The grieving family of a Norwegian hiker who was found dead along the banks of the Hayes River are being welcomed by First Nations communities, embracing the family just as they took in their son when he started his Canadian journey two years ago.
Steffen Skjottelvik’s parents, sister and brother have been retracing his steps across northern Ontario and Manitoba, following his nearly 300-kilometre journey along the rugged edge of Hudson Bay from Fort Severn, Ont., to York Factory, Man.
Skjottelvik, 29, had planned to arrive in York Factory on foot with his two dogs on Aug. 15 and was reported missing when he never made it.
The search was led by a team from Fort Severn First Nation, headed by Angus Miles, who was Skjottelvik’s primary contact throughout his final trek.
A helicopter pilot contracted by Fort Severn found Skjottelvik’s body along the Hayes River on Aug. 24. An autopsy confirmed that he drowned.
WATCH | Norwegian hiker’s family meets lead searcher:
Steffen Skjottelvik’s family meets Fort Severn point person and lead searcher Angus Miles, who did not give up searching for the missing trekker until Steffen’s body was found near York Factory in northern Manitoba.
Hundreds of community members gathered at Fort Severn on Saturday, lining up to meet Skjottelvik’s family and offer hugs, gifts and prayers.
Family spokesperson Christian Dyresen said Skjottelvik spent a month in the community before setting off for York Factory.
“These meetings are really something special. Meeting the First Nation, being greeted by the First Nation in this emotional way, the fact they took Steffen in as one of their own makes this really special,” Dyresen said.
“We all feel that we are invited into something that is completely unknown,” he said, adding the family is feeling inspired by the community’s customs and traditions, just as Skjottelvik had been for years.
CBC News has also reached out to the chief of Fort Severn First Nation for comment.
WATCH | Steffen Skjottelvik’s family embraced in Fort Severn:
Members of Fort Severn First Nation, who led the search for Steffen Skjottelvik, greeted his family and celebrated his memory.
Dyresen said Skjottelvik arrived in Peawanuck, a fly-in northern Ontario community that is home to the Weenusk First Nation, back in the spring of 2023.
He was making a documentary about travelling across northern Canada on foot, Dyresen said, with the goal of eventually reaching Alaska.
Dyreson said Skjottelvik set up camp outside Peawanuck, moving in closer as he got to know community members. Eventually, they took him in and he met a young woman that changed everything.
“I think he didn’t plan to fall in love … he actually fell in love with a local girl here,” he said.
His love for this young woman and the community she’s from gradually shifted the focus of his documentary from his journey across the north to “his love for the First Nation and this part of Canada,” Dyreson said.
Skjottelvik’s family met the young woman on Saturday and have been travelling with her in the tracks of his final journey ever since.
“The family met her for the first time and took her in as a part of the family. That is also an emotional part of this journey — for the family to finally get to meet her,” Dyreson said. “She is now a part of our group.”
When CBC News reached Dyreson in Gillam, Man, on Sunday morning, they were about to board a helicopter to York Factory, guided by the same pilot who found him.
The group also planned to travel to the Nanuk Polar Bear Lodge, the remote northern Manitoba lodge where he was last seen alive.
A videographer from Norway’s national broadcaster NRK has been documenting the family’s journey from Oslo to York factory as they work to “to fulfill Steffen’s plan to make a documentary,” Dyreson said, adding Skjottelvik had discussed the potential dangers of his journey with the group.
Skjottelvik had brought hours of recordings — believed to be undamaged — with him on this last trek. He was filming outside York Factory, Dyreson said, and likely captured his final moments before attempting to cross the Hayes.
He had covered about 295 kilometres of the 300-kilometre hike based on his last reported GPS co-ordinates, RCMP told CBC News shortly after his body was found a week ago.
His dog Togo, who was born on the family farm in Norway, was found on the other side of the river at York Factory, staring into the water for two days. Both of Skjottelvik’s dogs survived and are currently in Peawanuck, Dyreson said.
‘We believe that we are able to tell every part of Stephen’s journey,” Dyreson said.
“This documentary of course has now had a sad twist, but the family would like to keep on telling his story.”
A large cross was erected on the riverbank across from Fort Severn First Nation painted in the red, blue and white of the Norwegian flag. Dyreson said there are plans to place monuments at sites he visited.
Nishnawbe Aski Nation Deputy Grand Chief Anna Betty Achneepineskum, whose council represents 49 northern Ontario First Nations including Fort Severn First Nation and Weenusk First Nation, said the hiker was deeply cared for by the communities he encountered.
“I hope that his family knows how people cared and that his time that he spent in the First Nation communities, people really took care of him,” Achneepineskum said.
“That’s why they responded so quickly when he went missing and I hope that brings some comfort to the family,” she said.
Achneepineskum said community members really appreciate that Skjottelvik’s family travelled to Peawanuck and Fort Severn to share stories and grief with those that knew him.
“What we’ll take back is the tremendous love and the caretaking that the First Nations are showing,” Dyreson said
The family will hold a funeral service for Skjottelvik on Monday afternoon in Winnipeg.
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