On my big road trip to Alaska, I decided to make a detour to Prince Rupert. I had met some nice people from Prince Rupert at the Fountain of Youth Spa on the Salton Sea in California. Prince Rupert has a nice waterfront, but the tourist attraction that had the biggest impact on me was the North Pacific Cannery National Historical Site. I expected to learn about the now-defunct fishery but I also was saddened by the history.
This post contains affiliate links. This website earns a small commission for items purchased through these links with no additional cost to you.
A Little History about the Cannery
The cannery was one of several canneries along the entry to the Skeena River. They operated from the 1880’s to the 1970’s and 1980’s and primarily canned Sockeye Salmon for export to Europe. One by one the canneries closed and after sitting abandoned for years, there was a push to burn them to the ground to reduce liability. Fortunately, a historical group managed to save most of the North Pacific Cannery (most of the Native houses were burned but the rest was saved).
Visiting the Cannery
The North Pacific Cannery National Historical Site is located south of the village of Port Edward, which is south of the larger port city of Prince Rupert. Entry fee is currently $13 CAD. Make sure you do one of the guided tours that’s included in your ticket price, the tours are at 11:00, 1:00 and 3:00 (check their website for latest updates).
Exploiting the Natives and Asians
70-80% of the manual labor was First Nations/Native Americans from the area. There were also some Chinese and Japanese (mostly ship builders). You only had to look at the home sizes at the cannery to see the inequality – the European managers had large, stand alone, two story houses while native families of 8-12 people had to share a one-room cottage. Some of the jobs were under terrible conditions with little pay and high expectations.
Automation
With the plant operating almost 100 years, technology and automation had greatly changed the way salmon was canned, with many of the menial jobs being automated away. Another parallel to the changes we see in the world today.
How Salmon Spawn
You have probably heard of this, but to understand salmon fishing, you must understand the spawning process. Salmon eggs hatch in a river or stream, the salmon then swim downstream to the ocean where they take 3 years to grow. Some are caught by ocean fisherman. Those that aren’t caught then swim back to the exact place they were born to spawn, with some of those being caught by river anglers. Of those that make it to spawn, they die quickly, becoming food for eagles and bears.
Where Have all the Salmon Gone?
The Skeena River is a wide river that runs many miles to the Pacific Ocean. The stories of the ancestors of the Native population used to have two sayings about the salmon runs of old – one is that the river was completely red and black, no water to be seen. The other story is that you could walk across the river, without getting your feet wet (on the backs of salmon). Experts guess that at one time there were 3,000,000,000 (that’s billion!) salmon in the Skeena River. Last year there were 950,000. This year they are predicting half of this. At this rate, how many years will it take to totally decimate the wild salmon population? Who is at fault? The popular opinion is the Asian fishermen that fish just into international waters of Canada and cast great nets to catch tons of fish daily.
Unsuccessful Fisherman on the Skeena
After the tour, I hit the road, as I was planning to visit the Nass Valley the next day, so I returned to camp at the boat launch of the Exchamsiks River Provincial Park. I had met some super friendly people there on my way out to Prince Rupert and they told me I could camp for free at the boat launch as long as there was space. The guys from Alberta said they had been fishing 12 hours that day without a single bite. They had been coming back to this same place for 26 years, but reckoned that this might be their last year fishing the Skeena.
What Else to Do in Prince Rupert
The prettiest part of Prince Rupert is Cow Bay, home to shops, restaurants, and the great PR visitor center. There are several tours and fishing that can be done from this port. If you want to see Grizzly Bears in the sanctuary, there’s an expensive tour (around $200 US) departing from PR. I chose to skip this since I had seen grizzly bears in Campbell River only a couple years ago and I was hoping to see many more bears on my way up to Alaska. The bay is also nice for sunset, although if you’re visiting in summer, you may have to wait until after 10pm.
Where to Stay in Prince Rupert – Prince Rupert Hotels
There are a few decent places to stay in Prince Rupert, including a couple great B&Bs. Check Rates and Availability for Prince Rupert.
Recent Comments