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NATURE
· Rich Wetlands in the Creston Valley
FIRST PEOPLES
· Yaqan Nukiy, People of the Water
HISTORY
· Too Much Water
This is a link to a map of the waters of British Columbia with optional close-ups of the Southeastern Valleys and Vancouver Island's West Coast.

FOCUS  Southeastern Valleys -- Fresh Waters
Yaqan Nukiy, People of the Water
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This is a photograph of a root digging stick.
Root digging stick. RBCM 12370.
The main diet of the Yaqan Nukiy was wild game, especially deer, balanced with fish and waterfowl and supplemented with berries and roots. Deer were driven into circular corrals by hunters with dogs, where they could be shot by hidden bowmen. Hunters in canoes drove waterfowl into nets hung between high poles, erected at the narrow ends of ponds. Fish were driven into large shallow pools, where they could be trapped in cone-shaped weirs. Fish spears and hooks were used to catch large fish in lakes and rivers.
Fish hook made before 1915. RBCM 2861.
This is a photograph of a fish hook made of wood and fibre.
Fish spear (Leister). RBCM 7753.
This is a photograph of a fish spear, or Leister with three points.
The most sought after fish species included trout, Kokanee, Bull Trout, Burbot, and sturgeon. Now the fish populations that were so important to the Yaqan Nukiy are in serious decline.
Tributaries of the Kootenay River were a major spawning ground for Kokanee Salmon; estimated numbers were 90,000 fish per year. The Kokanee run is no longer existent. This has adversely affected sturgeon and Burbot populations because Kokanee were their main food source. The loss of Kokanee can be attributed to the nutrient loss in the lake and river due to Libby Dam, and the loss of suitable spawning habitat on many tributaries due to highway development, urbanization and industry. The Lower Kootenay Band and the Columbia Kootenay Fisheries Renewal Partnership are involved in habitat restoration and fertilization projects and hope that one day the Kokanee will return.
Wilf Jacobs, Ktunaxa elder, building teepees, South Arm Kootenay Lake. Ktunaxa Nation.
This is a photograph of Wilf Jacobs, Ktunaxa elder, with three, white teepees at South Arm Kootenay Lake.
The Lower Kootenay Band has quadrupled in population in the past four decades. They are looking for economic development with the objective of building a community that is economically stable and self-sustaining socially and economically. Culturally, the language and traditions are being maintained through curriculum in the band school and through teachings by elders and knowledgeable individuals of the community.
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