PORT ANGELES — Hand-carved cedar canoes — lots of them — will spend 10 days navigating the waters of the North Olympic Peninsula later this week.
It all begins Friday with the Tribal Canoe Journey’s scheduled landing at the Hoh tribe’s reservation in West Jefferson County.
The annual Native American cultural event is essentially a marine caravan tracing the ancestral trading routes of tribes from Western Washington and British Columbia.
It culminates with more than 100 canoes landing for a five-day celebration at the Suquamish reservation on the Kitsap Peninsula Aug. 3-8.
“It’s kind of a rebirth of our culture,” said Sonny Woodruff, a longtime Quileute canoe skipper and the coordinator of the LaPash tribe’s leg of the journey.
“It’s an awakening of a lot of communities.”
Along the way, pullers ask for permission from other tribes to come ashore. They typically spend one night at a given tribal area and continue the journey with more canoes and more pullers.
“We thank them for the time we stay there and ask permission before leaving their shore,” Woodruff said.
“That’s part of the protocol process that’s been used through the years.”
Woodruff said the Paddle Journey has been a “real cultural awakening” for the participating tribes.
20th anniversary
This year marks the 20th anniversary of the first paddle journey.
In 1989, the Paddle to Seattle involved nine canoes that traveled from Suquamish to Seattle.
It has since grown into fleet of 5,000 pullers and their support crews from close to 100 tribes.
“They’re all the traditional hand-carved canoes,” Woodruff said.
“Some are the stripped canoes made out of cedar strip.”
The largest gathering of canoes on the Peninsula will likely be at Hollywood Beach in Port Angeles, where pullers from the West End and Vancouver Island will converge from July 29-30.
The Lower Elwha Klallam tribe will host the pullers at its reservation west of Port Angeles.
Lower Elwha Klallam Chairwoman Frances Charles said it’s difficult to predict how many will show up, but the tribe will welcome them all with open arms.
The tribe will have more than 100 people preparing food for the travelers, she said.
“We usually open the floor in the gym to the farthest canoe family and have songs and dances in the gym,” Charles said.
The tribe’s Elwha River Casino will also host tribal artists and craftsmen during their stay, she said.
Charles said the tribe will have about 34 pullers in three canoes on the journey.
She said the purpose of the canoe journey is to pass on their culture and history to each generation.
“It makes them really proud of their heritage and culture,” said Charles, referring to the youth.
“It’s really important to our elders. It’s gratifying to see the pride that they have.”
This year, the Jamestown S’Klallam tribe will debut a cedar strip canoe called the E-ow-itsa, or “Little Sister,” in this year’s Paddle Journey.
Marlin D. Holden, skipper of the big Laxaynea canoe, said the pullers have been training since May 16.
The Jamestown S’Klallam tribe will have 22 pullers and two skippers this year.
Carved in 1986, the Laxaynea is a 37-foot, 1,500-pound behemoth made out of a 500-year-old cedar tree harvester near Blyn, Holden said.
The E-ow-itsa weighs 600 pounds, but she’s a faster canoe. Her skipper is Paul Bowlby.
There are five legs of the Tribal Canoe Journey — west coast Washington, Hood Canal, west coast Vancouver Island, mainland British Columbia and San Juan Islands and inside passage British Columbia.
The different legs of the journey will join up before landing at Suquamish.
“It’s a life-changing experience,” said Holden, who has been on five Canoe Journeys as either a skipper or a puller.
“After every one I’ve gone on, I’ve changed something in my life,” he said.
For the first time, the Hoh tribe will have three canoes and 32 pullers on the journey.
One canoe
During previous journeys, the tribe had one canoe.
Hoh Chairman Walter Ward said that for two weeks, the pullers will be doing exactly what their ancestors did on a daily basis.
“That’s how our ancestors used to get to the next village,” said Ward, 55.
“That’s why we call the ocean the highway to the next village.”
Ward is one of the skippers and said he will participate in each canoe journey “until I can’t get into the canoe.”
Hoh vice-chairwoman and puller Janet Reyes said she looks forward to the canoe journey every year.
“I just get a feeling of peace,” she said.
“It just brings me back to who I am as a tribal member.”
The Hoh are expecting to greet the Quinault pullers the day before leaving for LaPush on Friday.
The Quinault’s departure on Thursday marks the beginning of the Washington leg of the journey.
The Hoh and Quinault will travel together to join the Quileute at LaPush.
Woodruff said the Quileute will have three canoes with seven to 11 pullers in each canoe.
His son, Dakwa, has taken on his former role as canoe skipper.
The journey from LaPush to Neah Bay takes about 12 to 14 hours, depending on tides and wind conditions, Woodruff said.
To simplify that long leg, the Canoe Journey will stop at Waatch on Sunday before entering the Strait of Juan de Fuca at the Makah Nation in Neah Bay on July 27.
From there, the Washington leg stops at Pillar Point on July 28 and meets the Lower Elwha tribe at Hollywood Beach in Port Angeles on July 29.
After joining up with the west coast Vancouver Island leg in the two-day stop at Port Angeles, the adventure moves to the James-town S’Klallam tribe from July 31 to Aug. 1.
As many as 25 canoes are expected to land at the Jamestown S’Klallam tribe, Holden said.
The journey moves from Jamestown S’Klallam tribal area to Port Townsend on Aug. 1, the Port Gamble S’Klallam tribal area on Aug. 2 and culminates in a five-day celebration at the final destination at the Suquamish tribal area on the Kitsap Peninsula from Aug. 3 to Aug. 8.
At the five-day protocol celebration at Suquamish, each tribe will perform its dances and songs in front of the other tribes, Holden said.
This year, the Jamestown S’Klallam will host the arrivals at Ford Worden State Park in Port Townsend.
For the first time, the Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe is allowing youths aged 13 to 18 to pull.
The tribe’s five youth pullers had to “earn their way into those seats,” Holden said.
“Those kids have been working really hard.”
The Quileute tribe hosted the canoe journey in 1997, Woodruff said.
Next year’s Tribal Paddle Journey ends at the Makah Nation at Neah Bay.
Makah Tribal Council members couldn’t be reached for an interview for this article.
________
Reporter Rob Ollikainen can be reached at 360-417-3537 or at rob.ollikainen@peninsuladailynews.com.
Reporter Tom Callis can be reached at 360-417-3532 or at tom.callis@peninsula dailynews.com.
