Elwha Watershed Information Resource
Home › People and Communities › Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe › Elwha Klallam Culture

Canoe Journeys

The modern canoe journeys began with the Paddle to Seattle in 1989 as part of the Washington State Centennial celebration. The canoe journeys have sparked a revival of the canoe culture and have become a popular annual event for inter-tribal celebration.

Historical Canoe Culture

Canoe travel was a significant part of the culture of the Pacific Northwest tribes. Tribes used canoes to hunt and fish, but also to visit other communities to trade and share knowledge between groups (Steelquist 2002). In fact, the coastal tribes traveled so frequently between villages that they had created a highly developed code of hospitality. For example, the travelers would stop in the water just off a foreign beach, raise their paddles up to signify peaceful intent, call a greeting to the local tribe, and ask the tribe for permission to land on their beach. In turn, the host tribe had certain designated responses that invited the travelers ashore where they would be provided with food and shelter. (In the modern canoe journeys, this code of hospitality has been revived and has served as an opportunity to use traditional languages, such as Klallam.) When Europeans began exploring the region, the tribes were used to meeting and welcoming strangers who arrived by boat. Sadly, the Europeans did not understand the hospitality culture of the coastal tribes and as the tribes were displaced over the next two centuries, the rich canoe culture was lost. 

Paddle to Seattle

In 1989, Washington State was celebrating its Centennial. As part of this celebration, the tribes and the state signed the Centennial Accord, which recognized the sovereignty of the tribes (Cultural Advisory Committee 2003). The tribes decided to commemorate their history by hosting a traditional canoe journey called the Paddle to Seattle.

Many of the canoes began the journey to Seattle from La Push, Washington, while others started from their tribal homes. The journey lasted several days and involved stops at traditional villages along the way. The Paddle to Seattle was an unqualified success, and an inter-tribal canoe journey now takes place every summer with a different tribe acting as the host.

Revival of the Canoe Culture

Nine canoes and fifteen tribes participated in the Paddle to Seattle. This annual event has gained significant popularity over the years, and recent events have had over 70 canoes participating. The event has also attracted an ever-widening group of participating tribes. Recently, tribes as far north as Alaska have joined the event. The canoe journeys offer a unique opportunity for tribal members to participate in a cross-generation activity that also spans tribes. Once the canoe journey is complete, the tribes gather for a potlatch to welcome the travelers and celebrate. The celebrations usually last for several days. 

The canoe journeys have also revived the art of canoe carving. Although canoes can last many years, some tribes had become so far removed from the canoe culture that they no longer had their own canoes. Building a new canoe can be an extremely long process (especially when first-hand knowledge of the craft has been lost from the tribe). Rather than excluding tribes without their own canoes, tribes with extra canoes loan them out so that the other tribes can still participate. These canoe journeys have helped build a strong sense of community across tribes. Tribes with extensive canoe carving experience have worked hard to share that knowledge with the extended community. For example, the Bella Bella tribe has sent carvers to other tribes to teach them about canoe carving (Wheeler 2005). Building a new canoe is no longer a one-tribe task: members from other tribes often pitch in to help another tribe get a canoe finished. 

The modern canoe journeys have been an important source of recreation for the tribe on many levels. The pullers train throughout the year, practicing paddling the canoe together and learning about things like proper water safety techniques. Tribal artists help decorate canoes, paddles, and outfits for the event. The Elwha Dance Group practices dances that will be performed at the post-journey potlatch. Members of the host tribe prepare Klallam welcoming speeches. As the canoes pull towards the shore, helpers wade into the water to help bring the canoes up on the beach. The tribes are proud that the canoe journeys are drug and alcohol free and that they have become a true family event with lots of tribal members in attendance.

 
 
The Friendship Song (also known as the "Hoo Ya Hoo Ya" song) was created so that when the tribes came together they would have a common song to sing and dance together. At one of the post-journey celebrations after the 2002 Paddle to Tulalip, people from all tribes danced to the Friendship Song.
Credit: Rena Barkley
The Lower Elwha Tribe recently had to build a new ceremonial canoe. In 1999, the Tribe’s 10-year-old canoe, the Elwha Warrior, cracked during a training exercise and was destroyed (O'Connell 2001; Preston 2002). The Tribe was able to borrow an extra canoe from the Sooke Tribe for the 2000 canoe journey, but the tribe longed to replace their canoe. In addition to using a ceremonial cedar canoe for the inter-tribal canoe journeys, the Lower Elwha Tribe uses a ceremonial canoe in other activities, such as the First Salmon Ceremony. The Tribe petitioned the U.S. Forest Service to receive a cedar tree, and their request was granted in 2001. The tribal chairman picked out a western red cedar that was 165 feet tall, and 10 feet wide (O'Connell 2001). The tree was used to carve The Spirit of Elwha, a 47-foot long canoe that was completed in time for the 2002 canoe journey. The Tribe plans to use the remainder of the tree to carve one or two more canoes, in addition to many other traditional items, such as paddles, masks, and baskets (O'Connell 2001).

 

 
The canoe journeys were originally planned to happen every 4 years. That thinking is long gone. Not very long after that canoe journeys exploded within the tribes. It now happens every year. There is no need to get a babysitter. It is a family event. It is a drug- and alcohol-free event. Every year a theme is picked. In 2006 it was "Honoring Our Ancestors: Reflections of our Past and Present." Pictured here left to right: Rena Barkley, Nylene Charles, Leilani Barkley, and Rena Francis.
Credit: Alicia Greenway

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In 2005, the Lower Elwha Klallam was the host for the annual canoe journey. Over 70 canoes participated in

 
 This is the Tribe's logo that was used for the Canoe Journey: Paddle to Elwha in 2005.
the Paddle to Elwha, drawing tribes from Alaska all the way down to Oregon. (Several Pribilof Island Aleuts participated using their traditional seal skin kayaks rather than canoes [Wheeler 2005].) In light of the recent rediscovery of the village of Tse-whit-zen, the theme for the journey was Reflections on our past: Honoring Tse-whit-zen Village. The day after the Paddle to Elwha was compete, participants traveled by canoe across Port Angeles Bay to hold a memorial ceremony at Tse-whit-zen (Preston 2002).

 

 

 

 

 


 

 Modern Inter-Tribal Canoe Journeys

  • 1989 - Paddle to Seattle* (9 canoes)
  • 1993 - Paddle to Bella Bella*
  • 1994 – Full-Circle Paddle Journey Greater Puget Sound Area*
  • 1995 – Full-Circle Paddle Journey Greater Puget Sound Area for the Youth                                                                      
  • 1996 – Full-Circle Paddle Journey Greater Puget Sound Area for the Youth
  • 1997 – Paddle to Akalat (La Push, Quileute)*
  • 1998 – Paddle to Puyallup*
  • 1999 – Paddle to Ahousaht
  • 2000 – Paddle to Esquimault* "In the Spirit of Our Ancestors"
  • 2001 – Paddle to Squamish* "People Gathering Together"
  • 2002 – Paddle to Quinault "Celebrating Our Ancestors"(20 canoes)
  • 2003 – Paddle to Tulalip* "Healing through Unity"
  • 2004 – Paddle to Chemainus* "Journey with Our Ancestors"
  • 2005 - Paddle to Elwha* "Visions of Our Past: Honoring Ch-whi-tsen" (76 canoes)
  • 2006 - Paddle to Muckleshoot: "Past and Present Pulling Together for Our Future" (70 canoes)
  • 2007 - Paddle to Lummi "Travelling the Traditional Highways of Our Ancestors"

References 
  1. O’Connell, E. 2001. "Giant Cedar Tree Will Become Canoe." Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission News. Volume 17, Number 3. http://www.nwifc.org 
  2. Olympic Peninsula Intertribal Cultural Advisory Committee. 2003. Native Peoples of the Olympic Peninsula. Edited by Jacilee Wray. University of Oklahoma Press. Norman, OK.
  3. Preston, D. 2002. "Cedar Transforms Canoe, Carvers." Northwest Indian Fisheries Commission News. Volume 28, Number 2. http://www.nwifc.org
  4. Steelquist, R. 2002. NOAA Ocean Explorer: Tribal Journeys. 2002. http://oceanexplorer.noaa.gov/projects/02tribal
  5. Wheeler, T. 2005. "American Indians pull with pride in Elwha." People’s Weekly World, August 25, 2005. http://www.pww.org/article/view/7585/1/283/