On Sunday, August 23, 2026, the Galiano Conservancy Association welcomed the community back to the Millard Learning Centre for another unforgettable Musical Walkalong, an afternoon celebrating the connection between nature, music, art, and community.
Set among the forest, wetland trails, and the shoreline of the Millard Learning Centre, visitors of all ages were invited to experience live performances in one of Galiano Island’s most unique landscapes. Rather than gathering in a traditional concert venue, folks explored a scenic trail where musicians and artists transformed the natural environment into a series of intimate performance spaces.
From the moment walkers set out along marked route, there was a sense of excitement and anticipation. Around each bend, a new performance awaited, whether beneath towering Arbutus trees, Douglas-firs, or overlooking the sparkling waters of the Salish Sea. Each step invited visitors to slow down, listen, and appreciate both the remarkable talents of local performers and the beauty of the landscape that surrounded them.
The 1.6-kilometre trail took roughly a couple hours to complete at a leisurely pace, though many chose to linger at each performance, taking in the music and lively scene. Along the way, participants enjoyed forest and wetland trails, coastal viewpoints, welcoming rest areas, and multiple live performance locations that offered a diverse range of music and arts.
This year’s performers reflected the rich creative spirit of Galiano Island and the Southern Gulf Islands. Musicians, poets, and visual artists explored themes of landscape, ecology, and memory through intimate performances that invited folks to experience art in conversation with the natural world.
Featured artists included rosehouse (Anna Bigland Pritchard), whose layered vocal loops created immersive sonic sanctuaries; harpist Mary Greenwood; veteran multi-instrumentalist Richard Blair; pianist Tio Head; songwriter and visual artist Philip Buller; violinist Annie Brown and clarinetist Mike Brown; flautist Lyra Higgs, saxophonist David Loti & clarinetist Kai Loti, and poets Isobel Rain & Taeven Lopatecka. Visual artists Sheila Anderson and Roksan Parfitt translated sound, movement and nature into expressive works, while electronic duet Thash blended atmospheric soundscapes with feminist storytelling.
Celebrating Galiano’s iconic shorelines, forests, and coastal light, Jeanne Erickson’s paintings captured the enduring beauty of the island’s landscapes, while sound artist David Leath’s immersive compositions combined natural field recordings with electronic music to deepen our connection with the environment. Together, these artists embodied the Walkalong’s vision of celebrating creativity, community, and the landscapes that inspire them.
The journey concluded at the Celebration Market, where the community gathered to continue the afternoon’s festivities. Visitors enjoyed delicious local food from Oxeye Galiano, alcoholic and nonalcoholic beverages from Four Winds Brewing Co. and Sea Cider Farms & Ciderhouse, explored a variety of vendors and artisan booths, connected with friends, neighbours, and fellow walkers.
The market showcased the diverse range of creativity among Galiano’s artists and Southern Gulf Island makers while offering another opportunity to support the island’s local communities. One of the Musical Walkalong’s greatest strengths continues to be its ability to bring people together. Families, friends, longtime residents, and first-time visitors shared the experience of discovering new music that was woven into landscapes, where warm laughter, conversation, birdsong, and melodies blended naturally throughout the afternoon. It was a reminder that some of the most memorable performances happen not inside, but outdoors, surrounded by the places we work to protect.
Events like the Musical Walkalong are made possible through the generosity and dedication of volunteers, performers, artists, vendors, staff, and community partners such as Montague Harbour & Marina, Galiano Island Coffee Roasting Co, Oxeye Galiano, Four Winds Brewery Co, as well as Sea Cider Farms & Ciderhouse. Their creativity, enthusiasm, and countless hours of work helped create an event that celebrated not only local music and art but also the importance of conserving the landscapes that make experiences like this possible.
Thank you to everyone who attended, participated, and helped make the 2026 Musical Walkalong such a memorable success (nearly 200 folks in total!). Your support helps the Galiano Conservancy Association continue its work of protecting Galiano Island’s ecosystems while creating opportunities for people to connect with nature in meaningful and inspiring ways.
We hope you left feeling refreshed, inspired, and more deeply connected to the music, to the landscape, and to one another.
Until next year, thank you for walking along with us!
