If you stop by the Hazelton Area Visitor Centre, located in a picturesque log cabin at the junction of Highways 16 and 62 in New Hazelton, you might just meet Leah Pipe—the Tourism and Community Development Coordinator—who provides local information to visitors and prospective newcomers alike.
“I can always tell if they are thinking of moving here”, Leah says. “They have a kind of light in their eyes. It never surprises me when they ask ‘what are jobs like here, what’s industry like here?’
For Leah herself, her own Northwest Story is a bit different. With an upbringing that spans continents and cultures, Leah eventually found herself drawn to the landscape and community of the Hazeltons, where she has made her home for over two decades.
Downtown Old Hazelton. Photo by Leah Pipe.
Raised in a military family, Leah spent much of her childhood moving between cities and countries. “We were army brats,” Leah says. “I was born in Kingston, but we lived all over Ontario. Then when I was a teenager, we moved to the Netherlands for a few years. And that was an extraordinary experience.” Her parents, passionate about history, literature and culture, took full advantage of their time abroad, encouraging Leah and her brother to explore European cities such as Paris and Berlin in their free time. This exposure to different cultures shaped Leah’s worldview, and ignited her love for art.
But despite this international upbringing, Leah has a very personal connection to the Hazeltons. Leah’s family, originally from London, England, have lived in the area for four generations, with her grandfather moving to the region aged 12 and her father born and raised there. “My uncles all worked at the mill, but my dad wanted to see the world,” says Leah. “So at 18 he left the Hazeltons to enlist in the military.
Upper Skeena Recreation Centre in Old Hazelton.
Having visited twice as a child, Leah was 20 years old and attending a family wedding in the Hazeltons when her eyes were opened to the idea of living there. “I met my whole extended family for the first time,” explains Leah. “I remember thinking, ‘Wow, this is a community where everyone knows each other!’ I had the extraordinary experience of locals coming up to me and saying: ‘Are you Frank Pipe’s granddaughter? Are you Billy Pipe’s daughter?’ People knew me before I knew them.”
After spending several years in her twenties living in Edmonton and Victoria, Leah moved to the Hazeltons at the age of 30. “It wasn’t a hard decision at all,” she says. “I already had so many ties to the community through family. When I moved here, I felt welcomed even before I arrived. My Dad teased me: ‘I showed you the world, and you picked the Hazeltons!’”
Photo by Leah Pipe.
Leah says she was immediately impressed and touched by the area’s vast wilderness. “These huge rivers run through communities,” says Leah. “And there are lots of different Indigenous nations, with several Gitxsan villages in the area, and Indigenous people making up to 70-80% of the local population, which is very cool.”
In her professional work, Leah found herself gravitating towards both the area’s stunning nature and its Indigenous culture. After freelancing in graphic design and working for twelve years as an exhibit designer at ‘Ksan Historical Village and Museum, Leah worked for four years as the in-house graphic designer at Skeena Watershed Conservation Coalition.
Gitanmaax Skatepark in Old Hazelton.
Meanwhile, she also developed her own art, which depicts the beauty of the region she calls home. Leah specializes in painting portraits of wild beings—raven feathers, salmon tails, wolves’ ears, and snow-capped mountains. Over the years, Leah has run two different stores in the Hazeltons where she has sold her products, and now sells her work mostly through her website and Instagram, but also at the Visitor Centre, where one of her murals adorns the front door.
“In the past, friends suggested that I should move to a big city to develop my art career,” says Leah. “But as I told them, I wouldn’t be inspired by nature there. Thanks to the internet, the world has become more connected and I can foster a successful art career here. I get orders from all over BC, and also Ontario, Alberta, Germany, Australia, the US. People are so supportive.” She has had many shows at local galleries, and tries every year to complete another outdoor mural in the region; her paintings now adorn buildings from Smithers to Terrace.
Photo by Leah Pipe.
For Leah, life in the Hazeltons is also about spending as much time as possible in nature. When she’s not working or painting, she enjoys walking, often spending time by the confluence of the Bulkley and Skeena Rivers. “The point is a magical place,” she says. “I love collecting river rocks, watching the eagles and the ravens, walking under the cottonwoods, and enjoying the amazing views of the mountain ranges. There’s also great swimming spots in the summer time at Ross Lake and Pence Lake. And in winter I’m always snowshoeing.”
Since Leah moved to the Hazeltons, she’s witnessed the town evolve significantly. Like many mill towns in the region, Hazelton was once defined by the lumber industry, but the closure of several mills in the early 2000s forced the community to adapt. “A lot of people left when the mills shut down,” Leah explains. “The town lost a lot of its businesses, but it’s also become a place where new people and new ideas are coming in.”
While some of the larger industries may be gone, Leah has noticed a shift. “COVID brought a mass exodus from urban areas,” she says. “Remote working is great here, we have full high-speed internet. We have a dentist and the Wrinch Memorial Hospital. There are two grocery stores, a post office, an RMT, a chiropractor, a beautiful bakery and a cafe—lots of things that people who are scouting our area might not see. Some locals don’t even drive on the highways from October until March, because they don’t have to. We have most things here that you need to live.”
Skeena Bakery in New Hazelton.
For anyone thinking of moving to the Northwest, Leah has a piece of advice: take the time to visit, get to know the people, and be prepared for the challenges of living in a remote location. “Moving from an urban centre to the wild north can be an adjustment,” says Leah. “But if you have a passion or a skill, you can definitely make your own way here. There are so many talented and innovative people in the Northwest—artists, farmers, authors, Olympic athletes. Many people here are following their passion and making a living from it. The birds of a feather are here, you just need to find them.”
For Leah, the Northwest isn’t simply a place to live—it’s a place to thrive. “I’m married to my art,” she says, “and my paintings are my children. I’m grateful to be able to focus on my passions and career, and for my supportive friends and neighbours in this town, who take care of each other.”
To see more of Leah Pipe’s artwork and to buy her products, check out her website and Instagram.