Al Elsey compiled this commercial video using footage he filmed in 1964 and 1965 in the Bella Coola area. The video provides a compilation of film footage shot by Elsey and is narrated by him describing the activities related to the Grease Trail. Description verso of VHS commercial box reads:
"Al Elsey's friendship with Margaret Siwallace with other people of the Nuxalk Nation dates back over fifty years. This, his premier documentary, produced from vintage 16 mm movie film taken in the Bella Coola Valley in 1963, invites us to witness their tradition of making Ooligan Grease. The process, followed for centuries by the Nuxalk and other coastal First Nations people, was of such importance that their trading routes from the Coast to the Interior of British Columbia were called Grease Trails. The Ooligan were netted by the ton each year, returning from the ocean to spawn in early spring. The destruction of the Ooligan runs in the Bella Coola and other coast rivers of Southern B.C. probably resulted from over-fishing by shrimp trawl draggers during the late 1990s. GREASE shows catching the Ooligan with conical nets and dugout canoes, rotting them in "stink boxes," then rendering and purifying the Grease. Elsey's captivating narrative and brilliant footage transport us back to another time on the shores of the Bella Coola River."
Al Elsey compiled his original footage from 1965 to produce this commercial film that deals with trapping beaver, the Anahim Lake Stampede and Caribou migration. The video provides a compilation of film footage shot by Elsey and is narrated by him describing the activities documented in the footage
Al Elsey compiled his original footage from 1964 to produce this commercial film that deals with the Anahim Lake Stampede, Caribou Hunting around Fenton Lake in Tweedsmuir Provincial Park, and Burton and Josephine Robson with their domestic deer. The video provides a compilation of film footage shot by Elsey and is narrated by him describing the activities documented in the footage
Al Elsey compiled his original footage from 1965 to produce this commercial film that deals with fly-fishing for Steelhead Salmon on the Dean River and Bella Coola River. The video provides a compilation of film footage shot by Elsey and is narrated by him describing the activities documented in the footage.
The footage begins with a man hauling a rubber boat to shore. The man displays the fish that he has caught to the camera. The film cuts to a pontoon plane for Coast Mountain Flight Services Ltd., and then back to the man placing his fish into a bag. The filming then returns to the plane taking off over water. There is aerial footage of the river and mountains, most likely the Bella Coola Valley. Also include is footage of duck with ducklings.
Possible other locations that are seen in the footage are Gitcha Mountains, Ulkatcho Mountains or Rainbow Mountains.
Footage of grouse drumming. Location of filming is unknown.
Film begins with recording of geese flying in sky as introduction. Then there is footage of community life in the general store, believed to be "Christensen's General Store," including a man lighting a pipe, children buying snacks and families buying groceries. Afterwards there is filming of the Anahim Stampede, depicting wild cow riding, bronco riding and the spectators.
The second portion of the film begins with the title slide "Caribou Return" and in consists of clips of ducks on a lake, scenery of trees and the lake, men packing up horses as they prepare for a journey into the high country. They travel as a pack train up into the mountains and eventually set up camp. There is footage of the men cooking, and also various shots of wildlife including a white grouse, herd of caribou, moose wandering through the snow, and a porcupine. The hunting party eventually kills a bull moose and there is footage of them examining the kill and loading the pack train with meat.
The third portion of the film begins with two young girls playing in a boat and then playing in a garden, and then a young boy pulling his sister in a wagon. There is a family barbeque and more footage of children playing and going fishing in a lack. The film ends with a recording of a grouse or pheasant in a bush.
Locations believed to be filmed in on this reel include Gitcha Mountains, Ulkatcho Mountains, Holt Homestead, Lassard Lake, Rainbow Mountains or Tweedsmuir Provincial Park.
Footage of a large caribou bull in what is believed to be the Rainbow Mountains.
Footage of a lake shore and a dog, Suzie, retrieving an object from the lake. There is footage of a fish flipping around on the ice and another shot a fish swimming under the lake ice. There are also a recording of a white weasel climbing a tree
It is speculated that location of this film is either Anahim Lake or Fenton Lake.
Footage of porpoise swimming in front of boat. Footage of swallow in tree.
Location is unknown, but most likely on the coast of British Columbia.
Footage of deer fawns eating grass and apples, and landscape shots of mountains and cornfields.
Possible areas of filming include the Atnarko or Chilcotin regions.
Footage of men fishing from a boat in a river.
Possible locations include the Bella Coola River or the Dean River.
Footage of the landscape around Tweedsmuir Lodge in Tweedsmuir Provincial Park.
Footage of mountains, possibly around Anahim Lake or the Atnarko river area in Tweedsmuir Provincial Park
Footage of lake and surrounding landscape. The location is believed to be "Small Lake" would could possibly be located in Tweedsmuir Provincial Park, Chilcotin area or the Rainbow Mountains.
Footage of people sitting around a campfire and cooking meat. The location is believed to be somewhere in the Rainbow Mountains.
Begins with footage of maps of the Bella Coola area, Tweedsmuir Park, and Wells Gray Park. Then there is a title slide that reads "Steelhead Unlimited on the Bella Cover River". There is general scenery footage of mountains, streams, rivers, a black bear, a white robin, Eagles.
Footage of men floating down minor river rapids in a rubber boats the men banking their boat and fishing from shore.
Footage of Ooligan fishing and processing : paddling the long dugout canoe with the nets in the water, hauling the fish to shore, placing them in "stink boxes" to extract the grease, and wrapping up the nets .
Possible locations of the footage is Bella Coola, Bella Bella, Bella Coola River, Dean River, Chilcotin region, Tweedsmuir Provincial Park or Wells Gray Park.
Film begins with aerial footage of mountains believed to be around Bella Coola. Then recording of men loading barrels, supposedly of gas, into a boat using a "home made" winch and boom construction. They ferry the barrels up stream, the river is assumed to be Dean River. and use a similar construction to bring the barrels to shore.
There is also footage of men fishing in the river.
Footage of a pack train in what is believed to be the Rainbow Mountains.
Footage of chipmunk eating. Location of filming is unknown.
Film begins with short introduction of girl pointing to a map and drawing a line to where the men will be hunting.
Footage from a small plane overlooking the landscape of what is believed to be either the Bella Coola Valley, Tweedsmuir Provincial Park, Rainbow Mountains, or Chilcotin area.
Footage of hunting party setting up camp in the high country of the mountains. There is a herd of caribou and footage of caribou trophy kill. There is filming of two marmots and additional recordings of camp cooking and socializing.
The film ends with the hunters entering the plane again and returning to their original camp, believed to be Nimpo lake.
The first portion of the film begins with a map of Tweedsmuir Provincial Park and then cuts to a motor boat on a lake, possibly Fenton Lake, and men fishing on the lake. The next clip is of more men fly-fishing on a river, possibly the Bella Coola River or the Dean River. A short clip follows of two children in a boat with a man pushing them along with a rod. There is footage of the scenic landscape, which is most likely the Bella Coola Valley, and a cabin, which is believed to be Elsey's. A woman believed to be Mrs. Elsey sits on the porch and then arranges her flowers. The film shows some ducks on the lake, two squirrels playing and the Elsey's dog in a boat. Mrs. Elsey pulls the boat ashore in the next clip and then the film shows her working in her vegetable garden. There is more scenic filming of the valley and a man cutting down a tree with a chain saw. There is footage of a grouse beating it's wings, chipmunk looking for seeds, birds in a marsh, three moose in a marsh, and a bald eagle perched and flying.
There is a break in the film and the second portion begins with footage of cabin in the mountains, a baby in a cradle, an elder First Nations woman, and a gathering of First Nations peoples by a tent. There is a shot of a picnic site sign labelled "Burnt Bridge Picnic site Parks Branch" and another sign that reads "Kalyskt Creek." There is then footage of the creek and a truck driving down a dirt road. There is then a group of people boarding a motor boat in a river and driving up and down the river, which could possibly be the Dean River or the Bella Coola River. There is then more filming of a cabin in the mountains, possibly Elsey's, and a man cleaning a large fish he caught. Then there is footage of men in a rubber raft floating down a river and fishing from the raft, and then some other men traveling in a motor boat.
There is an another break and the third portion of the film begins with footage of birds on a lake and footage from a boat showing the mountains. On land there is filming of two bears walking, men hunting the bear, killing the bear, and skinning the bear. The film cuts back to the boat and the filming the mountains along the water. The people on the boat then pull up crab traps from the water and cook the crabs on the boat. The film ends with footage of salmon jumping and a man filleting his fish catch.
Footage of golden eye duck and ducklings on a lake.
Speculated locations include Anahim Lake, Ulkatcho Lake or Fenton Lake.
Footage of what appears to be a large Pelican beside a lake.
The lake is believed to be either Anahim or Ulkatcho Lake.
Footage of man fishing near rapids. Speculated locations include the Bella Coola River or the Dean River.
Footage of two people, Doris and Jerry, in a rowboat on a lake.
Speculated locations include Anahim Lake, Fenton Lake or Lassard Lake.
Footage of a group of swans on a lake, possibly Anahim Lake. Footage of what is believed to be Al Elsey's front yard.
Footage of Bighorn Sheep in the winter.
The location of filming is unknown.
foot of bighorn sheep on a rocky outcrop.
Location of filming is unknown.
Footage of ducks on a lake and a sunset through trees.
Location of filming is unknown.
Footage from a small plane overlooking the landscape of what is believed to be either the Bella Coola Valley, Tweedsmuir Provincial Park, Rainbow Mountains, or Chilcotin area.
Footage of hunting party setting up camp in the high country of the mountains. There is a herd of caribou and footage of caribou trophy kill. There is filming of two marmots and additional recordings of camp cooking and socializing.
The film ends with the hunters entering the plane again and returning to their original camp, believed to be Nimpo lake.
Footage of title text that reads: “The Bella Coola Indians and Their ‘Food from the Sea’ Photographed by Al Elsey."
Speculated locations of the location of this footage include Bella Bella, Bella Coola or the Bella Coola River.
Footage of a herd of caribou running on mountain plateau, probably the Rainbow Mountains. Also various clips of hunting camp and the men loading their pack horses.
Black bear on the shore of a river. The location is unknown.
Footage of eagles flying, a close up of a fish on display, men fishing cutthroat trout, fly-fishing on river, and tying mill eggs with nylon mesh.
Possible locations of filming include the Bella Coola River and Dean River.
There are three different sections of film footage on this reel.
The first is of two men and a young boy going fishing from a river bank, gutting and cleaning the fish they catch and baiting their hooks with mill eggs. There is more filming of three other men going down the river in a small boat and then banking it to fish. They gut and clean their fish as-well. They load their small boat into the back of a red pick-up truck after they are finished their day.
The second part of this film reel begins with a map of Tweedsmuir Provincial Park. Men on snowmobiles traveling to an abandoned log home and acreage. They then break through the ice on the nearby lake and begin to retrieve their previously set beaver trap, which has a caught beaver. The men then travel to a different location and set up a beaver trap. There is some additional footage of two moose in the snow as the men travel to a third location and retrieve another caught beaver from under the ice. The men return to their cabin and skin the beavers.
The third part of this film is footage of Anahim Lake village, birds in the area, wild flowers, cattle drive, children fishing on the river and swimming, a pelican on a lake, and people in a boat traveling.
Possible other locations of filming include Bella Coola River, Dean River, Ulkatcho, Ulkatcho Mountains, and Tweedsmuir Provincial park.
Footage of a pack train in the high country, which is likely an upper valley of the mountain foothills. Probable locations of this footage include Holt homestead, Rainbow Mountains or Tweedsmuir Provincial Park.
Footage of Bill Baker performing catch and release fly fishing in possibly the Bella Coola River or the Dean River for cutthroat trout.
Footage of three men fishing off river bank at "Dennis Landing." There is a close of recording of the salmon they catch.
Location could possibly be the Bella Coola River or the Dean River.
Footage of fishing boat named the "Canadian Prince" docking at the harbour in Bella Coola, BC.
Three men floating down a river in a yellow rubber raft.
Speculated locations are the Atnarko River, Bella Coola River or the Dean River.
Footage from a high point overlooking a mountainous landscape with clips of fish frying in a pan, men eating around the campfire and a fallen moose.
The location is believed to be the Rainbow mountains.
Footage of a rainbow that can be see through mist over a body of water, either a lake or river.
Possible locations include the Bella Coola River or the Dean River.
Footage of a pack train along a river, a campsite, view of the mountains, and two grouse.
Location is believed to be the Rainbow Mountains.
Footage of men preparing pack horses for a hunting trip in the early morning hours.
Possible locations of filming are Holt Homestead or Lassard Lake.
Footage of caribou herd on an open landscape.
Location is speculated to be the Ulkatcho Mountains, Rainbow Mountains or Tweedsmuir Provincial Park.
Footage of ducks flying off a lake.
Possible locations of the film include Nimpo Lake, Anahim Lake, or Lassard Lake.
Footage of men unloading hay for cattle from a horse-drawn flat bed trailer, a panoramic view of the surrounding mountains, and people being driven in flat bed tractor out to a small silver plane and taking off.
Footage of Dr. Triffenhagen putting mill eggs as bait on a hook for fishing. Speculated locations include the Bella Coola River or the Dean River.
Footage of fly fishing in a river, possibly the Bella Coola or Dean River, as well as footage of a caribou herd in the high country of possibly the Rainbow Mountains.