Guests of the Northwest Canoe Journey
The annual Northwest Canoe Journey, known as Tribal Journeys, began as a revival of ancestral tradition—a way for Coast Salish, Nuu-chah-nulth, Kwakwaka'wakw, Haida, and other Northwest Indigenous peoples to reconnect with their maritime heritage and strengthen intertribal bonds. What started as a regional resurgence has grown into an international convergence, drawing ocean-going peoples from around the world.
Our Chumash canoe family—paddlers, crew, and families from many Chumash tribes—spent months preparing to join our northern hosts. We crafted gifts, practiced our song and dance protocols, and painstakingly organized the logistics of transporting our tomol (plank canoe) along with our families from California to the northern border of Washington.
Arriving, we entered a different world—canoes bristling with sharp-bladed paddles, massive potlatch feasts, singing that lasted until dawn. Cedar smoke drifted in the air. Eagles circled overhead. Tribes danced their greetings from within their canoes as they approached the shore. Northwest paddlers briefed newcomers on the local waters: the dangerous currents of Deception Pass, the thick fogs near the San Juans, the respectful protocols for entering each territory.
And we weren’t the only newcomers. The Japanese Ainu arrived in taraita boats adorned with intricate carvings. Coastal fishermen brought traditional wasen. Hawaiian paddlers arrived in wa‘a outrigger canoes, chanting as they neared the beach. From Aotearoa came a Māori waka hourua, their thunderous haka stirring deep emotion at each landing. Inuit travelers paddled umiaks and kayaks, skin-covered vessels that sliced through the cold sea.
Each year a host tribe welcome nations to the culmination of Tribal Journey: Thousands gather for five days of celebration. Songs, dances, and stories flow through the longhouse. Prayers rise in dozens of languages. Drums pounded in unison. One by one, the canoe families ask permission to land—honoring the sovereignty and ancestral stewardship of the their hosts.
The Northwest Canoe Journey has done more than preserve tradition; it has braided together the maritime legacies of so many Tribal nations, and our Chumash people are proud to be part of that weave.
