There are places where the land meets sea that feel timeless — where every footprint, every shell, and every trace of sand seems to hold a story. For the parents of 19-year-old Piper James, that shoreline on K’gari has become both a place of sorrow and of connection, a place they now return to walk where their daughter last walked.
Todd and Angela James arrived in Brisbane from British Columbia, Canada, earlier this week to begin their emotional journey back to the World Heritage-listed island off Queensland’s coast where Piper’s life ended suddenly in January. The young Canadian backpacker, who had been travelling and working on the island, was found dead near the SS Maheno wreck on January 19, her body discovered surrounded by a pack of wild dingoes on the beach.
In the quiet rhythm of waves breaking against sand, the couple took part in a traditional Aboriginal smoking ceremony held by the Butchulla people — the island’s traditional owners — near the very stretch of beach where Piper was found. The ritual, part of Butchulla cultural protocol, is intended to bring calm to the land, acknowledge Piper’s spirit, and guide her on her journey.
The ceremony saw family and close friends gathering on the shore, some kneeling in the surf, as smoke from the ritual wreathed over them and the sound of the ocean formed a steady backdrop. Todd and Angela walked hand-in-hand into the water, embracing elders and supporters as they honoured their daughter’s memory.
In the days before the ceremony, Todd James posted on social media that it was “now time to go to Australia to be with Piper, walk where she last walked, and try to feel the spirit of my baby girl in some way.” The family plan to return to Canada with Piper’s remains and hold a celebration of life ceremony later this month, bringing together those who knew her across continents.
The tragedy has also sparked wider attention on K’gari’s wildlife management. Rangers have since euthanised several dingoes perceived as posing aggressive behaviour near the site where Piper was found, drawing both public debate and concern from conservation advocates.
But for now, this isolated shoreline — where the rhythm of wind and water meets footfalls and memory — has offered Piper’s family a moment of quiet, a chance to reflect, to grieve, and to say goodbye in a place that had meant so much to their daughter.
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Sources : The Guardian Australia Canadian Press (via multiple outlets) ABC News