A new large metal cross has been placed atop Mount Tzouhalem in the Cowichan Valley after it was removed back in July 2021.
Nature Conservancy of Canada confirms the new cross was installed without permission.
“At this point, I can confirm that this cross was reinstalled by unknown parties on the Nature Conservancy of Canada’s Chase Woods Nature Preserve without our involvement or permission,” says communication manager Lesley Marian Neilson in an email to Glacier Media.
A local resident who runs a website dedicated to the popular mountain says he was surprised to hear the cross was back.
“I thought there would have been more communication around its remounting, as I feel pretty connected to the trail community and this was a pretty controversial topic last summer,” says James Mckay.
During Monday’s sunrise, he ran up to the top of the mountain to see it for himself.
“I’m glad it’s back,” he says. “The viewpoint at the cross location has always been a great hiking destination.”
Cowichan Tribes Chief William Seymour says he missed seeing the cross on Mount Tzouhalem.
“A wooden cross used to be carried from the stone church and erected every Easter,” he says. “Every year, someone kept knocking it down… sometimes it was just burned.”
The Nature Conservancy of Canada said the land on Mount Tzouhalem is in the heart of the Cowichan Tribes’ traditional territory.
“In our tradition, we do a memorial and show a picture of our loved one, that’s how it started, and then they decided, let’s put a cross up there,” Seymour says. “I don’t mind it being there. I just look at how it started up there from my Elders, so I support that. They packed it up there every Easter to show their respect.”
North Cowichan Mayor Al Siebring previously stated that the local landmark was vandalized.
“If you look closely at the first picture, you can see it was a very deliberate case of vandalism. Somebody actually used some kind of grinder to lop it off at the base,” he wrote on Facebook.
A hiking group who visited the popular mountain on Saturday confirmed with Glacier Media that a new cross had been put up and shared photographs.
