Documentary
Nahanni: River of Forgiveness follows Dene voyagers tracing the
path of their ancestors
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Two years ago, a group
of 12 Dene adventurers set out on a life-changing river voyage
in the remote Nahanni National Park Reserve. Now, they're
banking on a film about their journey changing viewers' lives
too. (River of Forgiveness Productions Ltd.)
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Lawrence Nayally had never been in a mooseskin boat himself, but
he grew up hearing about his grandfather's adventures in huge canoes
made from as many as 14 moosehides.
So when former Dehcho grand chief Herb Norwegian and documentary
filmmaker Geoff Bowie invited Nayally to be part of a 2018
recreation of a traditional Dene voyage by mooseskin boat, he
didn't hesitate.
"The unity and harmony and peace and love and friendships that
were made on [those journeys] was always something that I wanted,"
Nayally, host of CBC Radio's Trail's End in Yellowknife, told As
It Happens guest host Susan Bonner.
"It's always been a dream of mine to be part of something as powerful
as the journey we took."
That journey is now the subject of a documentary by Bowie called
Nahanni:
River of Forgiveness, premiering Sunday, Aug. 9, on CBC's Documentary
channel.
Following the path of their ancestors
For centuries, Dene providers in what is now the Northwest Territories
would spend their winters hunting and trapping near the headwaters
of the Nahanni River. When spring arrived, they would rely on boats
of moose skin and spruce to take them home.
As far as Norwegian was concerned, recreating that historic annual
voyage became a way of "picking up the bits and pieces, crawling
out of the ashes of colonialism," he said in a press release.
"He wanted to do something to boost his people," Bowie said. And
as one of the participants chosen for the voyage, Nayally says he
succeeded.
"It was [about] connecting with my past, with my elders and ancestors
that have used that area for countless generations, to say that
we're still here that we're still carrying on these traditions,
these cultures. We still know who we are."
'So much work went into it'
While the bulk of the film chronicles the group's journey downriver,
a significant portion is also devoted to the painstaking work of
building the boat that carries them.
Nayally and other Dehcho Dene participants were guided in the process
by Mountain Dene from further north, who still possess the traditional
skills required for this labour-intensive boat building.
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The canoe is made from
moosehides, young spruce, willow and sinew. (River of Forgiveness
Productions Ltd.)
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"The techniques that they use, the care and respect that they had
for the hide and the wood everything around us was
just amazing," Nayally said.
"And to see the final product be put into the water was just an
overwhelming feeling of joy and happiness
it's just overpowering."
Norwegian was not available for an interview, but he
told CBC North last year that building the canoe was "quite
an undertaking." Just stitching together the moosehides took about
four days, he said.
"Just stitch by stitch and it slowly came together," Norwegian
said. "It was an incredible, incredible moment, every step of the
way."
As an observer on the trip, Bowie says he was struck by the camaraderie
and joyfulness the group brought to their often gruelling labour.
"There's moments in the film like one time they're trying
to lift this really heavy hide up onto a pole and it falls down
that I could imagine myself saying, 'Jeez. This is terrible.'
And they just instantly burst out laughing," Bowie said.
"It was wonderful to watch them."
Highs and lows
Despite the eventual successes, there were moments of real hardship
on the voyage.
At one point, the group's boat became so riddled with holes it
wasn't clear whether it would make it to their final destination
in Fort Simpson, N.W.T. But Nayally says he never believed the doubters.
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Former Dehcho grand chief
Herb Norwegian says completing the boat was 'quite an undertaking.'
(John Bingham/90th Parallel Productions)
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"Boy, were they wrong! We persevered. We did not give up. And that
is an indication as to the strength of the spirit of the Indigenous
people of North America," he said.
"We've overcome so many obstacles."
Another of those obstacles were the mighty Virginia Falls in the
Nahanni National Park. Nearly twice the height of Ontario's Niagara
Falls, they would traditionally have been portaged by foot. But
on this trip, the group relied on a helicopter to carry their boat.
Asked what he thinks his grandfather would have made of the method,
Nayally laughed.
"He would have been like, 'Wow, we've come a long way!'"
A healing journey
For Nayally, the trip was also an opportunity for healing. In Nahanni:
River of Forgiveness, he recalls his time in foster care as a child
as well as subsequent stints in juvenile detention and suicidal
thoughts.
The CBC host says it was difficult sharing those chapters of his
life on camera, but he "did it for a reason."
He says he wanted young Dene people and other Indigenous youth
to know: "We can go through a lot. We can go through hell. But we
can also come out of it even stronger."
"Never lose sight of who you are," he said.
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Lawrence Nayally, one
of the stars of the documentary Nahanni: River of Forgiveness,
is the host of CBC Radio's Trail's End in the Northwest Territories.
(River of Forgiveness Productions Ltd.)
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That message seems to be getting through.
Bowie says he's already heard from Ruby Jumbo, the band manager
of the Sambaa K'e First Nation at Trout Lake, where local Dene youth
were able to see the documentary.
"It was really an important film [for them]," he said. "And she
did point out that Lawrence, especially, the kids could relate to."
Bowie says that affinity is one he understands intimately. He described
one moment that unfolded on the beach in Fort Simpson, after the
group's long-awaited arrival in their now hole-riddled moose-skin
boat.
"Suddenly Lawrence sort of drifts up to where we are and he says,
'You know, I've been thinking about this.
This boat's full
of holes. And they stand for the promises that have been broken
by Canada towards Indigenous people, and it's up to our generation
to repair it. And we have to do that together,'" Bowie said.
"And it was just like, 'Wow, Lawrence, thank you. What a perfect
ending.'"
For his part, Nayally says despite its challenges, the journey
is one he'd repeat again in a heartbeat and one he hopes
inspires his own children.
"My hope is that one day they'll take a similar journey as I did,"
he said.
Written and produced by Chloe Shantz-Hilkes.
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