The lush, mist-enshrouded Queen Charlotte Islands off the northwest coast of British Columbia have long been celebrated as one of the most romantic areas in Canada.
Now, the so-called Galapagos of the North are about to become the site of the country's most significant native land-claims battle since the Supreme Court of Canada's historic Delgamuukw ruling in 1991.
Today, the Haida Nation will file claim in B.C. Supreme Court to all of the several hundred islands that make up the Queen Charlottes and the waters surrounding their ancestral homeland.
A court victory by the Haida, and many believe they have a strong case, could well stymie the provincial government's desire to press ahead with offshore oil and gas drilling in ocean waters adjacent to the Queen Charlottes, which the Haida call Haida Gwaii.
The Haida would also have a major say in one of the province's largest timber blocks, a long-standing tree-farm licence owned by Weyerhaeuser Canada Ltd. that stretches over nearly one-quarter of the Islands' 5,800 square kilometres.
Lawyer Louise Mandel, who will file the writ on behalf of the Haida today, said there should be no difficulty establishing aboriginal title over the entire Queen Charlottes.
"It is an inescapable fact that the Haida were the original settlers of the Islands and continue to reside there," Ms. Mandel said.
Like the vast majority of native groups in B.C., the Haida never signed a treaty with the government, meaning they never gave up their rights to the land.
"This case is about respect for the Earth and each other. It is about culture and life," said Guujaaw, president of the Haida Nation.
About 2,000 Haida remain on the Queen Charlottes, most near or in the villages of Massett and Skidegate. An estimated 3,800 non-natives live on the Islands.
Ms. Mandel said non-native residents should have nothing to fear from the Haida's aboriginal title claim to the Islands.
"The Haida have always had a good working relationship with the people up there. In fact, they should feel welcoming about this claim," she said.
"One of the things the Haida will do is more aggressively assert conservation practices over the land. I think people will welcome that."
Aboriginal title would not convey outright ownership of the Queen Charlottes to the Haida, but it would grant them a role in almost every aspect of land use there.