Menominee water protectors revive traditional canoe journey on ancestral river

Menominee water protectors launched a hand-crafted dugout canoe on the Menominee River this week, marking what organizers say is the first time in generations that a Menominee-made canoe has traveled the river, according to reporting from ICT. The organizers, Dawn M. Wilber and Wayne Swett, spent more than two weeks shaping a 17-foot pine log using traditional methods before beginning a 48-mile journey from the Sixty Islands Archaeological site to the mouth of the Menominee River. 

The annual canoe journey reconnects participants with their ancestral homelands while highlighting the cultural significance of the river and surrounding sites, according to the ICT reporting. Organizers also said the event raises awareness about efforts to protect the area from a proposed mining project near the Menominee River. Wilber and Swett said they plan to preserve the canoe after the journey by sinking it in the water using a traditional storage practice.