Whaèhdǫǫ̀ Etǫ K’è means the trails of our ancestors in Tłı̨chǫ yatıı̀. In this contribution to The Politics of the Canoe, Dr. John B. Zoe and I travel to different places in Tłı̨chǫ nèk’e (the place where Tłı̨chǫ belong) in order to shed light on the historical and contemporary relations of Tłı̨chǫ with the canoe.

The importance of the canoe to Tłı̨chǫ lifeways past and present is visible in the myriad portage trails that criss-cross Tłı̨chǫ nèk’e, an area of more than 295,000 square kilometres stretching between Tı̀deè (Great Slave Lake) and Sahtı̀ (Great Bear Lake). Canoes and canoeing also permeate Tłı̨chǫ oral traditions.

Read more about the origins of this chapter here.

John and I have collaborated on other writing, including “T’akwe Nàdè: The HBC in Tłı̨chǫ Nèk’e.”