tour

Cathlapotle Plankhouse - Traditional Technology Weekend, August 9 & 10, 2014

Where:
Cathlapotle Plankhouse on the Carty Unit of the Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge, 28908 NW Main Ave, Ridgefield, WA 98642

When:       

August 9, 2014: 12pm-4pm: Local artists Greg Robinson (Chinook Indian Nation) and Greg Archuleta (Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde) will be in the Plankhouse demonstrating and exhibiting Chinookan art, basketry, carving and First Foods. Justin Robinson (Chinook Indian Nation) will be teaching and sharing Chinuk Wawa, the heritage language of Chinookan Peoples.

August 10, 2014:  12pm- 4pm. Discover tools and technology that our human ancestors across the globe have used for thousands of years, such as atlatl throwing, archery, flint knappin, friction fires, Chinookan carving, Basketry, First Foods and Chinuk Wawa, the heritage language of Chinookan Peoples. Participation in these activities is encouraged! Children's activities will also be available from 12pm-4pm.

Cost:         
Refuge admission is $3 per vehicle

Event Summary:
The weekend of August 9th and 10th, experience traditional tools, technologies, language and art of Chinookan Peoples of the Lower Columbia River. As part of our annual Artist-In-Residence series, on August 9th local artist's Local artists Greg Robinson (Chinook Indian Nation) and Greg Archuleta (Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde) will be in the Plankhouse demonstrating and exhibiting Chinookan art, basketry, carving and First Foods. Justin Robinson (Chinook Indian Nation) will be teaching and sharing Chinuk Wawa, the heritage language of Chinookan Peoples. On August 10th we will expand our gaze to explore technologies that have been used by Chinookan people and human ancestors around the globe such as archery, atlatl throwing, flintknapping (making arrowheads and other stone tools) and making fire by friction. Greg Robinson, Greg Archuleta, and Justin Robinson will also be in the house showcasing traditional art and language of Chinookan people. There will also be special activities for children all day. Participation in many of these demonstrations is encouraged!

The Cathlapotle Plankhouse is a modern Chinookan Plankhouse built to interpret the Chinookan village of Cathlapotle that once existed on what is today Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge property.  At the time Lewis and Clark visited Cathlapotle, it had 14 large plankhouses and a population of over 900 people.  The modern Cathlapotle Plankhouse is used to provide educational programs to youth and the general public through our Lifeways, Landscapes, and Wildlife Interpretive Program.  To learn more about the Plankhouse visit www.ridgefieldfriends.org or contact Sarah Hill at Sarah_Hill@fws.gov or (360) 887-4106. For wheelchair access to this event, please contact Sarah prior to the event date.   

Birdfest and Bluegrass Nature Festival brings weekend of discovery Oct. 4th & 5th, invitation to explore the beauty of nature and wonders of our ecoregion.
RIDGEFIELD, WA - Again this year, on Saturday and Sunday, October 4th & 5th, 2014, Birdfest and Bluegrass offers the chance to discover nature right in the Portland metro area's own backyard, with a weekend packed with activities for visitors of all ages and interests. The annual festival is a celebration of the fall migration and opportunity to experience wildlife of the region and local history firsthand. Leading names in bluegrass provide musical accompaniment. Ridgefield with its small-town charm is a just a 25-minute drive from Portland. One of the festival's signature events is the opportunity to observe sandhill cranes fly in and out of their night roost in a special sanctuary that is otherwise closed to the public. Admission to the refuge is free during Birdfest and Bluegrass. Activities include guided bird and nature walks, live bird shows, tours of Cathlapotle Plankhouse, demonstrations of Native American life and traditions, and a salmon bake with samplings on Sunday. Children can learn about nature and have fun at the craft stations, storytelling tent and at the Audubon Society's live bird show. Special offerings on both days include guided kayak and canoe tours, Kiwa Trail tour and the spectacular sandhill crane tours at dawn and dusk. These tours are offered on a limited basis and fill quickly, with reservations and fees required. For more information and a schedule of events, go to www.ridgefieldfriends.org.

Join us on the summer solstice for a guided tour of the arboretum that highlights trees with summer interest!

Learn about trees like Tetradium danielli (Korean evodia), Stewartias, Crape myrtles, summer-flowering magnolias and more! Learn why some trees postpone their floral beauty to later in the summer than the spring beauties we are most familiar with.

Pre-registration is not required; please meet at the Visitor Center.

Making sense of "Cathlapottle": How Chinookans made (and said) names on the land
Special Guest Presenter Henry Zenk

May 11th, 2014, 2pm.
Cathlapotle Plankhouse at the Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge:  28908 NW Main Ave; Ridgefield, WA 98642           

Join us as at the Cathlapotle Plankhouse we explore how geographic names are formed in the Chinookan languages. The NW is covered in place names that come from local Chinookan Native American languages, and words like Memaloose, Skookum, Ilahee, and Tilikum continue to dot the landscape of our area. Henry Zenk, consulting linguist with the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde will summarize what we know about how Chinookans themselves constructed and pronounced the names they bestowed on their lands and on its original inhabitants. He draws especially on records left by linguists who worked with some of the languages' last fluent speakers. Many of these sources remain unpublished to this day.

This event is part of the Cathlapotle Plankhouse's Second Sunday Series of events.  Children's activities will be available from 12-4pm as well as guided Plankhouse tours, and information on International Migratory Bird Day.  For more information contact Sarah Hill at Sarah_Hill@fws.gov or call 360-887-4106.   

The Cathlapotle Plankhouse is located on the Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge, 28908 NW Main Ave, Ridgefield WA 98604.  There is a $3.00 entrance fee per vehicle visiting the Refuge. To arrange wheelchair access to the Plankhouse, please contact Sarah Hill at Sarah_Hill@fws.gov or call (360) 887-4106.

Spring Plankhouse Opening Event April 13th,
12pm-4pm
Sewing seeds of the past and planting for the future; 
A camas planting and First Food presentation
 
Several species of camas, Camassia quamash andCamassia leichtlinii are key parts of the Gary Oak ecosystems that span the west side of the Cascade Range from British Columbia down to Northern California. Today widely regarded as a beautiful wildflower, camas plays a crucial part in the traditional lifeways and cultures of many Indigenous peoples in the Northwest. Before colonization by euro-American settlers, Chinookan Peoples, Nimi'ipuu (Nez Perce), Kalapuya, and many other Tribes  tended, dug, traded, and ate camas corms since time immemorial. Camas is still regarded as a special First Food for many Tribes in our and is still tended and dug with care. For our spring opening we will honor and celebrate this beautiful lily with  a special presentation about the cultural significances of camas, learn how to restore the camas prairies that have painted the hills and valleys of our region blue for generations, and begin a camas meadow restoration project next to the Cathlapotle Plankhouse.
12pm-4pm : Children's activities, Plankhouse tours, and Garry Oak Ecosystem restoration information.
1pm : Presentation on Cultural and Historical significance of Camassia  spp.
 
2pm :Camas Blessing and Restoration Work Party