Nuxalc

The Nuxalk live in the Bella Coola valley, where a river descends between forested mountains to a deep coastal inlet. Their villages stood along the valley, some with large houses raised on posts above the ground. Cedar canoes carried people along the river and out to neighbouring communities. Paths across the mountains connected the Nuxalk with inland peoples, bringing eulachon grease, salmon, hides and other goods into exchange.

In 1793 Alexander Mackenzie travelled west with Indigenous guides along one of these established routes, the Nuxalk-Carrier grease trail. In the valley he visited several villages, including Nusqalst, where he saw three great houses on stilts. Continuing downriver, the party reached salt water; Mackenzie marked his name on a rock before turning back. His journey followed paths that had long linked the coast and interior.