Day eight of July 22, 2013

I had a great start to my morning. Ate some blueberry pancakes with some coffee!! it was good.
We took off from Wallowa camping grounds and headed to Pendleton, Oregon to speak with Wenix Red Elk. Wenix works for the department of natural resources and is a specialist for education outreach. she spoke about how they manage resources like water, fish, deer, cous, and huckleberries. The mission statement from the Department Of Natural Resources: Confederate Tribes Of The Umatilla Indian Reservation states that there aim is,

          " To Protect, Restore, and enhance the first foods. Water, salmon, deer, cous, and huckleberry- for the perpetual cultural., economic, and sovereign benefit of the culture. We will accomplish this utilizing traditional ecological and cultural knowledge and science to inform 1.) Population and Habitat Management goals and actions, and 2.) Natural resource policies and regulatory mechanisms. "

Wenix went on explaining the importance of maintaining resources for future generations. When land is lost or allotted the confederate tribes tries to buy lands back  to preserve the primitive resources. When important resources are not within their lands the tribe create solutions which meet there neighbors, they talk it out and negotiate. A partnership is created. The tribe would rather help restore the land than to hire lawyers and create disputes with there neighbors.

After our visit in the Department of Natural Resources (cool looking building) we went on a field trip at Meacham creek. Half a mile before arriving, one of White Swan vehicles (Bandwagon) got a flat tire. When we pulled over to help Bandwagon we came to find out that one of our very own vehicle (Soaring Eagle) had a flat tire as well. Two flat tires in hot weather :(  it will be an unforgettable experience. hahaha. Geo, a high school student from White Swan helped changed the tire while the girls were pampering him and cracking up jokes. Well we managed to get to the site with another vehicle.

We arrived at the site and there Wenix explained the significance of the area. In that particular spot there was active work going on. We saw a stream and Wenix explained the importance of the water moving in slow motion, to cleanse itself through the small spacious spots that appeared to be small little islands. On those small spots the water flows underneath and gets cleaned with the surface rocks. The stream had four divisions which helps the water move even slower. Wenix mentioned that a lot of plants had to be located there because months before Meacham creek was all dirt and she said having a diversity of plants is important to maintain a sustainable environment for variety of species.

When we were getting ready to head out not even 10 mins on the road another vehicle (War Pony) got not one flat tire but two. We had to wait there for a couple of minutes to get some assistance since we had no more spare tires and no reception. Our van left to call for assistance and get dropped off at Wenix place. Monet and Havier left to fix the tire situation while I stayed behind to get my tent set up.  When Monet returned she mentioned that another one of our tires was flat and that the guy at Les Shwab had spotted it. Thank god that they made it there safely and on time to find out that it was flat.

Wenix and her family prepared some Indian tacos, they were delicious. I'm thankful for her and her family for preparing dinner and allowing us to camp in there yard and use there showers. Wenix if you are reading this THANK YOU !!! YOUR AWESOME. God Bless you and your family.

Wenix mother Loveda Elk, had a gallery display of crafted elegant plates. I was impressed with the works of this lady. She has talent. I wanted to buy one of her displays but it was out of my budget unfortunately. I really wanted one though. I also wish I could learn how to master her arts.  

Well I'm going to go now its 2:07a.m. and my classmates want to play ware wolf at this hour?????? alright I'm out in the field and their playing silent volleyball!!! Lol

As I get ready to go to sleep I think about my family and friends. I really miss them already. I will see you all soon :) 

I think this trip is making me feel more dependent and appreciative towards my parents. I love my family they are my all and god my rock and shelter. 

 

Day 10 July 24, 2013

As every morning I had a great breakfast. We got an early start to our day because we had several people from the Spokane reservation coming in and they had a lot of stuff planned for us.

We are at the Wellpinit fair grounds in Spokane. Spokane reservation employees, Billy Joe: Natural Resource director, Warren Sayler: Coordinator, John Matt: Heritage Coordinator, Bill Matt: tribal elder, Brain Crossley: project coordinator, Brent Nicholas: Program manager, Candace Bennett: wild life biologist. They spoke about the reservation and said that they manage about 157 thousand arcs. They mentioned some projects with damps and lakes that they are working on. The water in that area seems to fluctuate with winds and other natural occurrences that destroys historical sites and burial locations. John Matt has said to have found some burial sites dating before Christ (B.C.E) with carbon dating. He says that it does not frighten him to find these burial sites because he believes that he is helping them move to a better location with no disturbances.
All these Environmental employees have a degree and some have years working for the reservation.

After our talk about water restoration projects, fishing, damps, budget, hunting, education, culture, tribal regulations, etc. Warren and the crew took us out in the field to set up track plates with Candace Bennett: wild life biologist. She spoke to us about setting up track plates to detect carnivores. The track plates helps them identify carnivores in the area. When the wild animals come in to grab the chicken on the end of the plate. The plate has some type of black tracing that leaves the paws of the animal on a white sheet of paper. A camera is also installed near the location where the plates are installed. Candace taught us how to set up the plates and we helped camouflage it with tree limbs, dried grass and leafs.

After we finish installing the camera and plates we went to have some lunch. After lunch we went to the stream to get the opportunity to shock some fish and collect them for sampling. I could not believe they were going to have us do this. I was very excited, especially when I volunteered to be a shocker. I was also nervous because I did not want to shock myself or anyone around me but everything went alright. We went up the stream looking for fish. I did not see any in the open waters but as I began getting closer to the edges they began drifting away. I had two students netting behind me catching the fish. They had difficulty looking for the fish because they could not see through the water because of the reflection of the sun shinging bright on the surface of the waters. I was able to see just fine because I had polarized glasses. Overall this experience was awesome. If I had the option to continue I would have but I had.
    After sampling fish we went to a great place to swim and cool off. A great place to end the day with everybody reunited and listening to tales.

Day nine July 23, 2013

This day was relaxing and culturally educational. I had some great coffee thanks to Wenix employees. We did some paintings with rock sediments and other components. It was very fun. I had a great time smashing up the the rocks into smaller pieces. As Cia helped me fine them out by spurring with a spoon. I wanted to be creative with my painting but I did not know what to paint. So I just began collecting pine cones and taking some of their seedlings to put on my painting. Unfortunately di not get to finish my drawing because we had to sit in to hear a presentation.

Wenix and her mother set out a display of cultural foods. We got to learn about the foods and the plants presented with there significant uses in medicine. The food was set in an order depending on the season and importance. For example, water was the first on the list of foods because water is crucial for all life on earth, with out it we will all perish. We got to sample some of the foods on the table after Havier finished blessing the food with a prayer.

After our small feast we began packing up to go to Wellpinit, Spokane. We would be traveling 3 to 4 hours depending on our stops. We managed to Wellpinit a little late but we arrived!!! I'm tired but can not wait to see what awaits tomorrow.