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July 21 2009 » Skeena Swim » CFTK News

Skeena Swim Underway

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A young woman from Telkwa has set forth on an incredible journey that will take almost a month to complete and make her the first person to swim the entire length of the Skeena River.

Just before noon today Ali Howard cannonballed into the Skeena River, at the headwaters, near the Spatsizi Plateau wilderness park. Although the 33-year-olds journey will be history making, it really is to raise awareness about the threats facing the river; and the regions watersheds; from industrial developments. Howard Explains; “Anything harmful that happens at the source is going to affect the entire river, so why … i think it’s just an illogical plan on the part of Royal Dutch Shell, and that’s not the only industrial project threatening the, uh, the integrity of the Skeena watershed.”

Aside from bringing about environmental awareness, Howard says it’s also to celebrate the magnificence of the river; “Our other goal with the project is to invite people out to celebrate the river and their watershed and get them thinking about it in a different way. And thinking about becoming stewards of the area that they live in, of their watershed, so that they become part of the discussion about the future of the watershed because they are the most important resources in the resources rich area.”

The Skeena is the second longest river in the province and is home to wild salmon, which play an integral role in the northwest. To highlight their importance, Howard’s journey is mimicking their path

“if we loose the salmon here, we’ve lost a way of life, a symbol. They unite us so by following, I’m following the migrational path of the salmon half way, they come back and swim up it, I can’t even conceive of that, but I think the idea of somebody putting themselves into a vulnerable position the way the fish do, getting in there and swimming, I’ll be following salmon fry on their journey out the ocean. I think that has the ability to capture the publics imagination.”

Howard is not alone in her journey; she’s accompanied by two kayakers and two rafts. The entire expedition won’t be traveling non-stop; it will be making a few visits to shore along that 28-day journey. “As part of the celebration and inviting people out to be part of this experience we’re inviting them to come to celebrations that we’ll have in communities along the river

The schedule of community visits, along with updates on the journey will be on the Skeena watershed conservation collations website -www.skeenawatershed.com/swim

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