||| FROM KNKX-NPR ||| Posted at request of Orcasonian reader
Crowds filled beaches near Seattle last weekend, as tribal members stood drumming and chanting to mark the arrival of dozens of canoe families coming in to shore.
One by one, the skipper of each of the crews introduced themselves and offered a formal request for permission to come ashore.
Only after a representative of the hosting tribe acknowledged them did the paddlers set foot on land.
This year, Alki Beach was their final destination. Some tribal members paddled hundreds of miles to attend. Yet the trip by water, the canoe journey, is only the beginning of the celebration.
After arriving, the paddlers headed by car or van to the Muckleshoot Indian Tribe’s reservation for a full week of camping out and sharing food, dances, stories and song. The round-the-clock celebration honors all the tribal cultures that come together each year for the Canoe Journey.
Canoes are at the heart of Indigenous cultures in the Pacific Northwest – they were used for transportation, fishing and hunting. And today, many say they feel connected to their ancestors through paddling and prayer.
That’s a large part of what this intertribal canoe journey is about. It’s also about sharing cultural offerings with other tribes – through formal presentations, referred to as “protocol.”
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