Text : Judy Karwacki, photos : Takaya Tours
Takaya Tours is an eco-cultural tourism enterprise owned by the Tsleil-Waututh First Nation of North Vancouver, BC, which was created to help Vancouver residents and visitors learn about First Nations history and culture. It offers a unique Indigenous coastal experience within an urban setting.
Takaya’s Cultural Odysseys and Tours are distinctive outdoor experiences that combine soft adventure with cultural learning. Visitors join their First Nation guides in gently paddling ocean-going canoes and kayaks through majestically scenic Burrard Inlet and Indian Arm from departure points at Cates Park in North Vancouver, and Belcarra Regional Park in Port Moody.
The guides sing traditional songs, tell local legends and stories and can point out authentic, ancient Native pictographs, locations of ancient Native village sites, and wildlife tranquil islands. Visitors learn about the cultural history of Burrard Inlet, the ancient First Nation knowledge and wisdom of traditional methods used for identifying and harvesting Indigenous flora & fauna. They will learn about and touch a world that transcends time.
Takaya Tours also offers motorized eco-cultural zodiac tours, educational programs for youth groups and schools, and kayaking and canoeing rentals, and courses. It is the largest Aboriginal owned tourism venture in the Greater Vancouver area. Months of operation are May to October.
Contact
Aaron Reith, Operations Manager
Wenda Heaton, Tours Manager
Takaya Tours
Main Office
3083 Ghum-Lye Drive
North Vancouver, BC
Phone : 604-904-7410
Fax : (604)929-8411
Email : office@takayatours.com
Web : www.takayatours.com
Kayaking Centre
Belcarra Regional Park
Phone : (604)936-0236
Location and access
To get to Takaya Tours’ Cates Park canoe launch site or shuttle location take the first right off the Second Narrows Bridge (Iron Worker’s Memorial) and follow Dollarton Hwy. East until you see a big sign for Cates Park on your right hand side (approximately 7 minutes from the bridge).
To get to Takaya’s kayak centre in Belcarra Regional Park in Port Moody, take the shuttle from Cates Park or follow Barnet Highway to the Ioco Road turn off. Follow the signs to the Belcarra Regional Park Picnic Area. Takaya Tours is located on the waterfront of Indian Arm at Belcarra Regional Park Picnic Area.
Reservations must be made 24 hours prior to tour departure for all tours, and courses.
Cultural Information about the Community
According to Tsleil-Waututh history, the Tsleil-Waututh, or ’People of the Inlet’, are part of the larger Coast Salish linguistic and cultural community, and have occupied the land and waters of the Vancouver area since time out of mind.
The Tsleil-Waututh People practiced a yearly "round" of cultural activities that allowed their complex society to flourish for thousands of years. During the winter, they dwelled in large shed-roof long houses where we sang and danced and celebrated a connection with the forces of nature. In the spring and summer they moved out into smaller family camps, fishing for halibut, digging clams, and hunting the high mountains for goat and bear. In the fall they dried salmon and berries, supplies that would keep them fed over the long winter rainy season.
Their lives were defined by regular patterns of movement, traveling by canoe to fish and visit relatives, moving on mountain trails to hunt and practicing rituals that helped them to pass in and out of the world of mythic beings. Although a large urban centre has grown up in the southern part of their territory, they continue to honour their traditions and, as much as possible, to maintain their traditional lifestyles.
All Takaya Tours’ activities are located within the Nation’s traditional territory. Tum-tay-whuen-ton or what is now Belcarra Regional Park and Why-Ah-Whichen (Cates Park) were once Tsleil-Waututh village sites.