Coast Salish

AP: Tribes combine science, canoes for water quality

The Associated Press had the following story about the Tribal Canoe Journey:

TSAWWASSEN, British Columbia — Pushing off one morning from a beach riddled with dead eelgrass, skipper Larry Nahanee plunked a scientific probe into the water and steered the hand-carved cedar canoe toward the next landing.

His ancestors, the Coast Salish Indians, had paddled the same waters to Washington for hundreds of years before him, using canoes as spiritual vessels.

This summer, as dozens of Northwest tribes make the same journey, their canoes will tow U.S. Geological Survey equipment to measure the health and quality of the water. (more…)

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Tribes to gather water quality info during Canoe Journey for second year

Tribal canoes are participating in a water quality study in partnership with the USGS for a second year. Five canoes will tow water quality probes during the annual Tribal Canoe Journey, which culminates at Suquamish Aug. 3-8.

The Daily Herald:

To learn about what happens on and in the water, one of the best places to be is in the belly of a canoe — about a foot away from the surface, moving more slowly than most other vessels. That’s why federal scientists have asked tribal canoeists, for the second year in a row, to help them find out more about the health of the water in the Puget Sound region. (more…)

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Tribal canoes to land Saturday in Bellingham for Coast Salish Day

Coast Salish tribes will gather Saturday at Boulevard Park in Bellingham, ahead of the Tribal Canoe Journey.

The public is invited to the Coast Salish Day celebration, which begins at 11 a.m., with canoes scheduled to land at noon. Activities include native art, the traditional bone game slahal, canoe rides and food vendors. (more…)

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Lummi Nation Celebrates First Salmon

Lummi Nation dancers perform at the tribe's first salmon ceremony

The Bellingham Herald covered the Lummi Nation’s First Salmon Ceremony:

About 600 Lummi Indian Tribe members and guests gathered Thursday, May 14, at Lummi Nation School to celebrate the arrival of the first salmon – a celebration marked by both hope and fear for the future of the fish that defines tribal identity.

“When I was a young boy, I heard my grandfather say, when he was eating a salmon, ‘This is good medicine,'” said Merle Jefferson, the tribe’s natural resources director.

The First Salmon Ceremony is a key cultural observance for the Lummi and other Coast Salish tribes. For generations, the tribes have conducted these ceremonies to honor the salmon and assure their return. (more…)

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