Native Paddlers….And Horse Riders….On Way To New York City

First, the canoe connects us to Ma-ka-ina, Mother Earth, from which we came and to which we must all return. Councils of those who were here before us revered the earth and also the wind, the rain, and the sun – all essential to life. It was from that remarkable blending of forces that mankind was allowed to create the canoe and its several kindred forms.

From the birch tree, came the bark; from the spruce, pliant roots; from the cedar, the ribs, planking and gunwales; and from a variety of natural sources, the sealing pitch.

In other habitats, great trees became dugout canoes while, in treeless areas, skin, bone and sinew were ingeniously fused into kayaks. Form followed function, and manufacture was linked to available materials. Even the modern canoe, although several steps away from the first, is still a product of the earth. We have a great debt to those who experienced the land before us. No wonder that, in many parts of the world, the people thank the land for allowing its spirit to be transferred to the canoe.

Hand-propelled watercraft still allow us to pursue the elemental quest for tranquility, beauty, peace, freedom and cleaness. It is good to be conveyed quietly, gracefully, to natural rhythms….

The canoe especially connects us to rivers – timeless pathways of the wilderness. Wave after wave of users have passed by. Gentle rains falling onto a paddler evaporate skyward to form clouds and then to descend on a fellow traveller, perhaps in another era. Like wise, our waterways contain something of the substance of our ancestors. The canoe connects us to the spirit of these people who walk beside us as we glide silently along riverine trails. – Kirk Wipper, in foreword to Canexus (also published as “Connections” in Stories From The Bow Seat: The Wisdom And Waggery Of Canoe Tripping by Don Standfield and Liz Lundell, p. 15) 

“The traditional way of education was by example, experience, and storytelling. The first principle involved was total respect and acceptance of the one to be taught, and that learning was a continuous process from birth to death. It was total continuity without interruption. Its nature was like a fountain that gives many colours and flavours of water and that whoever chose could drink as much or as little as they wanted to whenever they wished. The teaching strictly adhered to the sacredness of life whether of humans, animals or plants.” - Art Solomon, Anishinaabe Elder

“Native people feel they have lost something and they want it back. It doesn’t necessarily mean that when I talk about going back over there, that we stay over there. You have to get those teachings and pick up those things that we left along the way. The drums, the language, the songs are all scattered around. We need to bring them into this time. You need these things to teach your children today in order to give them that direction and good feelings about who they are. They need to know where they are going. It doesn’t mean we have to go back to living in teepees. You can be a traditionalist and be comfortable wherever you are.” - Art Solomon, Anishinaabe Elder

Traditional people of Indian nations have interpreted the two roads that face the light-skinned race as the road to technology and the road to spirituality. We feel that the road to technology…. has led modern society to a damaged and seared earth. Could it be that the road to technology represents a rush to destruction, and that the road to spirituality represents the slower path that the traditional native people have traveled and are now seeking again? The earth is not scorched on this trail. The grass is still growing there. - William Commanda, Mamiwinini, Canada, 1991

As William Commanda, Elder from the Algonquian Nation and keeper of the sacred wampum belts, said in the opening of his June 10, 2010 message to the Algonquins of the Ottawa River Watershed:

I have been blessed by the guidance and strength of the Sacred Wampum Belts of our Anisninabe ancestors to assert their presence over the past forty years, and many, Indigenous and non-Indigenous, have been awakened to our history, wisdom and relevance in these times of unprecedented global uncertainty and chaos. But in our traditional way of thinking, the individual is only a cornerstone of a community, and we must bring our individual strengths together to recreate the strong communities we developed in the past. I have often said that Indigenous Peoples are the only ones who have never gone elsewhere to make new homes, we are at home here; we maintain the sacred unbreakable connections with Mother Earth, and we have to assert this reality with even greater vigour and perseverance in these times of war and strife, climate change and environmental crisis. Without doubt, Mother Earth’s voice is loud now, and she is calling urgently to draw us back to her. We have a crucial role to play in restoring balance on Earth, and our Earth based and cyclical ways of thinking have a vitally important role to play in human evolution and growth. We can all see the huge deficit and spiritually bankrupt legacy looming in the global landscape.

Let me finally add these words of William Commanda:  “we need this old knowledge in our teachings to get through this new age”.

From Two Row Wampum Renewal Campaign:

Epic Canoe Trip

From July 27 – August 9

Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.

A focal point of the year-long educational and advocacy Two Row Wampum Renewal Campaign will be a symbolic “enactment” of the treaty in the summer of 2013. We will bring the treaty to life with Haudenosaunee and other Native People paddling side-by-side with allies and supporters down the Hudson River from Albany to New York City. These two equal, but separate rows will demonstrate the wise, yet simple concept of the Two Row Wampum Treaty. 

Itinerary and Map

Our itinerary is set for the 13 day trip down the Hudson River this summer.  See below or download the Schedule (pdf) At each of our stops, we will need logistical assistance from local supporters.  Below the list of ideas for ways to provide support is the current, nearly-final itinerary.  If you can help at a particular location, please contact the appropriate person directly.  If you have more general ideas/suggestions/offers of assistance, you can contact Andy Mager or Lena Duby. We will generally be leaving each morning as the tide is going out which will typically be between 10 and 11 daily.

Ways You can Help

• Provide and/or arrange for housing for people who aren’t able to camp
• Identify potential overflow camping areas if we fill up our spots
• Assist with on the ground logistical support, setting up for events/camping, directing people to park, running errands, setting up signs, be part of our “leave no trace” cleanup crew…
• Raise funds to help support the journey
• Solicit donations of food from area stores and farmers
• Bring food and/or arrange for others to do so to our breakfast, lunch or dinner spots
• Assist with transport/pickup of new people joining us, help identify places where cars can be left
• Help with publicity and media relations, both before and during the event. Contact Lindsay Speer.
• Help organize an event for us in your community when we arrive, including seeking support and welcome from local leaders
• Help fill two specific requests:  A pontoon boat or other boat with a flat deck -and a captain!- to assist the media team, and a solar device-charging station.  (Keeping media team’s computers, cell phones, and cameras charged is a key logistical challenge)

Our Itinerary

Revised 7/19/2013

Saturday, July 27 Two Row Wampum Renewal Campaign Send-off Celebration Festival* Festival @ Russell Sage College, 65 1st St, Troy, NY (map) 10 am – 5 pm Key contact: Kevin Nephew or Lori Quigley Camping Site: River St. and Division St. Troy, NY (map)

Sunday, July 28: From Rensselaer Boat Launch  (Gather 10 am, launch 10:45) Launch @ Rensselaer Boat Launch 20 Forbes Ave, Rensselaer, NY (map) Lunch @ Henry Hudson Park, Barent Winne Rd & Lyons Rd, Selkirk, NY 12158 (map) Land @ Schodack Island State Park, 1 Schodack Island Way, Schodack Landing, NY (map) (arrive 4:30 pm) Camping site @ Schodack Island State Park For launch, Key contact: Andy Mager Key contact for site: Allison Smith

Monday, July 29: From Schodack Island State Park  (launch 10 am) No lunch stop: Lunch on the river Land @ Coxsackie Village Park, Betke Blvd & S. River St (arrive 4:30 pm) Camping site @ Coxsackie Village Park Sharing the River of Life, 7 pm Key contact: Allison Smith, Local Contact: Vernon Benjamin

Tuesday, July 30: From Coxsackie Village Park (launch 10 am) Lunch @Athens, 2nd St & N Water Street Athens, NY Land @ Dutchman’s Landing, (map) (arrive 4:30 pm) Camping site @ Dutchman’s Landing Protecting the River of Life, 7 pm, @ Catskills Point Park 1 Main St, Catskill, NY 12414 Key contact: Allison Smith, Local contact Sue Rosenberg

Wednesday, July 31: Launch from Catskill (launch 10 am) Lunch @ Malden-on-Hudson, End of Riverside Drive Land @ Sojourner Truth/Ulster Landing Park Co Rd 37/Ulster Landing Rd (entrance) 934 Co Rd 37 / Ulster Landing Road, Saugerties, NY 12477 (map) (arrive 4:30 pm) Camp site @ Sojourner Truth/Ulster Landing Park Indigenous Rights and African-American Freedom Struggles, 7 pm. Key contact: Allison Smith, local contact Sally Bermanzohn

Thursday, August 1: From Sojourner Truth/Ulster Landing  (launch 9:30 am) Lunch and Event @ Hudson Maritime Museum, Kingston*, 11-2:30 50 Rondout Landing, Kingston, NY (map)‎ (paddlers arrive about 12:30 pm) Land @ Margret Norrie State Park, 9 Old Post Road, Staatsburg, NY 12580 (map) (arrive 6:30 pm) Camping site @ Margret Norrie State Park Key contact: Terry Eckert, local contact Tania Barricklo and Karin Wolfe

Friday, August 2: Launch from Margret Norrie State Park (launch 11 am) Land @ Poughkeepsie at Hudson River Rowing Association Dock, 270-272 N Water St, Poughkeepsie, NY (map) Camping site @ Hudson River Rowing Association Dock Lacrosse: The Creator’s Game Presentation, 5:30 pm Key contact: Jack Manno, local contacts Paul Gorgen and Stephanie Santagada Wells

Saturday, August 3: Launch from Poughkeepsie* (launch 10 am) Event @ 9:30 am: Welcome on the Walkway Gathering to Welcome Paddlers and Unity Riders to mid-Hudson Valley: Walkway Over the Hudson State Historic Park, Poughkeepsie Entrance: 61 Parker Avenue Poughkeepsie, NY 12601; Highland entrance: 87 Haviland Road  Highland, NY 12528 website: http://www.walkway.org Lunch @ Marlboro Yacht Club, End of Dock Road, Marlboro, NY website: http://mycboatclub.com/ Land @ Long Dock Park, Beacon, NY Directions to landing site: from Newburgh-Beacon Bridge, go 1.8 miles south on Route 9D, right on Beekman St., Right on Red Flynn Drive then immediate left on Long Dock Rd. Beacon Two Row Wampum Festival at Riverfront Park, Beacon, NY, 11 am – 8 pm (for directions, see http://beacontworow.org/directions/) Campsite @ David Eberle’s land, 35 Slocum Rd, Beacon, NY 12508 Directions to camp from Newburgh Beacon Bridge: south on RT 9D, 3.3 miles; Turn right onto Grandview Ave; Take the 1st left to stay on Grandview Ave.; Continue onto Slocum Rd, camping on the Right.

Thursday August 8: Piermont to Inwood/Yonkers (launch 10:30am) Launch @ Parelli Park, Hudson Way and Piermont Ave, Piermont, NY Lunch stop to be determined. Either at Beczak Environmental Center 35 Alexander St, Yonkers, NY 10701 OR Kennedy Marina/JFK Marina and Park at the end of JFK Memorial Drive, off of Warburton Avenue, Yonkers NY 10701 Land @ Dyckman Street landing, at La Marina Restaurant 348 Dyckman St New York, NY 10034 Poetry and Spoken Word: Two Rows and More, 6:30 pm at Inwood Hill Park, NYC CAMPING SITE IN YONKERS THIS NIGHT. (See lunch stop information)

Background

We will paddle between 9 and 15 miles each day and camp along the route. There will be educational and cultural events along the way, some large and others small. The gatherings will feature talks by Haudenosaunee leaders and allies and cultural sharing.  The itinerary is still being finalized. The current version is on the attached application, updates will be available on our website. We will arrive in New York City on Friday, August 9 to participate in the United Nations International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples. The symbolic enactment and related events will draw thousands of people to the Hudson to learn and be inspired to create an equitable and sustainable future for all in the Hudson Valley and beyond. The events will attract tourists as well as residents. We aim to educate and inspire attendees to transform their relationship to the river and all parts of the natural world, incorporating a sense of historic responsibility for the environment and justice for the original inhabitants of this land.

Onondaga to Albany: July 2-14

Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.

Haudenosaunee Paddlers are en route to Albany on the first leg of the Two Row Wampum journey. They will reach the Hudson on Sunday, July 14 after which they and the wampum belt they are carrying will rest for two weeks before the second part of the journey down the Hudson to the United Nations. They are being joined by other Haudenosaunee paddlers on the route. Contact Hickory, 315-775-7548.

Full Schedule Tuesday July 2: Onondaga Nation to Bayberry. Stop at Two Row Wampum Festival on Onondaga Lake Wednesday July 3: Bayberry to Oneida Shores Park Thursday July 4: Oneida Shores Park to Paradise Cove Friday July 5: Paradise Cove to Rome Saturday July 6: Rome to Barnes Ave., Utica Sunday, July 7: Rest Day KOA Herkimer Monday July 8: Utica to Lock (E18) Herkimer Tuesday July 9: Lock (E18) Herkimer to St. Johnsville Marina Wednesday July 10: St. Johnsville Marina to Kanatsiohareke (Tom Porters) Thursday July 11: Event at Kanatsiohareke. Drums along the Mohawk Friday July 12: Kanatsiohareke to Lock (E12) Tribe’s Hill Saturday July 13: Lock (E12) Tribe’s Hill to Lock (E8) Scotia. Festival at Mabee Farm Sunday July 14: Lock (E8) Scotia to Peebles Island

Epic Canoe Trip: Symbolic Enactment

Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.

We will begin with a cultural and educational festival near Albany on Saturday, July 27 and the flotilla will set off the following morning. We will paddle between 9 and 15 miles each day and camp along the route.  There will be educational and cultural events along the way, some large and others small. The gatherings will feature talks by Haudenosaunee leaders and allies and cultural sharing. The most up-to-date version of the itinerary can be found here.

We will arrive in New York City on Friday, August 9 to participate in the United Nations International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples.

Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.

The symbolic enactment and related events will draw thousands of people to the Hudson to learn and be inspired to create an equitable and sustainable future for all in the Hudson Valley and beyond. The events will attract tourists as well as residents. We aim to educate and inspire attendees to transform their relationship to the river and all parts of the natural world, incorporating a sense of historic responsibility for the environment and justice for the original inhabitants of this land.

Our First Day on the Water

What a wonderful start to our epic journey!  Hundreds of indigenous and ally paddlers and their supporters gathered at the boat launch in Rensselaer in the pouring rain for our rousing send off.   The rain cleared away long enough for most of the send-off ceremony.  As Tadodaho Sid Hill gave the Thanksgiving Address from the shores of the River That Flows Both Ways, a hummingbird even came to join our well-wishers.

Local political leaders also come to send their good wishes for our voyage.  Congressman Paul Tonko, Mayor of Troy Lou Rosamilia, Albany City Councilor Dominick Calsolaro, and a representative from Senator Gillabrand’s office all offered good words and well-wishes for our journey.  Dan Dwyer, the Mayor of Rensselaer, also arrived as the last paddlers were launching and shared his well-wishes with the Haudenosaunee leaders there.

Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.

And then we were off!  It was a beautiful sight to see the two great long rows of paddlers, native and and non-native side by side setting off down the Hudson.  The rains and wind came back, but our paddlers persevered down to Henry Hudson Park for a lunch.  About six paddlers found it to be more challenging than they expected and were assisted by our safety boats and the US Coast Guard Auxillary with us safely to the lunch stop.  It is a good reminder that this is a serious river that deserves all our respect.

Despite the weather, a pair of eagles and a great blue heron joined us on the water for a while and everyone was in high spirits.   The weather cleared for our final leg and we made our triumphant entrance to Schodack Island State Park.   Jun-san Yasuda of the Grafton Peace Pagoda was there at both the launch and the send off, drumming her prayers for us.  At dinner, Etoqua welcomed us on behalf of the Mahicans to their territory, as this was the site of their Council Fire in the time of the Two Row Wampum Treaty.

In the evening, the young paddlers from Tonawanda Seneca sang for us and we all shared in social dancing.  We are all tired but determined and full of joy to be on this great journey together.

Two Row and Unity Riders

Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.

The Two Row Wampum Renewal Campaign is delighted to collaborate with the Dakota People of Manitoba, Canada who are bringing their Unity Riders to the Hudson Valley this summer. They ride on horseback to spread a message of peace and healing for every nation and for humankind. This epic journey of the horsemen will cover thousands of miles from Canada to New York State and will rendezvous with the Two Row paddlers at several spots on our journey down the Hudson River.

The Unity Ride, led by Chief Gus High Eagle of the Dakota Nation, will join with the Two Row Campaign on July 27 at Sage College in Troy, on August 1 at the Hudson Maritime Museum in Kingston, on August 3 in Poughkeepsie and Beacon, and on August 9 and 10 in New York City. The Two Row Campaign will join with the Unity Riders in Woodstock on August 4 for their International Walk for World Peace.

Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.

Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.

Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.

Image may be NSFW.
Clik here to view.