The Athabasca River has a long history of being a transportation waterway, whether it guided Indigenous travellers, explorers and fur-traders, or later, steamships and barges carrying goods and supplies to northern communities. To celebrate the river’s history, a number of ‘Voyageur Canoe Brigades’ have been organized in recent times, all led by an experienced community of local and national canoe enthusiasts. A number of Athabasca Watershed Council members and staff have participated in these events, which we celebrate here by sharing some of the stories and pictures of the brigades and the people who participated in them.
Several AWC staff participated in this four day voyageur canoe celebration with canoes traveling from Jasper to the Emerson Creek Bridge (approximately 40 km downstream from Hinton) just downstream from the mouth of Obed Creek. Check out some great pictures here and see an article from our own newsletter archives below. A great video of the event was done by Codiac Pictures.
This brigade was organized to commemorate the importance of the Athabasca River in the development of Canada as part of our country’s 150th birthday celebrations in 2017. Fifteen canoe teams with 170 paddlers started on June 22 on the Maligne River, near Jasper, paddling downstream to Fort Assiniboine by June 28, covering a total of 333 km. Check out the pictures below as well as this great blog and pictures of the event provided by participant Tracy Pandachuk.
Each canoe proudly flew the flag of one of Canada’s ten provinces and three territories. One lucky boat got to fly Canada’s flag and the other flew a flag donning the brigade’s logo. The brigade reminded participants of our nation’s complex history through performances and ceremonies that highlighted French, Scottish, and Indigenous cultures, to name a few. It also highlighted the historical significance of the fur trade and the ecological significance of the Athabasca River watershed. Black powder rifles were used in the ceremony to welcome the brigade ashore in Whitecourt. Over a thousand people lined the banks of the Athabasca River in Fort Assiniboine to witness the brigade’s conclusion. One of those people was the Honorable Lois Mitchell, Alberta’s Lieutenant Governor (the official representative of Queen Elizabeth II in Alberta). The brigade concluded with an elaborate and historically accurate ceremony during which the brigade sought permission to come ashore.
The AWC took every opportunity to connect with people along the route. During public events in Hinton (on the Beaver Boardwalk on June 25) and in Whitecourt (in Rotary Park on June 27), we set up our display and spoke with brigaders and locals. By the end of the trip, we added almost 60 passionate members to our growing organization!
Events like these don’t happen by themselves and we are deeply grateful for the Athabasca River Voyageur Canoe Brigade Society (including Bernie Kreiner, Rick Zroback, and Doug Yalte) for their tireless work in organizing and executing this amazing trip. We’d also like to thank Diane Watson for organizing the public event at the Beaver Boardwalk in Hinton and AWC Director Dan Moore for organizing the public event at Rotary Park in Whitecourt. Thanks also to Directors Brian Deheer, Robert Holmberg, Janice Linehan, and Tim Polzin for their participation and assistance at the public events. We’d also like to thank Whitecourt Woodlands Tourism (a partnership between the Town of Whitecourt and Woodlands County) for their generous financial contribution to the public event in Whitecourt. Finally, we’d like to thank our primary funder and partner, the Government of Alberta’s Department of Environment and Parks.
To celebrate Fort Assiniboine’s 200th anniversary, 15 teams and canoes travelled from Whitecourt to the Town of Athabasca. For an overview of the trip, see this PowerPoint. It takes a village to organize a brigade! We are grateful to the many organizers and volunteers who made this event a success!
If you know of a brigade or resource in the Athabasca River Watershed that isn’t listed, contact us at outreach@athabascawatershed.ca.
