Tracking

By Leon Andrew, Mackenzie Mountain School, Norman Wells, NT

Photo: Drew Ann Wake

After viewing the video "Tracking", students and teachers at Mackenzie
Mountain School in Norman Wells had a conversation with Leon Andrew.

Q. Why did your grandfather pull the boat?

Photo: NWT Archives

A. There wasn't much in the store - tea, flour, rifle, ammunition - so when
they asked my grandfather if he would pull a boat to Fort Resolution, he
thought about what he could bring back for his parents.

Q. How many men did they need to track a boat?

Illustration: Markus Radtke

A. They needed about ten men to pull a boat. At Tuliít'a the current is really
strong, all the way to Jean Marie River. The river bank is high, 100 or 200
feet, so they needed strong rope.

Q. What kind of rope did they use?

Photo: Drew Ann Wake

A. They made rope out of moose hide. Hide rope was stronger, it wouldn't
break. The rope attached to the front and back of the boat. The current
kept the boat from the shore.

Q. How long did the trip take?

Illustration: Markus Radtke

A. The trip took most of the summer. It took a month just to get to Great
Slave Lake. Then they had to paddle across. It was easier coming back
because they were travelling with the current.

Q. How long did they work each day?

Photo: Drew Ann Wake

A. Mountain Dene are very physical people. They can work a 12-hour day. If
they want to get somewhere, they carry on. They don't waste time.

Photo: Drew Ann Wake

A. My dad used to say that his uncle was up every morning at 3:30 or 4:00
o'clock. He'd say:"Hurry up, you guys. The sun is moving." They worked all day
until they got tired. Extraordinary people.

Q. What is the biggest animal you've seen?

Photo: Peter Mather

A. As you go further north, the moose and the caribou get bigger. In the
Yukon, I saw a moose that was huge. One leg by itself was so large you
couldn't carry it.

Q. What is your favourite season on the land?

Photo: Linda MacCannell

A. We enjoy the fall hunt. But after we go through the winter and springtime
comes, we hear the songbirds. Then we take our parkas off, and go with the
Elders out on the land.