There are a lot of events happening this summer that provide a chance for folks to learn in person and by doing things together:
1: The Upper Columbia United Tribes is sponsoring an exhibit at the Spokane Museum of Art and Culture: AWAKENINGS: TRADITIONAL CANOES AND CALLING THE SALMON HOME
SEPT 25, 2021-AUG 21, 2022
2: Spokane House Fur Trade Encampment and Symposium
June 11th & 12th 2022
10:00-4:00 Sat. & 10:00-4:00 Sun.
Come visit the years 1810-1826 at Spokane House. Experience what life was like at our living history fur trade encampment. Saturday and Sunday will be free days for entry to Riverside State Park. A flyer for the event can be viewed here. For directions to the Spokane House Interpretive Center click here.
- See demonstrations of flintlock firearms, trapping, flint & steel fire making and many other traditional living skills.
- Tour the campsites of traders, trappers, voyageurs and Indian “Daughters of the Country”.
- Visit the Spokane House Interpretive Center for free.
- Fur Trade Symposium held 11:00-3:00 on Sat. Hear talks about various aspects of the fur trade.
- Hear live music of the era.
- Browse through a selection of historic trade goods for sale in the trade store.
3:The 2022 Kettle Falls Salmon Ceremony and Canoe Journey runs from June 12 to June 19th starting at Jackson Cove on Lake Roosevelt and ending in Kettle Falls.
| 4:Between the Rivers Gathering May 30th- June 4th, 2022 Ancestral Skills for Self-Sufficiency Sponsored by Bridges to the Past 501(c)(3) |
Northeastern Washington State Ancestral Skills & Self-Sufficiency Gathering
Between the Rivers Gathering is a week-long workshop for learning skills that originate in the stone-age all the way up to modern homesteading. We are an annual event located in Washington State about an hour north of Spokane. We will have a multitude of instructors offering a broad-range of classes all week long. Included will be wilderness survival skills of all kind, basic and homespun living, preparedness and skills of a practical and archeological nature.
We offer hands-on classes in ancestral living and survival, and we also focus on the skills of self-sufficiency and sustainable living to minimize our impact on this planet we all share. Come join our community and experience for yourself what an ancestral skills gathering is all about!
5: 4th of July Canoe Border Crossing
This year will be the 20th Anniversary of the First Nations People crossing the border on Osoyoos Lake, paddling cottonwood dugout canoes from Osoyoos to Oroville. The crossing is to let all of our People and the local communities to know and remind them that the border between the two countries has never and will never separate our People. The ceremony is held sacred in our hearts. Many Bands and Tribes are joining the Okanogan People helping us celebrate unity of the People of the First Nations.
Herman and Joanne Edward are the ones that have made sure that the sacred event has
continued for these last 20 years. We are grateful for the dedication and passion they have
given to this journey. We hope more of you can come and help celebrate this event the
afternoon of the 4th of July at Veterans Memorial Park in Oroville.
The journey began 20 years ago with the “Unity Trek” in 2001. When 7 Bands of the
Okanagan Tribe paddlers and Okanagan cottonwood canoes made the journey from the
Head of the Lake Band #1, near Vernon, B.C. and ended at Brewster, WA. Paddlers
paddled; more than 200 miles in two weeks. The Unity Trek brought our First Nations
People together and we celebrated the 4
th of July grounds at Nespelem. It was a glorious event and remembered by all who attended. The Unity Trek continued for 5 years, although the Border Crossing Canoe Paddle has continued annually since 2001.
We would like to see more paddlers from across the Colville, Spokane, Kootenay and
Kalispel People come and begin the journey at the Osoyoos Indian Band Nk’Mip Park the day before. We could use some help of course, because it is not sponsored by any Band or Reservation with exceptions of the Osoyoos Indian Band who are very good to us. I hope we see you there on that Saturday the 3rd at Nk’Mip or the 4th at Veterans Memorial Park. We should make this a special event. You can contact Herman or Joanne Edward at <neweenah@gmail.com> and (250) 499-1374 or (250) 807-8813.
Respectfully,
Arnie Marchand an Okanagan Indian and a member
of the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation