Rebecca Duncan leads a group of walkers, including five nuns from Squamish’s Queen of Peace Monastery, through tall trees dripping with usnea, a type of moss commonly known as old man’s beard.
Usnea is used as a yellowish dye for Squamish Nation textiles, explains Duncan, who is a Squamish Nation language teacher and one of the guides on the Kwemkwemshenam Cultural Tours, which launched Friday with an educational walk that meandered along the Squamish Estuary’s North Trail.
The tour guests followed Duncan through the forest of the estuary into a clearing by the railway tracks.
A black bear greeted them from afar and, startled by the sudden commotion, ducked back into the bushes and out of sight.
“In our language, that’s mayxla,” said Duncan. After the guests’ oohs and ahhs subsided, Duncan continued on with a song for the bear.
The tour is a journey of discovery even for those who know the Squamish Estuary well. Each Squamish Nation tour leader shares information about the Skwxmu7mesh language, culture, legends, plants and medicines, as well as estuary habitat and wildlife.
The Squamish Estuary is the site of the former
Squamish Nation village of Skwelwil’em, tour founder Chrystal Nahanee explained shortly after the tour participants gathered for a quick introduction and welcoming Squamish Nation prayer.
Traditional stories and legends are interspersed with teachings on the walk, such as the story of how the trickster raven brought sunlight to the world, told by Duncan.
When the world was in darkness, Seagull had all the daylight in a box.
“Raven couldn’t stand this,” said Duncan. “He thought ‘This just isn’t fair, why should Seagull have all the daylight?’… so he schemed and scammed to figure out how he can get the daylight away from Seagull.”
Inspired by his sea urchin lunch, Raven gathered urchin shells and spread them in front of Seagull’s door.
Seagull came out and stepped on the shell, hurting his foot. Raven tricked Seagull back into his dark house by offering to help him with his injured foot and then asked Seagull to open the box of daylight so they could see better.
“Seagull twisted the lid just a bit and a beam of light came out,” Duncan continued.
“[Raven] lurched, he leaped, he jumped for that lid and he flicked it off and all the sunlight filled the house… and it escaped outside the house and it filled the world.”
Nahanee said launching the first of her Kwemkwemshenam Cultural Tours was a dream come true.
“I am really excited,” she said. “I have been working hard the last couple of years. It has been hard to get it together.”
Jo Hunton-Sehdev, a community and aboriginal relations worker with FortisBC, was on the tour and astounded at the things she got to learn and see.
“It is almost surreal,” she said. “I love learning about the history and the culture and the language.”
FortisBC is interested in contributing to Nahanee’s tour business, Hunton-Sehdev added.
Kwemkwemshenam Cultural Tours accommodate up to 20 people, take about two hours, and run Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays until October.
To learn more about the tours go to firstnationstours.wordpress.com/tours.
