Whaling survived in the area until the beginning of the 20th Century. It was however conducted in the old style, even right up until the 1930’s – hand-thrown harpoons from row boats. The most successful family were the Davidsons, who employed indigenous boat crews because they were the most skilled. Even more interesting, they had the help of local killer whales who would round up humpbacks and southern rights into the bay.

The centre of the industry was the whaling station on the other side of the bay from Eden at Kiah Inlet. The Davidson family actually lived in this cottage until the 1940’s. It’s an isolated place, but I guess it’s not too isolated if you know how to handle a boat.