The local community is being encouraged to gather at the river next week to celebrate this region’s rich Indigenous heritage.
And go for a canoe ride while they’re at it.
Kichi Sibi Trails is seeking to revitalize the traditional Indigenous trails which have connected the lands and waterways around the Kichi Sibi (Ottawa River) for thousands of years.
In doing so, they hope to reconnect people with the deep history, natural heritage and rich presence of Indigenous culture in this region.
Last year the group organized Pinesi Paddles 2024, named after Grand Chief Pierre-Louise Constant Pinesi (1768-1834) who played an important role in the history of the Kichi Sibi region, and was noted for his eloquence and leadership.
This year’s event, Pinesi Paddles 2025, is hailed on the group’s website as “the paddle of a lifetime,” starting at Grand Chief Pinesi’s hunting grounds in Deep River next Tuesday and wrapping up near a vital portage route to Rideau River in New Edinburgh/Rockcliffe on Canada Day.
Stops along the way will include the sacred Oiseau Rock and its pictographs.
There will be 32 paddlers, most of them in three 12-person canoes, with about half the crew being Indigenous, including Wendy Jocko, former chief of the Algonquins of Pikwakanagan First Nation at Golden Lake, a Pinesi descendant and president of Kichi Sibi Trails.
Chief Greg Sarazin of the Algonquins of Pikwakanagan First Nation will also participate in the events and ceremonies scheduled along the route.
Deep River will be laying out the proverbial red carpet for the paddlers, with a ceremony beginning at 6:30 pm on Monday at Lamure Beach, where the paddlers, along with descendants of the local Algonquin families will spend the evening treating the community to stories of the Valley’s Indigenous history.
Everyone is invited to come out to Lamure Beach Monday evening to take part in the waterfront events, as well as to help send the paddlers off on Tuesday at 9 am…
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