There are a limited number of people permitted in Gwaii Haanas each year.  With so few visitors, the remote south end of the Queen Charlotte Islands has maintained its’ true wilderness appeal.  Butterfly Tours explores the isolated and completely unlogged southernmost regions of Moresby Island; an area preserved in its natural state.  By concentrating on the most remote and pristine regions of Gwaii Haanas, we leave behind all signs of civilization.  The southern forests consist of giant old-growth Cedar, Spruce and Hemlock, completely untouched by modern logging.

Due to the area's unique cultural history and pristine natural ecosystems, Gwaii Haanas has been nominated to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) for inclusion on their list of World Heritage Sites.

Butterfly Tours is owned and operated by your guide, Gord Pincock.  Gord has kayaked and guided extensively throughout the Queen Charlotte Islands every summer since 1981.  He is widely recognized as the most experienced sea kayak guide on the Islands.  Parks Canada and the Council of the Haida Nation license Gord to operate guided kayak tours and mothership cruises in Gwaii Haanas.
Gord has also guided numerous sea kayak tours in the Caribbean waters of Honduras and Belize.

Guests of Butterfly Tours can be certain of who their guide will be; Gord is scheduled to lead each tour that we offer.  Our guests enjoy the significant advantages of traveling with the most experienced guide in Gwaii Haanas.  For background information on our guide, please see the Journal page.  (Gord has guided every kayak trip that Butterfly Tours has ever offered, however; the guide schedule may be changed due to circumstances beyond our control.)

Butterfly Tours has refined a unique style of travel which emphasizes freedom, adventure, mystery and history, appreciation of nature, health, enjoyment and of course; safety.

Freedom
Coordinate yourself with the schedules of the wind, sun and moon rather than the wristwatch.  Participants are free to nap on the sand, catch fish for dinner, whale watch, beachcomb, walk through the forests, or sit by the campfire sharing stories and experiences with friends under a sea of stars.

Adventure
Meet the challenge of self-propelled travel in a wilderness environment.  Paddle a single kayak while experiencing the moods of this remote archipelago.  Ride the current through a channel, cross a bay into the wind or sail effortlessly down an inlet.  Land a salmon, ride the surf, or appreciate the power of a summer storm from the shelter of our campsite.  Witness the elements and realize the expanse of mountains, sea and sky.

Mystery and History
Explore the hereditary home of the Haida First Nation.  Tours visit ancient Haida village sites, some with standing totem poles and longhouse beams.  Your guide's knowledge of anthropology and local culture enhances the trip with stories of chiefs and slaves, explorers and traders, village life, potlatches, shamans and the cedar canoe.

Appreciation of Nature
Experience the rhythms of the sea.  Feel the timeless quality of wandering through an old-growth forest.  Share the islands with birds, whales, deer and flowers.  Live in harmony with the natural world as you quietly paddle through this wilderness environment.