Alaska's "First City"

The picture Dee posted of the entrance to Ketchican claims that it is "Alaska's 1st City." Yet Sitka claims that it is "The First City in Alaska." Which one is correct? Without going into the details of determining exactly when a given city is established, it is clear that Sitka is the older. Ketchican's history dates to 1883, while Sitka's history begins around 1800. How, then, can Ketchican claim to be Alaska's first city?

Well Ketchican calls itself "First City" simply because it is the first stop in Alaska for ferries and many cruise ships traveling north through the Inside Passage. Its vibrant native Alaskan heritage, scenic location, and picturesque hillside houses and staircases make it a popular destination for travelers. It is also known as the "Salmon Capital of the World."

Ketchican is situated on Revillagigedo Island, 90 miles (145 km) north of Prince Rupert, BC. It is separated from Gravina Island, where Ketchikan International Airport is located, by the Tongass Narrows. In August 2005 the 2005 Highway Bill provided for $223m to build the Gravina Island Bridge (nicknamed "the Bridge to Nowhere" by its critics) between Ketchikan and Gravina Island. The bridge would have connected the island of Ketchikan to Gravina island where the airport is located so you can drive to the airport rather than taking the ferry across the waters. After years of national and international ridicule over the expense of this project, the Alaska government ultimately chose not to build the bridge, and will spend the appropriated funds elsewhere.

Yukon Native Language Center

Posting for Dee and Cal, Travis reported that they were on schedule so far, but that they would be arriving in Skagway on Tuesday instead of Sunday. I interpret this to mean that they decided to spend a night or two in Whitehorse after all. Or maybe they just wanted to take their time.

In any case, while they are in the Whitehorse vicinity, it is worth mentioning the Yukon Native Language Center (YNLC) at the Ayamdigut Campus of Yukon College in Whitehorse. The Centre is a training and research facility which provides a range of linguistic and educational services to Yukon First Nations and to the general public, promoting an awareness of the richness and beauty of Yukon First Nations Languages and an appreciation of the fundamental role they play in the transmission of culture and values from one generation to another.

Similar initiatives can be found at the Alaska Native Language Center (ANLC), Center for the Study of Upper Midwestern Cultures (CSUMC) at the University of Wisconsin and the Indigenous Language Institute (ILI) in Santa Fe, NM.

The UN declared 2008 as the International Year of Languages. "Languages, with their complex implications for identity, communication, social integration, education and development, are of strategic importance for people and planet. Yet, due to globalisation processes, they are increasingly under threat, or disappearing altogether. When languages fade, so does the world's rich tapestry of cultural diversity. Opportunities, traditions, memory, unique modes of thinking and expression – valuable resources for ensuring a better future are also lost."

Watson Lake, Yukon

Awhile back I promised not to speculate about where Dee and Cal might be headed next, yet I am about to speculate where they might be now. Just can't help myself. In any case, I surely jumped the gun by talking about the Continental Divide last night, because the Divide is beyond Watson Lake, YT on the Alaska Highway, and I am pretty sure the trikers will be able to post from Watson Lake. Watson Lake is right at 200 miles from Toad River Lodge where they were Monday night, and they did say they were going to slow down and enjoy the scenery (in this stretch said to be the best anywhere on the Alaska Highway). So I am going to go out on a limb and say that we will hear from Dee and Cal from Watson Lake tomorrow (Sunday) night, or perhaps as early as this evening.

Watson Lake is a community of 1000-1500 people, a small town by most standards, but in this region a booming metropolis. It lies along the Liard River in the upper Rocky Mountain Trench and, obviously, is near a small lake by the same name. It is known as the Gateway to the Yukon. The town is also famous for its Sign Post Forest.

Near Watson Lake is a small community called Upper Liard and another called Two Mile Village, both home to the Liard River First Nation.

Lac St. Anne Pilgrimage

Dee and Cal are camping at the shores of Lac St. Anne tonight, the site of the largest annual spiritual gathering of Native people in Canada.

"A long-established annual meeting place for Aboriginal peoples, this lake became a Catholic pilgrimage site in the late 19th century. Since 1889, First Nations and Métis people have traveled here in late July to celebrate the Feast of Saint Anne. This saint, widely revered as the mother of the Virgin Mary and the grandmother of Jesus, embodies the grandmother figure honoured in many Canadian Aboriginal societies. Lac Ste. Anne is an important place of spiritual, cultural and social rejuvenation, central aspects of traditional summer gatherings for indigenous peoples."

Between 30,000 and 40,000 people are expected to attend this year (July 18-23).

Bear Butte

Crazy Horse was still a teen (then called by his childhood name, Curly) when the Great Council of Teton Lakotas (Souix) took place at Bear Butte in the summer of 1857. It was here that he began to see the Lakotas as the same proud people as in the old days and to feel the power of their unity (Sandoz, pp 98-100). And it was here that Curly underwent an Inipi, or a purification ceremony, and had a great vision on the inclines of Bear Butte, which his father interpreted as meaning that Crazy Horse would one day be a great warrior (see Pluralism Project link below).

Violating a treaty of 1868, George Custer led an expedition to the Black Hills region in 1874, and according to custom he camped near Bear Butte. Custer verified the rumors of gold in the Black Hills, and Bear Butte then served as an easily identifiable landmark for the rush of invading prospectors and settlers into the region. Indian reaction to the illegal movements of whites into the area was intense and hostile. Ultimately the government reneged on its treaty obligations regarding the Black Hills and instead embarked on a pogrom to confine all northern Plains tribes to reservations. Incidentally, by taking Highway 79 to Rapid City, Dee and Cal avoided the Black Hills towns of Lead, Central City, Pluma, and Deadwood on US 85/385 that were the focus of the gold rush.

"The sacredness of Bear Butte as a religious site for the Lakota and a myriad of other native groups cannot be disputed. Legend and history, as well as the determination of the Lakota to defend Bear Butte today demonstrate the importance of mountain. The battle to protect Bear Butte is shaping up to be a battle between religious rights and property rights, coupled with the perceived need for economic development in South Dakota. Unfortunately, controversies involving the infringement of the religious rights of the Lakota have caused clashes between natives and those who do not see Bear Butte in the way of the Lakota and other Native Tribes." (The Pluralism Project)

I love reading Sandoz while Dee and Cal are traveling through this region.

Crazy Horse, Part I

If there is one thing I enjoy more than hiking for relaxation it is reading, so when Dean Simmons recommended author Mari Sandoz to Dee and Cal, I rushed right over to my local B&N to pick up a copy of Crazy Horse. I am about a fourth of the way into it and enjoying it thoroughly. Not only does Sandoz tell the story from the perspective of the Native American, her distinct style of writing draws the reader into that point of view.

This is not intended to be a review of the book, but I would make a couple of personal observations. First, I am struck by the notion of contingency, in the fact that the whole sequence of events with far reaching consequences was set in motion by an unpredictable and seemingly minor occurrence, the emaciated cow of a Mormon emigrant straying off the "Holy Road" (the Oregon/Mormon Trail) on the Platte River. The lives of thousands of individuals were altered inextricably by the whim of this otherwise insignificant beast.

Second, when I was much younger, the history of the settling of the West seemed like the distant past to me. But now that I am sixty, I realize that General Custer was born less than three of my life-times ago, just two life-times before I was born, one life-time before my grandmother, and Crazy Horse was younger than Custer. Not so long ago.

Red Cloud and Minden

While the trikers are taking a much needed break (and staying in out of the rain), I will make a few observations about their current location, Minden. NE. It turns out that more than fifteen states have towns or cities named Minden, apparently because there were so many immigrants from Minden, Germany in the 1850's. Minden, Nebraska is known for its Christmas lights and festival each year and for Harold Warp's Pioneer Village. The town had a population of nearly 3,000 people in the 2000 Census.

The trikers spent the previous night (Wed) in Red Cloud, NE. This town was named for the famous Indian chief, who was born in the region (though closer to North Platte). He is most famous for battles in Montana and Wyoming. The town of Red Cloud was founded in 1871 by a former captain in the Union Army, Silas Garber, and has a current population of a little over a thousand.