A Natural Dance

    Heiko Krause and Wade Foster (right) stop for a moment to take in the view of the Skeena River and surrounding mountains in Terrace before continuing their ride. Keeping them company is a set of howling wolves created by local artist Steve Rogers as part of an initiative to blend artistic installations with trails along the Highway 16 corridor in northern B.C.

    A Natural Dance Art and Trails Merge in Towns Along B.C.’s Highway 16

    Words by Ben Haggar | Photos by Mattias Fredriksson

    The Nass River, originating from the Sacred Headwaters in northern British Columbia, cuts a broad valley through steep coastal mountains spilling into the ocean 20 kilometers below the village of Gitwinksihlkw.

    Above town, from the viewpoint on Saasak’ Hill, the Nisga’a Memorial Lava Beds stretch as a flat expanse between dark green mountains. The scene is stunning; it’s part of what attracts mountain bikers to northern B.C. as they search further afield from popular, well-trodden trail towns to the south.

    Highway 16 traverses western Canada and, in this part of northern B.C., it cuts through every major mountain range and ecosystem from the Rockies to the Pacific. This diversity of terrain is punctuated by small communities—each with their own cultural flavor and trail networks, all emanating the same distinct lack of pretension.

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