Intertribal Canoe Planning Meeting
Paddle to Quw'utsun 2008
Tribal Journeys
Date: June 28th, 2008
Where: Somena Bighouse
Lunch: Served at noon
Site visits: soft landing, protocol landing, canoe storage, camp sites, food services etc.
Dinner: at 5:00 at Somena bighouse
Evening: Entertainment (drumming / singing).
For more information, contact
The intertribal canoe meetings are a very important aspect of Tribal Journey planning. The host nation is invited to visit different central locations to the main water routes, which are:
- Northwest Coast of BC / Inside Passage
- BC Lower Mainland
- Western Vancouver Island (Nuu chah nulth) / South Vancouver Island
- Puget Sound Washington
- Western Washington / Oregon
In June, the host community “sets the table’“and extends an invitation for this meeting. Word gets out to the neighbouring nations. The date and time is set, and the canoe families plan to attend all of these meetings, to meet representatives from the host nation and get an update of the plans made to date.
Usually, these meetings start in February, and are held every month at different villages / nations leading up to June. In June, it is usually the host nation who sets the table for the last intertribal canoe planning meeting. At this point, most plans are set, and Tribal Journey members are invited to visit the host to do a site visit or field trip to the various components of the host, such as:
- Soft landing
- Protocol landing
- Canoe storage
- Camping sites
- Dance protocol area
- Food services
In the months leading up to this last intertribal canoe planning meeting, the host collects statistics regarding how many canoes, people, vehicles, trailers, etc., are expected to be coming to the host community. Most of that information is collected at these intertriblal canoe planning meetings. Also, many other discussions take place as a collective body; anything from new ideas about safety issues, resource updates, grant writing, and upcoming events are shared.
Once the June meeting is done, the canoes start to move in July, making their way to the host community. For Cowichan, the Landing Date will be Monday July 28th, 2008!
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