Cheakamus Center Reflection
hello hello friends,
Thank you all for joining us on our Cheakamus Centre excursion. We learned about the Skwxwú7mesh nation people and their history with the Squamish area as well as the importance of salmon to the temperate rainforest ecosystem. This experience provides for some thought provoking reflections so below are some questions to get you started. Feel free to respond to one, more than one, or all of the questions if that is your fancy. Again, the only two requirements are to write in full sentences and write a minimum of one paragraph. Happy reflecting!
- What was the most memorable thing you learned about or experienced during the excursion? What made you feel this way?
- Describe any feelings you had while being inside a tradition Longhouse?
- How did the Skwxwú7mesh perspective influence your understanding of place, land and belonging? Did you make any connections to your own life experiences?
- Have you ever seen wild salmon/dead salmon before? Anything you can describe about the smell of the river? Importance of salmon carcasses and trees?
- How confident are you in your ability to identify wild edible plants now?
- Were you inspired to learn more about the history of Indigenous communities after this excursion?
- No prompt for number 7, feel free to write on anything you have in mind after this excursion.
6 Replies
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Learning about various indigenous practices such as woodcarving, traditions in the longhouse, indigenous medicines, and plants made a significant impact on my outlook on the disappearing culture of the Squamish people. This impact has drawn my attention to creating conversation, asking questions, and spreading awareness of indigenous culture.
Being in the longhouse gave me a sense of how indigenous people lived together. Where there was a sense of trust and community even though we were guests. Skwxwú7mesh perspective gave input on what we as youth should advocate for and to learn more.
At Cheakamus, I was also able to experience B.C's temperate rainforests. The ecosystem functioned as a group where the bear would eat the salmon and give nutrients to the soil through its waste and fish carcass to flourish tree growth. The sense that the salmon is a keystone species of B.C was intriguing to learn!
I hope to return to Cheakamus to learn more about both the ancient rainforest and the diversity of the Squamish people.
- Rain
The Cheakamus river was absolutely beautiful, even against the backdrop of rain and fog. And it only got better when I learned of the salmon that swim in its waters and the people that it helped sustain. Before this trip, I’d never seen wild salmon dead or alive. Knowing that I was standing right next to where they swim, spawn and die was definitely the highlight of my experience. We learned so much! After spotting a live chum salmon, I learned that salmon actually decompose while they’re still alive, and after finding a dead salmon near fish eggs, I learned that salmon actually die on top of their eggs to provide them with nutrition. Nature is absolutely incredible.
I was grateful to be allowed to visit the Skwxwú7mesh longhouse, not only because it provided shelter and warmth from the rainy weather, but it gave me perspective--a glimpse into what the homes of indigenous peoples looked like. It was interesting to learn about how they designed their longhouses so that only 1 person could enter at a time, making it easier to defend themselves against intruders. I’d also never thought about how one might’ve boiled water without a stove, so learning about how they placed hot rocks into their pots was really cool. The longhouse was cozy and I especially appreciated the smell of the fire pit.
I have a new appreciation for everyone who works with wood, especially the Skwxwú7mesh people who work with antlers and hand-made tools. It takes skill to be able to carve and create with wood… a skill that I unfortunately did not have. Although I might not have been successful, it was cool to see what others were able to make. We finished off the day with a quick walk--learning about the plants in the area and the various uses for them. It was fun trying the edible plants!
Overall I had a good time and took home quite a few memorable experiences. Thank you to YouthToSea and the Cheakamus Centre for giving me this opportunity!
The cheamkamus centre excursions was an exiciting, information packed outing. I learnt many new things here, with my most memorable being the zombie salmon. When I first saw it, I had assumed the dark patches around the salmon were just it’s design. However, I quickly discovered that the dark patches were not an excquisite feature of the salmon, but an indication of its decaying. This was quite surprising to me, as I ceased to understand how an organism could decay yet be alive at the same time. The salmon had reached the end of its life, despite only starting the salmon spawning journey. Therefore, it’s actions we’re fairly sluggish, and it couldn’t reach its spawn point. Despite that sad incident, I was captivated once again by the wonders of nature and how unique each organism is. The cheakamus centre excursion was one to remember, from the hectic and captivating bus rides, to the wonders of nature. I’m extremely grateful to be a part of youth to sea and experience these one of a kind adventures!
I’m so grateful to have gotten to visit and experience the Cheakamus Centre. I was immersed in Indigenous culture and learned so many new and interesting things. My group started off the day with practicing wood carving. We used traditional tools while getting insight and knowledge from one of the lovely staff at Cheakamus. Next, we got to sit inside the longhouse. Sitting around a fire and sipping hot chocolate while in a traditional longhouse was an incredible experience. It was really cozy inside and I absorbed new knowledge such as how the longhouse is designed so that only one person could come in at a time, making it harder for intruders to enter all at once.
The botany walk was one of my favorite parts of the excursion. We got to go on a walk through the beautiful, peaceful, temperate rainforests of BC. It was absolutely stunning. On the botany walk, I learned about different native plants that have medicinal properties used by Indigenous peoples. It was fascinating learning about all these medicinal uses some plants have. We even got to try one of the edible plants!
Finally, we got to learn about wild salmon and their life cycle. The fact that I was in the same environment where salmon go through their life cycle was so special. I saw dead decaying salmon and learned of their significance through decomposing and providing nutrients to soil. Experiencing the Cheakamus Centre was a truly amazing, unforgettable experience where I learned important and valuable knowledge. Thank you to Y2S and the amazing staff at Cheakamus who made this day possible!
The most memorable thing I learned from the Cheakamus Centre Excursion was about using wild plants and berries for food and medicines. When we went on the nature walk to talk about the various native plants, it was really interesting to me how so many resources were readily available for the Squamish people that just had to be prepared using different methods. However, at local grocery stores, we aren't able to find/purchase many native plants --less than five at most! This was quite shocking to me because it shows how important it is to continue learning about the traditional Indigenous practices.
One of my favourite parts of the excursion was sitting inside the Longhouse by the warm fire and participating in the woodworking! The Longhouse was a really cool space and I learned how important it is to the Indigenous peoples. Not only is the Longhouse used for shelter for many families, it also provides protection against outside dangers. At the woodworking station, I got to make a small wood paddle using traditional techniques to cut and shape the wood.
Although we didn't see any wild salmon in the river, I learned a bunch of new things from the leaders at the Cheakamus Centre!
Attending the Cheakamus Centre excursion was an amazing experience. In my life I have always been drawn to the forest. Whenever I go on hikes in nature, I love to stop and investigate all the different forms of life that I see. For years I have always been that kid who holds up my entire hiking group, because I can get fascinated by the smallest wonders of nature. When alone, I could spend hours in a small part of wildlife completely amused and content. There also is something to be said about the sense of calmness I get when in nature. It is the same feeling I get with my family at home when I know I truly belong. At the Cheakamus centre, I was surrounded by the wonders of undisturbed nature. I was given the time to explore the natural ecosystems of a salmon spanning ground. In turn, I was able to lean so many news things about the environment. For example, when I was looking along the edge of a stream, I saw a dead salmon that appeared to be laying on top of it's eggs. After questioning this to my fantastic group leader, I learned that salmon actually tend to die on top of their eggs to provide food for their young. I find it so interesting how smart nature is. Too me, this is a wondrous example of the beauty and rhythm of nature.
In Addition to all of this, I also was able to deepen my appreciation and understanding for Indigenous culture and traditions while at the centre. One of my favourite parts of the trip was attending the botany walk. During that walk, I was able to learn all the medicinal properties of native plants to the Squamish area. I was so amazed by how the Indigenous peoples were able to discover all these amazing methods of natural healing. Moving forward, as I start to create my own school community garden, I hope to use some of the knowledge I gained from this walk. I really want to plant some Indigenous plants and teach my school community about all of their purposes. Hopefully this will help spread appreciation for Indigenous teachings and all nature within my own community.
I feel really luck to have had the chance to visit the Cheakamus centre with YtS! One of the most memorable part of the day was definitely learning about the salmon in the area. I did not expect to smell the decaying salmon right away and that in itself was a really cool experience because I hadn't met that smell before. I also did not expect to see so many dead salmon as we were walking near the water. I had learned beforehand that bears would usually only eat the head of the salmon and leave the rest of the body to decay and being able to connect that information and actually see the headless salmon was amazing.
I also really enjoyed visiting and going inside the traditional Longhouse and learning about how Indigenous people lived. I learned that they had designs on their spindle whorls to put people in a meditative trance as they made thread. We were told how important it is to be in a good or positive mood as we complete a task because by experience, they found that when completing a task in a bad mood, it wouldn't be done well or as good as it can be. I really enjoyed watching the fire inside the Longhouse and smelling the smoky smell. I also learned that they would heat up rocks and use them to boil soups and water which I found really interesting.
I made a lot of amazing memories at Cheakamus and with the amazing people there! Not only did I have a lot of fun, I gained new knowledge that I can see myself using in the near future. I hope to be able to visit Cheakamus again!
Our excursion to the Cheakamus Centre was fun and informative despite the rainy weather! The Longhouse provided a warm and cozy environment for us to delve into some of the Skwxwú7mesh culture and history, and the forest provided an (albeit cold and wet) area for us to explore and learn about the plants and wildlife. In the Longhouse, we were able to see and experience a bit of how the Skwxwú7mesh nation people traditionally lived. I was surprised by how close their communities can be, as many families would share a single longhouse with each other. Furthermore, families from different longhouses even took down their longhouses and assembled them into a bigger longhouse so that everyone could be together. I was also impressed with the Longhouse's means of security: the entrances are made to only allow one person to pass through, which limits the quantity of intruders that could get inside. As we began the ethnobotany walk, it smelled like cabbage and cauliflower, which turned out to be the smell of rotting salmon. I actually didn't see many salmon because most of them were decomposed beyond recognition. We learned about several plants and their uses, such as the licorice root, which is sweet and can be eaten to fill the stomach in case there isn't any other food available. We also saw a beaver damn, although unfortunately we didn't get to see the beaver itself. Overall, I got to see, learn and experience many things about nature, the Skwxwú7mesh nation people and the unceded territory of the Skwxwú7mesh nation, all while enjoying the refreshing atmosphere away from the city!
Going to the Cheakamus Centre was a fantastic experience where I learned to use all my senses when exploring nature. It was great to smell and see all that dead salmon after I understood how important it is for the health of our forests. I’ve seen wild salmon before, but on a smaller scale. There were so many dead fish that I could only imagine watching all of them go up the river. I want to go back there and hopefully see some salmon jumping up the river. When I stepped out of the bus, I felt a lot more relaxed from being in that new place with the scandalous Cheakamus river. I also loved that we were surrounded by Skwxwú7mesh knowledge and teachings that I later shared with family and friends. Something that stood out for me was the Ethnobotany walk. It is incredible how a simple plant can have so many uses; it made me wonder if the plants I walk by every day have any use I don’t know about. I had a lot of fun carving the paddle and learning about Skwxwú7mesh art and techniques. Going to the Longhouse was a unique experience. It instantly relaxed me because it was extremely warm, cozy and inviting. I loved learning how the longhouses are divided, especially about this particular stone resistant to very high temperatures. I didn’t know you could use a rock we can find in many places here to boil water instantly. Because of the walk, I’ve been reading and trying to learn more about local plants and how to do my part to preserve native plants and Skwxwú7mesh knowledge. People at the centre were highly knowledgeable and welcoming. I feel like it was a very educational experience, and it opened my eyes to many things. I also loved looking at those gigantic old trees.
The longhouse at the Cheakamus Center filled with smoke and the quiet, solemn pattering of students soaking wet boots. We all felt a change walking in there. This was history, and a piece of the past not to take lightly. I sat where a Skwxwú7mesh family would've and devoured a falafel wrap. I listened, learned, and internalized the stories and facts told to us by the elders and communicators of the area and began my rounds of the activities. I used an axe for the first time, memorized the names of edible plants, tasted roots, captured secret images of the communicator's backroom library of nature books, and felt how huge the forest really is. I examined salmon, a tree outliving anything I could think of, and ancient ruins of old-growth forests. The amount of knowledge and humbling I found in one day was astounding. With so many prompts to choose from for this paragraph, I could not narrow down my experience to one main event. Truly, Cheakamus is a day I will hold with me as inspiration and as a reminder of what I'll work towards in my career; focus on what's around you, how you affect it, and what has been affected.
Ethan
Oct 19, 2021 at 3:47 PM