78 canoes carrying members of a variety of indigenous people from tribes primarily around the northwest landed on Alki Beach July 27 as part of an annual Canoe Journey that finishes on July 30 in Nisqually near Olympia.
The annual Northwest Native American event, Canoe Journey made a stop at Alki Beach on July 27 with 78 canoes that included representatives from tribes as far away as Montana and even New Zealand.
The Muckleshoot Tribe hosted the event on Alki but it's all part of a much larger event that eventually comes to a conclusion in Olympia on July 30. The various canoe routes from both sides of Vancouver Island, Georgia Strait, and the Olympic Peninsula converged at Alki.
All the canoes are hand carved, dugouts. Many carry tribal talismans, or have other hand made decorations that carry meaning for the tribal members.
After a sack lunch on the beach the tribal members were shuttled to the Muckleshoot reservation.
The tribe hosted honored and fed about 1,000 guests at their reservation between Auburn and Enumclaw afterward. Singing, dancing, and various honoring ceremonies followed. The canoes will return to Alki Beach and depart for the Puyallup Reservation on Thursday morning.
