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S moke S ignals
august 15, 2014
Contributed photos
The Grand Ronde Canoe Family paddles Stankiya from Comox, British Columbia, to Cape Mudge, B.C., while on the 2014 Tribal Canoe Journey to Bella Bella
recently.
Canoe Family completes arduous journey
By Michelle Alaimo
Smoke Signals photographer
After a month away from home,
the Grand Ronde Canoe Family re-
turned Monday, July 21, from par-
ticipating in the 2014 Tribal Canoe
Journey to Bella Bella, located on
remote Campbell Island in British
Columbia, Canada.
Family members were supposed
to paddle about 450 miles, but the
route was cut short when they
were delayed in Port Hardy on the
northern tip of Vancouver Island
due to bad weather conditions that
made it unsafe for them to cross to
Campbell Island in the canoe.
After a few days of not knowing if
they were even going to be able to
make it to Bella Bella for Landing
Day on July 13, the Canoe Family
secured a fishing vessel that took
the Canoe Family; Stankiya, the
family’s canoe; and support boat the
last 130 or so miles from Port Hardy
to Bella Bella in time to participate
in Landing Day.
The doubt forced some Tribal
members and employees, including
Smoke Signals staff, to cancel their
plans to travel to Bella Bella to wit-
ness and record the event.
Canoe Family members per-
formed protocol in Bella Bella on
July 18.
This year’s Canoe Journey was
the farthest the family has ever
traveled and the most challeng-
ing paddle. Bobby Mercier, Canoe
Family skipper and Tribal Cultural
Outreach specialist, said every day
included long, 30-mile pulls, and
because of the distance and logistics
of this year’s journey fewer people
were able to participate. About 30
Canoe Family members went on the
journey instead of the more than
100 that usually go.
Every day every puller had to
paddle, which made for a lot of wear
and tear on the smaller crew mem-
bers and definitely pushed people to
their limits, Mercier said.
The water was different than
what they are used to paddling in,
he added. There were some hot days
with smooth water and some days
with wind, rain and four-foot swells
that caused water to come into the
canoe, which they had to remove
by bailing.
Regardless of some of the chal-
lenges, it was the trip of a lifetime
for Brian Krehbiel, Canoe Family
member and Tribal Cultural Edu-
cation specialist. He said this year’s
Canoe Journey was a real humbling
experience.
Krehbiel said there were a hand-
ful of stops on the way at which one
family would feed them and addi-
tional homes were open for them
to cook, take showers and camp
in their yards. On previous jour-
neys through Puget Sound, larger
Tribes, usually with casinos, would
host and put on a big feast.
All the way up, Krehbiel said,
they saw that no matter how little
a community was, they saw com-
munity togetherness and how ev-
eryone comes together to help.
With this year’s journey com-
plete, Mercier said he is proud of
everyone and all their effort and
hard work.
Upon the Canoe Family’s return,
Tribal Council hosted a welcome back
dinner on Wednesday, July 30.
Joseph Holmes Jr. stands with a
paddle that was gifted to Canoe
Family member Brian Krehbiel, as
a skipper of the family, by Heiltsuk
First Nations, the Tribe that lives
in Bella Bella, during the Canoe
Family’s protocol of the 2014 Tribal
Canoe Journey to Bella Bella.
At left, the Canoe Family saw many
bald eagles while on the 2014
Tribal Canoe Journey to Bella Bella.
According to Canoe Family member
Brian Krehbiel, every tree had
eagles in it and eagles flew over
them while they were paddling.
Kaikanim Mercier blows into a shell that was a gift from guests of the Maori
Tribe of New Zealand who joined the Canoe Family for part of the 2014 Tribal
Canoe Journey to Bella Bella.