09 Oct 17 Virtually anywhere you travel in the PNW where there is a local Indian tribe/nation you will find a totem pole. Sometimes many of them and they range in size from just a few feet in height to many 10s of feet. Size in part relates to wealth with the larger poles belonging to those with greater wealth. They are of many kinds (entryway, mortuary, shame, and more) and they always tell some kid of story, some good, some bad, although most of those in the latter category were more poplar in ages past. It is believed that the tradition of carving these poles is just a few hundred years old and in the last hundred years the carving of them has significantly decreased due to the children being educated by the govt vice the tribe. In our location the carving of totem poles is becoming an art form and accordingly very expensive. If you've got a LOT of $$$$ to spend you might consider commissioning a pole for your yard unless of course you live in a community with a HOA in which case I'm rather certain it wouldn't be worth the hassle. The term low man on the pole is often ascribed to the placement of the stacked figures of the totem pole but such is incorrect as the bottom figure was always carved by the head carver and thus is considered the most important. Another myth associated with totem poles is that they hold religious meaning and may be worshiped but in fact they are not, they are just used for story telling. The various figures used are discussed here if you are interested. This particular pole featuring a bear with fish in paws, seal, whale, and eagle is somewhat on the smaller size being aprox 30 feet high. It resides at First Beach and is immediately visible as you approach the beach parking area. In order to get to it from where we live you will pass another couple dozen of various sizes and telling different stories. One could make a full day trip just driving between here and the coast searching out the poles. It would be a very colorful experience if nothing else.
This is a very severely cropped shot as it is virtually impossible to shoot without a lot of distracting material. This view minimizes the distractions. As it is I didn't remove the propane tank and some will likely suggest I should but since I'm not competing it I didn't. Other than the cropping this straight from the camera. Nikon D500; 18 - 200; Aperture Priority; ISO 200; 1/250 sec @ f /16