“Tribal Journey, Part 1: Paddle to Squaxin” SAMAQAN Season 3 Episode 32

What began with the Heiltsuk First Nation's building of a canoe, the first in over 150 years, and paddling it to Vancouver for EXPO '86 has become a movement reviving the ocean-going canoe tradition on the West Coast. In 1993, the Heiltsuk's Qatuwas Festival journey saw 14 canoes paddle to Bella Bella. Enthusiasm has grown and now there are annual tribal journeys in the Pacific Northwest. In the spirit of ‘qatuwas’ which means ‘people gathering together’, these tribal journeys bring together people of all ages and reconnect them on the water with the traditional ways of their ancestors. The journeys can take several weeks and build fortitude, stamina, identity and self-esteem for participants. “Paddle to Squaxin” follows a planning meeting for the 2012 tribal journey for canoe families to gather at Squaxin in the extreme southwestern part of the South Salish Sea (Puget Sound, Washington). Jeremiah George of the host Squaxin Nation meets with several canoe families at the Stz'uminus First Nation in Chemainus to plan the event-travel routes, communication systems for safe arrival and Protocol venue for the sharing of traditional culture, dances, speeches and songs. In ancestral times, chiefs sent out invitations to visit. Today's Indigenous canoe families use modern technology for this journey of 97 ocean-going canoes that will converge at Squaxin.

This documentary from “SAMAQAN: Water Stories” Series 3, looks deeper at water's role in culture, spirituality and life itself for North America's First Nations people.

Directed by: Marianne Jones, Jeff Bear
Produced by: Marianne Jones, Kristy Assu, Jeff Bear