Our World Tuesday ~ Agates

 One of the many activities that visitors and Haida Gwaiians like to do on island is to search for agates.  "Agate is a microcrystalline variety of silica, chiefly chalcedony, characterised by its fineness of grain and brightness of color. Although agates may be found in various kinds of rock, they are classically associated with volcanic rocks and can be common in certain metamorphic rocks."(from Wikipedia).   Agates are a result of gas bubbles in lava.  As the lava cools the gas escapes leaving a cavity.

 Silica in solution seeps into the cavity and forms layers, gradually filling the cavity.  As erosion by wind and water occurs the agate or nodule is released. Agate is translucent and relatively hard.

 It shows up in various sizes and colours here on Haida Gwaii.  In the photo above the big rock is opaque while the agates are translucent.  The density of agates is considerably lighter than "normal rock".

 Most agates found on Haida Gwaii are the size of the little ones in the forground but occasionally after a good storm some big ones will wash up on shore.  The agate on the left weighs in at 6lb 2 oz and is currently being looked at for possible cutting to see what is inside.  (My orange crock is size 11 for size comparison!)

 This beautiful opal geode(a form of agate and quite possibly what the other big agate is) I found last week after one of our big storms.  

 In this case the nodule did not fill with silica before it was released from it's birthplace so crystals formed in the open space. You can see the layers of silica that formed to make this the agate.

 The is the source of most of agates found on Haida Gwaii, Tow Hill.  Tow Hill is the the lava flow of an ancient volcano.  The left side of the volcano has eroded into the sea exposing the dolomite columns.  As the sea batters and erodes the exposed dolomite nodules or agates are released to be tumbled and washed ashore on the beach.

This beach, within Naikoon Provincial Park is called Agate Beach for a reason!  The two large agates I found come from ancient volcanic activity south of Tlell.

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Our World Tuesday

SkyWatch Friday ~ Why am I here?

 In 2002/2003 I sat at the table with 20 other islanders and worked on what was to be known as the Heritage Tourism Strategy.  Often when traditional economies fail(in our case logging and commercial fishing) communities often turn to tourism as their panacea.  However tourism can have the same devastating affects as commercial logging and/or over fishing, turning once liveable pristine places into overrun seasonal landscapes gutting them of core services and long term viability.

The fella who helped our group through this process, Robert Sandford told us something that has never left me..."Each day remind yourself why you choose to live here and never let anything else get in the way of that."   What he wanted us to remember is the essence of why we live where we live so that when we are called upon to make choices we will make the right choices.  If we do not remind ourselves every single day change will happen for the wrong reasons.

I came to Haida Gwaii fourteen years ago but I had known since I was nine that I would come here!  It took half a lifetime to get here but everyday I know why I am here.  It is not always easy, work can be sporatic, family is half a continent away and some of them really don't understand "why" and the cost of everything going up can be daunting but I still know that this is where "my puzzle piece fits"!

It is when I take my morning walk along the beach

and see the incredible beauty that surrounds me

that I am reminded why I am here.

The human race have a tendancy to not do things in moderation, it seems to be all or nothing.  We were reminded while working on the Heritage Tourism Strategy that if there were special places on these islands that we wanted to keep special we should think long and hard before identifying them or risk them becoming our "best kept secret" that everyone knows about!

Where ever you choose to live, honour it, be a part of it and remind yourself daily why you are there...a job(money) should never be the primary reason.  

For me it is the connection to the land, to walk on Mother Earth and to know that we are all connected,

to appreciate the incredible beauty that surrounds us everywhere if we just take the time to look

and give thanks!

Out side of the first four photos(the beach at Tlell) these where taken on North Beach in Naikoon Provincial Park on the northeast corner of Haida Gwaii/Queen Charlotte Islands.  Although others had been on the beach we were the only ones there on this beautiful low tide.  The view through the cracked windshield is the stunning drive through what the locals call the "Magic Forest", a protected Ecological Zone.

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Weekend Reflections