Despite some chilly mornings, a relay of participants completed the 4th annual People of the Heart Water Walk on Monday, October 10, 2022, Indigenous Peoples' Day. This year the 90-mile walk along Lake Superior up the Keweenaw Peninsula began at the Sand Point Lighthouse near Baraga and ended near Copper Harbor.
Native and non-Native walkers take turns carrying a copper vessel of Nibi (Water) constantly moving from dawn until dusk, accompanied by the eagle staff for protection. The Walk is a spiritual journey to honor the Water and call attention to the need to protect it.
Day 1, Oct. 8, 2022:
Participants headed from Baraga to Houghton, their destination for Day 1.
On Oct. 8, 2022, Water Walkers arrive at the Houghton waterfront, completing their first day of the 3-day walk to honor Nibi and call attention to the need to protect it. Native and non-Native residents and visitors walk together. (Videos by Keweenaw Now)
On Oct. 8, 2022, Water Walkers gather near the peace poles on the Houghton waterfront after completing Day 1 of the 3-day walk from Baraga. Some make a tobacco offering for the water as the walkers prepare for a group photograph. The Rev. Bucky Beach, pastor of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church in Houghton, who participated in the walk, speaks about the peace poles, noting the Ojibwa/Anishinaabe language is one of several languages with a message for peace written on the poles.
As walkers arranged for transportation to a feast hosted by Finlandia University in Hancock, a visitor to the Keweenaw, Wil Strickland of Ann Arbor, told Keweenaw Now why he decided to join the Water Walk.
Wil Strickland describes his work in making ribbon skirts for some of the kwe (women) walkers and tells Keweenaw Now why he traveled all the way from Ann Arbor, Mich., to join the Walk.
Day 2: Oct. 9, 2022:
Day 2 of the Walk, Sunday, Oct. 9, began at dawn as participants crossed the Portage Lift Bridge, heading for Eagle River.
As the group passed through Laurium, a mother and her two children joined them.
Carol Rose, a local resident who wanted to show support for the walkers, treated them to their choice of an ice cream cone, pop or coffee at Sundae in the Park when they walked through Mohawk.
Later, after completing the Day 2 walk near Eagle River, the Water Walkers returned to Mohawk to enjoy a feast at Bethany Lutheran Church.
Day 3: Oct. 10, 2022 -- Indigenous Peoples' Day
Day 3, the final day of the Walk, began at dawn along M-26 just south of Eagle River, despite a chilly 25 degrees F.
Walkers began their third and final day of the Walk with a song and chant in the Ojibwa language:
Just outside Eagle River at dawn on Oct. 10, Kathleen Smith leads Water Walkers in the Nibi (Water) Song. The pronunciation is as follows:
Ne-be Gee Zah- gay- e- goo
Gee Me-gwetch -wayn ne- me – goo
Gee Zah Wayn ne- me- goo
The words mean "Water, we love you.
We thank you.
We respect you."*
From Eagle River the Water Walkers headed toward their final destination, Copper Harbor.
While Walkers carrying the copper vessel of Nibi and the eagle staff kept moving without stopping, some participants paused briefly at Great Sand Bay, between Eagle River and Eagle Harbor, where Keweenaw Now was able to interview them. Sunshine warmed up the day a bit.
Participants in the 4th annual People of the Heart Water Walk pass Great Sand Bay on Lake Superior on their way to Copper Harbor on Oct. 10, 2022, Indigenous Peoples' Day.Marsha Pfarr of Baraga told Keweenaw Now why she volunteered to be a driver for the Walk.Marsha Pharr, who volunteers to drive the People of the Heart Water Walkers, tells Keweenaw Now why this is important to her as an Anishinaabek. The interview took place on Oct. 10, 2022, at Great Sand Bay on Lake Superior.
Charli Mills of Hancock, Mich., describes what she has learned from participating in the four annual People of the Heart Water Walks with the Anishinaabek.
The Rev. Julie Belew, pastor of Holy Cross Lutheran Church in Baraga, speaks about her participation in the fourth annual People of the Heart Water Walk during a pause at Great Sand Bay on Lake Superior on Oct. 10, 2022, Indigenous Peoples' Day.
During a Water Walk relay stop at Great Sand Bay on the Keweenaw Peninsula on Oct. 10, 2022, Indigenous Peoples' Day, Kathleen Smith of the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community (KBIC), who now works for the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission (GLIFWC) as protector of wild rice, speaks about the purpose of the People of the Heart Water Walk, which she has helped organize and lead for four years.
Theresa Pitts, KBIC member and Water Walker, participated this year for the third time in the People of the Heart Water Walk.** She has also participated in a children's water walk. Pitts told Keweenaw Now her impression of what made this year's walk unique.
"This year’s Walk was first and foremost a healing journey for Nibi; but, as it happened, it was also a journey of solace for some of our walkers," Pitts noted. "This was the first time I’d seen that dynamic in the Walk, which gave rise to some poignant moments that will stay in my heart for the rest of my life."
In a Facebook post accompanying the above photo, photographer Steve Brimm of Copper Harbor expresses these thoughts:
"Nibi is life.
For three days, the water must not stop. Carried as caringly as a newborn, solely by Kwe, it gathers power and heals. Released at the end of the journey, to carry the medicine of positive intent to all of the waters, to all living things."***
Notes:
* Click here for more details on the Nibi Song.
** See the Oct. 18, 2021, Keweenaw Now guest article by Theresa Pitts, "People of the Heart Water Walk offers hope for area lake."
*** Reprinted with permission.
