It was an exciting day in downtown Duncan as the first Totem Tour decals were installed on the city’s historic totem stands — a milestone that’s been a year in the making.
The new Digital Totem Tour is a collaborative project between the City of Duncan, Cowichan Tribes, and tour app developer On This Spot, made possible through a Destination BC grant. The initiative allows visitors and locals alike to scan QR codes located at each totem site and instantly access videos, photos, and stories about the carvings and their creators.
Mark’s Instant Sign Shop Ltd. handled the installation of the first batch of decals around Charles Hoey Park, with Kirsty from the Cowichan Regional Visitor Centre and Larissa from the City of Duncan coordinating communications with the individual totem carvers and their families.
In a fitting debut, a class from St. John’s Academy in Shawnigan Lake became the very first visitors to scan the new QR codes while touring the totems that morning.
The digital tour is now live and can be explored online at onthisspot.ca/cities/duncan. The official launch event for the Totem Tour App will be announced soon.
