Death Row for mid-century Vehicles.
One has to wonder; why, where, when, how did so many olde classic automobiles end up buried deep within a forest, a forest so obscure to the public eye that its identity was nothing more than a very small sign hidden within the roadside shrubs Big Fir Forest. I'm sure there are many avid hikers that run across these kinds of finds while hiking off the beaten path. For myself, this was research, Graveyard Autos. Book Trailer Video...
I worked on the Sunshine Coast of British Columbia back in 2012 when I fell in love with the Big Giants, the huge Firs, Cedars and Sitka Spruce trees that populated the coastline of Vancouver Island as well as the mainland. The hostile logging of these beauties was and is a disgrace. Log all you want under 40cm, but Nature has left these giants here, deep within the dense forests, for a reason. They need to be protected until its their time to disintegrate naturally, not removed for financial greed.
This particular forest held many secrets. Rumour had it that there was a graveyard deep within, which held nearly a hundred old relics. I was intrigued. But this huge acreage had been logged decades ago so I was told... nearly a century in some areas. It was a forest that I hiked in search of a few remaining giant trees but had never run across any relics. Then, a friend of a friend mentioned there was going to be big changes made to the area and that the graveyard was a definite 'must see' if you could find it as it had been some 30 years ago that anyone had ventured deep into the forest to locate it. A few of us decided to keep trying, hiking often in several directions only to be disappointed.
One late afternoon as the sun dropped toward the horizon, a reflective flash of light bounced through the trees... a glimmer of sunshine caught the grill of an olde Ford buried in a thick pad of moss which covered is remnants. It was like magic as my eyes adjusted to the whereabouts of this vision. Before my eyes, literally hidden within a cover of Mother Nature, were hundreds of bits and pieces of a lost era of classic vehicles. It was a museum that had been created many years ago. From 1930-1960, the forest was littered with these treasures.
How did these vintage pieces from a lost history of classic cars get to this place?
When was it that it happened?
Why dump in the middle of an unclaimed wooded area?
Where did they come from?
Sechelt was the closest town. There had been a loss of employment over the decades from the fishing and logging industries. But none of this made sense. No one knew the bigger picture as to what had happened. Was it the local wrecking yard from back in the day to be the location of another dumping ground. But the cars varied from 1930s-1960s.
These treasures had been really picked over proving there had once been tourists or local car buffs who knew this little museum existed, but who were they? Why wasn't this area preserved for others, especially kids, to view and cherish the mystery of a lost era?
Mother Nature has all but buried them. Such a wonderful find only to be hidden by those who didn't appreciate these mid century gems.
One late afternoon as the sun dropped toward the horizon, a reflective flash of light bounced through the trees... a glimmer of sunshine caught the grill of an olde Ford buried in a thick pad of moss which covered is remnants. It was like magic as my eyes adjusted to the whereabouts of this vision. Before my eyes, literally hidden within a cover of Mother Nature, were hundreds of bits and pieces of a lost era of classic vehicles. It was a museum that had been created many years ago. From 1930-1960, the forest was littered with these treasures.
How did these vintage pieces from a lost history of classic cars get to this place?
When was it that it happened?
Why dump in the middle of an unclaimed wooded area?
Where did they come from?
Sechelt was the closest town. There had been a loss of employment over the decades from the fishing and logging industries. But none of this made sense. No one knew the bigger picture as to what had happened. Was it the local wrecking yard from back in the day to be the location of another dumping ground. But the cars varied from 1930s-1960s.
These treasures had been really picked over proving there had once been tourists or local car buffs who knew this little museum existed, but who were they? Why wasn't this area preserved for others, especially kids, to view and cherish the mystery of a lost era?
Mother Nature has all but buried them. Such a wonderful find only to be hidden by those who didn't appreciate these mid century gems.
