User:Eye101/Hell's Gate Slide

History
The first recorded history of Hells Gate is found in the explorer Simon Fraser's journal from 1808, where he describes this narrow passage as "a place where no human should venture, for surely these are the gates of Hell." Long before the arrival of Simon Fraser and as early as the end of the last ice age, Hells Gate was a First Nations congregation ground for settlement and salmon fishing. Archaeological evidence from old occupation sites and isotope analysis of human skeletal remains suggest that settlement and migration patterns for indigenous peoples in the Fraser Canyon correlated with the seasonal migration patterns of Pacific salmon. During the last deglaciation 4000-6000 years ago, long tongues of ice formed wedges and dams in the basin above the canyon, resulting in the formation of large reservoirs and new lakes—creating optimal spawning grounds for salmon. During this inter-glacial period, salmon began to populate the Fraser River and used Hells Gate passage as their route to upstream spawning grounds. Constricted by two steep subvertical granodiorite walls, the incredibly narrow passage and high water velocity made this part of the upstream journey by salmon extraordinarily difficult. Salmon would closely hover along the shores of the river or rest in its back-eddies. As a result, Hells Gate’s geology provided the indigenous fishers with superb opportunities to readily catch salmon congregated at the river’s edge attempting to elude the strong currents and rough waters. Hells Gate became one of the most popular fishing stations along the Fraser River— pre and post-colonial contact— where large numbers of natives, and eventually European settlers, congregated during the summer months to fish for migrating salmon. Standing on adjacent rocks or on specially constructed wooden platforms extending from surrounding cliffs, fishermen would use long dip nets to snatch the salmon. As Matthew Evenden asserts, the native culture along the Fraser River was built on a “salmon economy.” After Simon Fraser explored and charted the river in the early nineteenth century, it became (and Hells Gate with it) an established corridor between the Pacific Ocean and the interior of what was to become British Columbia. As Fraser discovered, Hells Gate would be a point that was passed by, but never through. Safe water transportation through the 115 foot wide opening at Hells Gate proved virtually impossible.