NOTE: This review deals primarily with the “unmaintained” segment of the Golden Spruce Trail. To read more about the “official” portion, see my earlier review on this site. The Golden Spruce Trail is a short, wide path that winds its way through beautiful moss-covered forest featuring awe-inspiring old growth red cedar and Sitka Spruce. Kiidk’yaas, the Golden Spruce, may be long gone but the massive trees that line this 400 meter trek still make the trail worthwhile. If one’s in need of some “forest therapy,” the Golden Spruce Trail will do you well: Take your time, amble about, and admire the leviathan-like trees before you. Consider how the forest itself is a living, breathing entity – everything depends upon everything else. The late Ben Davidson’s informative plaques – placed strategically along the trail – do much to educate and inform: “I am the grandmother of the Haida, one of thousands of trees [. . .] that grow to provide, nurture and teach.” And, importantly: “Look after me, and in turn, I will always look after you.” These are the lessons of the forest and we’d do well to heed these words. Once you reach the end of the “official” trail (the viewpoint from which, once upon a time, you could observe Kiidk’yaas across the river), you’ll spy a small sign: “This trail is not maintained.” This marker indicates the start of the “unmaintained” section of the Golden Spruce Trail, which clocks in at over a kilometer in length. I couldn’t help but notice there are absolutely no write-ups about this section of the trail in any of the previous TripAdvisor reviews (I read all of them), Google, All Trails, Go Haida Gwaii, and various online blogs. How come? I know the skeleton of the Golden Spruce (what’s left of it), and the old growth trees along the official trail, are the main attraction, but surely the rest of the trail merits comment? Setting out with friends, I sought to answer that very question AND fill a void with respect to commentary on this trail. In brief, this segment of the Golden Spruce Trail is quite easy to navigate. A small section of the trail – immediately behind the “unmaintained” signage – has been taken out by a previous storm, but an alternate path has been carved out presumably by people wishing to keep this route “user maintained.” The rest of the trail is fairly clear, with minimal deadfall; in fact, I’d suggest this route very much mirrors the “official” portion since it, too, is rife with lush mosses and beautiful old growth. Where it differs is in the occasional grassy field you’ll come upon + the attractive sandbank (about 10 minutes in). I’d argue this latter feature is the highlight of the unmaintained section and, therefore, represents an ideal place to picnic or simply take it all in. In my view, the reason you may wish to hike the unmaintained route is for the golden opportunity it presents to explore more of the Yaaguun Gandlaay Conservancy. The Conservancy, as I’ve written elsewhere, has been used by the Haida for at least 10,000 years and is rife with historic, cultural, social and spiritual meaning. As you walk along the Golden Spruce Trail (“official” and “unmaintained”), you can capture glimpses of this: Ben Davidson’s information plaques highlight culture and spirituality; the Yakoun and its riverbank is rich and teeming with life, providing sustenance on numerous levels; and, the trail’s ability to bring us all together – to create dialogue about conservation – is an important social function. Reviewing the unmaintained section of the Golden Spruce Trail in isolation, I’d probably rate it at 3 stars because, while a nice hike, the scenery doesn’t change all that much from the “official” portion of the trail. Reviewing it within the context of the full trail and Yaaguun Gandlaay, however, I’d rate it at a solid 4 stars because, taken as a whole, the trail highlights and reflects some of the Conservancy’s best features.

While the trail is a great "do it yourself-activity", it will be 100 times more meaningfull and insightfull if you do the trail with a local guide! And noone better than Dale Lore, the owner of the local grocery store and mayor of Port Clements, to take along for this! Dale has a lifelong experience in the haida Gwaii forests, and has been in the frontline for limiting the logging industry's destruction of the Haida ecology systems. Also he has an incredible insight into the Haida culture, their old places and artefacts, including places where you will see abandoned huge dugout canoes. Dale offers half day- and full day tours. Don't miss it! But even if you must go it alone: Don't miss the Golden Spruce trail - but read up on the story first, so you understand where the "Golden Spruce" notion comes from