Hahoutli
by Patrick Strzalkowski
Our class left for
Hesquiat territory on the morning of August 24th in the water taxi
Wolf Dancer. For two hours we travelled north along the western side of
Vancouver Island, covered at the time by a dense fog. The seven of us eventually
arrived at the Hooksum Outdoor School run by Steve and Karen Charleson. Hooksum
educates about 100 people every year. Most visitors, staying for 28 days, are
trained in first aid and kayak guiding. On top of the two certificates, students
learn to be comfortable in Hesquiaht territory. We too were invited to treat
Hooksum, as Steve and Karen put it, “not like a remote wilderness nor like an
adventure holiday, but instead like our own living room.” This was the first
gesture in welcoming us into their “hahoutli.”
