Staff Pick

Road Trip Haida Gwaii – Prince Rupert Ferry, Graham Island

Prince Rupert Tow Hill
105
km
2h
drive
Summer
season

The Itinerary

Haida Gwaii, formerly the Queen Charlotte Islands, is a 150-island archipelago 100 km off northern British Columbia's coast. Nicknamed "Canada's Galápagos" for its unique biodiversity (endemic subspecies of black bears, ermines, woodpeckers), it's also the heart of Haida culture — one of the most powerful pre-contact Pacific Coast Indigenous civilizations.

BC Ferries' Northern Adventure leaves Prince Rupert for Skidegate on Graham Island (8 h, often rough Hecate Strait crossing). On arrival, the Haida Heritage Centre at Kay Llnagaay is one of the world's finest Indigenous museums — totems, canoes, contemporary exhibitions.

Highway 16 crosses Graham Island for 105 km from Skidegate to Masset via Tlell, Port Clements and Naikoon Provincial Park. Tow Hill (109 m, sacred volcanic cone) at the tip offers unforgettable panoramas over Rose Spit and North Beach. Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve to the south, co-managed with the Haida Nation, is reachable only by boat or floatplane — abandoned totem villages remain there (SGang Gwaay, UNESCO site).

Points of Interest

  • ✦
    Haida Heritage Centre
    One of the world's finest Indigenous museums, totems, canoes.
  • ✦
    Tow Hill
    Sacred 109 m volcanic cone, view over Rose Spit.
  • ✦
    Gwaii Haanas NP
    Haida co-managed national park, SGang Gwaay UNESCO.
  • ✦
    Naikoon Provincial Park
    100 km of beach and dunes, Pesuta shipwreck.
Practical info
  • Departure Prince Rupert
  • Destination Tow Hill
  • Distance 105 km
  • Duration 2h
  • Category Medium (100–250 km)
  • Best season Summer
Themes
Indigenous haida unesco totem ferry wilderness islands unique

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