What it Means to be Quileute

When Middle School was asked "What It Means to be Quileute?" we decided that cleaning our classroom beach would be a productive, healthy, and necessary way of demonstrating pride in being Quileute and living in La Push.  We wanted to actively make that connection, preserving marine resources and cultural links to the environment that has long sustained Northwest Coastal First Nations.

Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary embraces one of the last relatively undeveloped coastlines in the United States. Within this coastline's intertidal zone-- the narrow belt lying between the highest and lowest of twice-daily tides-- are some of the biologically richest areas in North America. Here, scientists have identified over 300 resident species of aquatic plants, invertebrates (animals without backbones) and fish. It's thought that this number may be but a fraction of the species that actually inhabit this stretch of coast.

La Push is a beautiful place, and I'm proud that we honored that beauty by having to make two different dumpster deposits.  With sore arms and sandy socks, we filled six garbage bags, including a really heavy, rusty, sand-clogged, old beach-chair.  Can you see how heavy Eli's first bag is?

That means less broken glass on the beach, and a lot less plastic bags, styrofoam, and nurdles clogging digestive tracks of marine life.   Good job, Quileute Classroom Alongside the River.

The Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary was the nation's twelfth marine sanctuary designated by NOAA in 1994, with support from the four tribes of the Olympic Coast: the Quileute, the Hoh, the Makah, and the Quinalt.  Check out more information about the OCNMS here.  

Picking Indian Tea

Yesterday, High School and Middle School picked Indian Tea. Luckily, we missed the rainstorm by a couple hours, and the weather was beautiful. Thanks to Miss Ann and Miss Crystal for taking us out, and thanks to the students who wore proper footgear, got grass cuts on their picking fingers, and braved the hordes of spiders.

Much appreciation goes out to the efforts of tribal leaders and Rayonier employees to forge a relationship for gathering rights in Usual and Accustomed Treaty Areas on Treaty Ceded Lands.

Indian Tea, also called Bog Labrador Tea or Rhododendron groenlandicum, is an important part of traditional Quileute ethnobotany.  Also:

• In Russia, the leaves are used for tanning leather.
• In Finland, the branches are placed among grain to keep away mice. 
• Strewn among clothes, the leaves will keep away moths.
• Washing with the tea will kill lice. 
  
• The leaves are tonic and diaphoretic.  They have a minty, pleasant odor.  Steeped in hot water, the spicy tea is commonly used to soothe sore throats and other symptoms of flu and colds.

It can be toxic in concentrated doses.  More awesome information can be found here.

Latitude and Longitude

Use this to practice identifying Latitude and Longitude. Use a Firefox browser.

In the comments below, you need to enter two locations with Latitude and Longitude- one for La Push and one for your dream vacation spot.