or third growth plantations, tufts of old-growth sprinkled about, and roads - everywhere roads.
It can almost feel strange then to see a sea of unbroken green like this. Like an emerald blanket, the forests wrap around every nook and cranny, peak and valley, for as far as the eye can see.
Knowing that this area is protected fills me gratitude, wonder, and joy. As a big tree seeker, staring down at the tapestry of tall trees has my mind spinning about what future adventures in this valley might uncover.
The old-growth forests of Carmanah wouldn’t still be here today though if it wasn’t for hard-fought efforts in the 1980’s and 90’s to stop clearcut logging by Macmillan Bloedel. It stands as a testament to the fact that your efforts can and do make a difference.
Let’s keep working together to protect the remaining endangered old-growth forests in BC for ours and future generations to cherish and explore.
Here are some of the big and beautiful trees we encountered on our recent explorations of the Carmanah Valley.
Leaving the flats, we encountered some amazing cedars on the slopes; a unique sight to see in a valley most famed for its big spruce trees.
The dark shadows of massive trees would loom in the distance, drawing us ever further into the mystery of what might lay ahead.
Crossing over creeks and under fallen logs, we wandered our way into some truly special spots, such as one that looked like perfect place for a picnic with its flat, mossy ground and 8-9 giant Sitkas in a single grove.
The weather was constantly changing as well from sunshine, to hail, to snow, and back to sun. When the sun did shine, it’s soft light would give the moss adorning the tree trunks a magical golden glow.
After ten hours of bushwhacking the first day and eight the next, it was time to head home. As my friend Ian says, this type of exploring invigorates the soul while it exhausts the body. As we hiked out through slushy mud puddles while being pelted by incessant hail, physically destroyed but mentally blissed out, I couldn’t have agreed more.
With its sweeping valley bottoms and rolling slopes protected and intact, Carmanah leaves you wondering what natural wonders are still hidden out there. Only time and further exploration will tell…
UPDATE - 2024: We’ve since climbed and documented this tree with professional climbers! See the photos and story and watch the incredible video too!
At 12.5ft wide, over 250ft tall, and with a crown that is a world unto itself, this Sitka spruce may now be the largest known tree in the Carmanah Valley.
We came across it last weekend when myself and some friends were exploring in the park. After a long day of bushwhacking, daylight fading, and snow beginning to fall, its giant, multi-forked canopy caught our eye from a distance. We bumped into another group of big tree seekers before making our way over to this Goliath of the woods, shouting with excitement as we approached it.
Certain trees just enter into a different category of big and this would be one of them. It can be hard to comprehend their incredible age and immense size. To be in their presence is both humbling and inspiring, and fills you with stoke!!
The Carmanah Valley is special place. Protected in the 1990’s after hard fought conservation battles, it is home to some of, if not the the very best, old-growth Sitka spruce stands in the country. It’s also famous for having the tallest tree known in Canada, the Carmanah Giant, which stands 315ft or 95m tall.
With its sweeping valley bottoms and rolling slopes all still intact, it leaves you wondering what else could be out there. For now, this appears to be the biggest, but more could surely be in store. Only time and further exploration will tell!
The Easter egg hunt continues…
Here's a recent chat I had with Creative Director Heidi Volpe for A Photo Editor. We touch on conservation photography, the viral nature of Big Lonely Doug, the process behind exploring and capturing images of forests and logging in BC, and more: https://aphotoeditor.com/2022/03/07/the-daily-edit-ancient-forest-alliance-tj-watt/
Here are some portraits of my hummingbird pal. I hung out with this guy all day yesterday, thawing his feeder and watching him buzz about. These beautiful birds sure can survive harsh weather. At night they enter a state of ‘torpor’, a hibernation-like mode where their metabolic rate drops by as much as 95% and their body temperature lowers to a hypothermic threshold barely sufficient to maintain life. During the day, their body temp climbs to 40C and their tiny heart beats 1200 times per minute while flying! They’re essentially a rainbow glitter ball that eats half its body weight in sugar each day with the ability to fly forwards, backwards, sideways, and even upside down. How cool is that. Their iridescent feathers are incredible too - an effect created by microscopic air bubbles that refract light at different angles. I’m sure there’s plenty of magic involved as well ;)
I recently worked on a CBC Doc Project podcast where I discussed photography & old-growth conservation and took a journalist on remote big tree bushwhacking adventure in Barkley Sound! We found some big ones, but will they remain standing? Read the article and listen to the podcast to find out more. And yes, I've been doing this awhile but no, I'm not in my early 40's as described ;)
A record low pressure weather system slammed into the coast of BC this past weekend. I love storm watching and witnessing the front arrive along the coast was a wild and humbling experience! Here are a few pics as the first of it passed overhead.
