An intertribal canoe journey made a stop in the region on Wednesday as part of an annual trip across the Salish Sea that is now almost complete. The stop was one of several along a route that draws paddlers together each year, marking another leg of a journey rooted in long-standing tradition.
For many of the participants, the most recent stretch began close to home. Most of the canoes paddled from the Port Madison Reservation in Kitsap County, a distance of about 13 miles, joining the wider fleet as it worked its way across the water toward the next destination.
Others in the group had been traveling far longer. Some participants started their journey as far away as the Pacific Coast off Washington and the northern portions of Vancouver Island more than two weeks ago, covering long distances by canoe before reaching this point in the trip.
For those taking part, the routes carry deep meaning. Organizers described the waterways as ancestral highways, explaining that their people used to travel on these highways in canoes similar to the ones arriving now, moving between destinations to gather seafoods, berries and other resources needed to survive through the winter months.
The journey still has a final stretch ahead. The fleet of canoes will leave for Puyallup tribal territory before finishing the long trip on Friday, when the paddlers are set to land in DuPont, bringing the multi-day effort to a close at its final destination.
The event is part of a tradition that stretches back decades. Organizers say they have been carrying out this paddle since 1989, continuing a practice that keeps the canoe journey and the cultural connections it represents alive year after year along the Salish Sea.