Lauren McFalls/For The Olympian
Arden Robinette, 7, of Lakewood picks out a costume outside the story tent at the 12th annual Nisqually Watershed Festival on Saturday.

Crowds flock to refuge for festival

RUTH LONGORIA, THE OLYMPIAN

Originally published September 30, 2001

NISQUALLY -- Native American history and handiwork and salmon habits and habitats drew people of all ages to the Nisqually Wildlife Refuge on Saturday for the 12th annual Nisqually Watershed Festival.

This was the second year the festival has been at the wildlife refuge.

Since it was established in 1974, the refuge has offered people an opportunity to see wildlife in its natural habitat.

Nisqually tribal member Don McCloud said the land has been part of his history for much longer than that.

McCloud tells of the Legend of the Valley of the Giant Cedars.

"This land used to be full of tall cedars, but all of that has changed now," McCloud said.

In McCloud's tale, the creator of the universe brought spirits to the land, which took the form of cedar trees.

The Indian people used the inner bark of the cedars to make watertight baskets and clothing. The boughs were used for medicines and the trees provided wood for longhouses and carving, McCloud said.

"Not a bit of the cedar tree was wasted. The cedar trees were the gift of life for my people," he said.

During Saturday's festival, McCloud and his family provided song and dance for the opening ceremony, and his wife, Joyce, and son, Hanford, taught basket making.

Hanford McCloud, 25, said the art of basket-making has been a part of his life since he was in sixth grade.

"My mother taught me to make baskets. Someday I will teach my three young children to enjoy the art," he said.

In a booth provided by the South Sound Greens and the Nisqually River Council, young people learned about the cycle of life for salmon.

Kim Lincoln of Olympia assisted her daughter, Maddy, 4, in making a salmon life-cycle key chain.

"I'm putting a whale on my key chain. It's purple, that's my favorite color," Maddy said.

A variety of colored beads and water creatures were used in a specific order on the key chains to teach the youths the process salmon go through. A red bead represented eggs deposited in nests, a white bead represented a salmon carcass.

Georgie Davick watched as her grandson Andrew Sath, 9, and his friend Kyle Bell, 9, made key chains.

Davick said Andrew and Kyle are learning about birds and fish in their class at McKenny Elementary School.

The boys said they enjoy learning about birds and were excited to learn more about Northwest birds of prey during a raptors of the watershed presentation during the festival.

Herbert Hauf, 61, and his wife, Mary Lou, 67, of Tacoma said they are avid birdwatchers and visit the Nisqually Wildlife Refuge several times every week.

"This is our first time to come to the festival though; this is really interesting," Mary Lou Hauf said.

"We've seen deer, eagles, hawks and just about every kind of wildlife," she said. "This is a wonderful place to birdwatch, get exercise, and just get away from the noise of the city."

Ruth Longoria writes for The Olympian. She can be reached at 360-754-5435.

The Olympian Copyright 2001

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