History came to life as voyageurs arrived in Whitecourt

The Voyageur Brigade Society members visited Whitecourt on Tuesday, June 27 after paddling from Jasper and making stops along the Athabasca River.  Arriving in the morning at the riverboat launch, the group of 170 paddlers, in 15 boats, were greeted by a large crowd of residents. Although the weather was a bit on the wet side which kept school children from attending, those who did come were treated to a sight not seen very often in this day and age.

In the evening, the action moved to Rotary Park where two of the boats were brought in to give rides. Emma Harper, Recreation Co-ordinator with the Town of Whitecourt, said the event was awesome to have. “It’s great to be able to partner with community organizations and with other groups that are doing amazing events like this in the town. It’s something you don’t see all the time and might not see again for a little while.”

The pavilion at Rotary was packed as everyone enjoyed a barbecue, live music, and crafts. Athabasca Watershed had a station set up allowing children to collect water specimens with nets and learn about area bugs. Another station featured two paper canoe crafts. There were plenty of sounds, too, with black muskets and canyons firing off and a bagpiper.

The voyageurs had quite a journey. “They came all the way from Jasper which is about 333 kilometres. It’s definitely a trek,” said Emma, adding “I was at the riverboat landing and oh, my goodness, they just soared down the river. They are very fast.” Speaking of fast, Whitecourt and Woodlands County council members had a race and saw just how fast the boats are.  Whitecourt took the win thanks to some, shall we say, interesting tactics.  As the saying goes, all’s fair in love and war.

Event lead, Bernie Kreiner, has been paddling voyageur canoes for about six years and really enjoys sharing the recreation with kids. “Showing them being outside and enjoying water and being in big boats is a fun experience and, hopefully, it will inspire them to do more of that throughout their adult lives.”

Bernie said that more than half of the people who took part in the brigade this time have not been in a brigade previously or haven’t participated much in voyageur canoeing. “We had two lakeside courses this spring so that people could practice it a bit. It really is a learn-as-you-go type of experience and you can connect with registered canoe clubs in Alberta.”

Across the country there are eight brigades happening in celebration of Canada’s 150^th birthday and, as Bernie explains, the events are very important in sharing Canada’s aboriginal history. “Voyageurs were the ones who came out west using the aboriginals’ canoes and their expertise in terms of the river system. They were supported by aboriginals who gave them pemmican from the prairies so they could actually survive out west here for a winter at a time because they came in the fall and returned home with traded goods in the spring.”

Although Canada is celebrating 150 years of history, Bernie said, ”It’s important to celebrate even further back, too. It’s been a lot longer than that with the aboriginals as the fur trade was established here in the 1700s.  In three of the places we stopped, we did a right-to-land ceremony so that there’s an understanding that as white people, we weren’t the first persons on the land, and that we come in peace and that we all work together,” shared Bernie.

To learn more about the voyageurs and to see resources on joining a brigade visit www.voyageurbrigade.org.