After a week brimming with Cree culture, the Nemaska Trappers’ Festival welcomed youth returning from the annual healing winter journey to join in the final day’s grand feast on February 22.
While the community has organized winter journeys trekking by snowshoe to Old Nemaska since 2006, the last few years have been excursions based at one bush camp. With no guides confirmed as this year’s journey approached, it was decided to instead have the youth spend about 10 days on Charles Cheezo’s trapline at km48 on the Route du Nord.
Beginning with six females and six males, the two older participants who were leading the cooking and hunting activities were made assistant guides. Diane Tanoush and Liana Diamond served as project coordinators, David and Monica Tanoush were camp leaders, and Clifford Jolly guided the group to the pickup point.
“Rather than cancel the winter journey, I changed it to more of an excursion; hunting, trapping, fishing, sleeping in one big canvas tent,” said youth development coordinator Jean Meskino. “They’re all looking forward to next year so I’m assuming they had a good experience. They already want to do a canoe brigade.”
A two-week sewing workshop led by Evadney Mettaweskum and Rosie Tanoush from the local women’s association prepared the youth, aged 13-18. While some had never used a sewing machine, most finished their canvas coats, including one young man who finished in only about eight hours over two days. Ribbon skirts, blanket bags and lunch bags were also created.
Meskino suggested future expedition preparations could include additional safety and first-aid training following an accident that occurred at the bush camp. When the youth were chopping wood to shape kindling one day, one participant caught his thumb and split his thumbnail sideways.
Fortunately, four participants employed their first-aid training to stop the bleeding and an ambulance was called. Although this youth wasn’t able to complete the journey, the others returned empowered and in high spirits. For next year’s 20th edition, Meskino hopes to offer both a bush camp week and a trek to Old Nemaska.
“We’re trying to get them more involved in cultural activities out on the land,” Meskino explained. “That’s where my best memories were growing up. I was with my grandparents in the bush, initially to learn Cree. It was very calming in the bush – I’d go wander off alone somewhere.”
In most years, youth would trek 15-to-20 km each day to Old Nemaska once the trail was broken, depending on weather conditions. Staying at the bush camp had the advantage of improving the group’s Cree language skills as the couple they stayed with don’t speak much English.
While the youth originally planned to return the following day, Nemaska Trappers’ Festival coordinator Deborah Wapachee arranged with Meskino for their arrival to coincide with the festival’s closing feast. The celebration also honoured the children’s first snowshoe walk, which had occurred that morning.
“It’s one of the popular events in the community that people look forward to,” said Wapachee. “We got the youth involved and kids from the school even participate. It’s a nice event to connect with your Elders, who tell stories about what they used to do way back.”
The festival has grown over the years from a shaptuan gathering of Elders to a broad event at the sports complex drawing a wide range of visitors. With Chief Clarence Jolly suggesting one week was too short, Wapachee has high hopes that next year’s will be two weeks to allow more people to participate and complete more intensive crafts like snowshoe weaving and moccasin-making.
“Participation has been growing,” Wapachee confirmed. “I’m hoping to see our neighbours from the hydro camp or the lithium mine. My highlight is seeing the Elders connect with the community. As my grandfather would say, if at least one person takes something they learned and passes it along to their children that’s a big thing.”
Among the many workshops, Elder Annie Jolly demonstrated how to make fish nets, Linda Moar showed how to crochet while Jim Blackned shared his expertise with fishhooks, night lines and toboggans. Former Cree culture teacher Charles Cheezo showed how traditional tools could be used to trap beaver, bear and lynx.
Bessie Blackned’s Cree language workshop had visitors match items on her table with the correct Cree word. Walter Jolly’s “mini museum” included a collection of traditional tools for hunting and trapping with a little story for each one. Helen Tanoush made slippers and Rosie Tanoush canvas coats.
Workshop facilitator Evadney Mettaweskum would like to see young people take over more workshops, suggesting “Elders are very much eager to pass on their knowledge, but it seems after the youth finish carving, they won’t continue making them.”
Mettaweskum said the moose-hide slipper and canvas parka workshops were the most popular. In connection with the local daycare, she showed how to make swings for dolls, for which she designed swaddling clothes. This seemed a natural extension after years of making baby clothing, learned from Elders during employment at the multi-service day centre.
“They shared about traditional medicine we used for diaper rash, decorating the umbilical cord, rabbit skin to warm the child’s feet,” Mettaweskum explained. “They used moss instead of diapers. Even in the wintertime, they would dry it at their camps over the stove and clean it.”
Mettaweskum created her first canvas coat for her son when he walked from Mistissini to Montreal as part of a Cree protest against uranium mining in the territory. She has continued making coats for healing journeys and was busy with a contract making 30 for the local school.
As more Cree entities prioritize transferring cultural knowledge, there are growing opportunities for collaboration between departments and empowering community members. With the growing popularity of the Trappers’ Festival, some would like to see it extended to a month.
“I’ve seen the growth of people wanting to participate since 2010,” said Wapachee. “One week is not enough. Sometimes Elders are at home and people hardly visit them. Looking around the gymnasium, I could see their joy, smiling as people came to them and talking away.”