Thirteen canoes bringing Alaska Native paddlers from across Southeast Alaska and Canada arrived in Juneau on Tuesday afternoon. The canoes landed in two separate groups — one in downtown Juneau and the other at Auke Recreation Area, the site of a former Áak’w village.
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Áak’w Kwáan Elder Seikoonie Fran Houston waited on the shore at Auke Recreation Area as traditional canoes — or yaakw — entered the bay.
“It’s going to be good to see family and family, and family and friends, and it’s a beautiful day, so the ancestors are happy also,” she said.
Every other June, more than 100 paddlers arrive in Juneau this way to kick off Celebration, a gathering of Alaska Native people celebrating cultural revitalization. Sealaska Heritage Institute started the event more than four decades ago.
They arrive the old-fashioned way, paddling yaakw that were carved for the occasion and requesting permission to come ashore from the local clan. Some travel from as far north as the Yukon.
“My name is Ughąts’etsӓna Ma. I’m Crow Clan. We’re from Dakwäkäda, Haines Junction, Yukon,” said Ughąts’etsӓna Ma Cheyenne Sparvier-Kinney, standing aboard a canoe as it faced the shore. “We’re looking to celebrate now.”
Later, Sparvier-Kinney reflected on the multi-day journey down Lynn Canal from Haines.
“The journey was great. It was really a healing journey for a lot of us, not just our boat, but from the experiences that we’ve shared together,” she said. “It’s a healing journey for all of us.”
Others, like ShaaL’aanee Brandon Ware, are from as far south as Petersburg. This was the community’s first time sending a canoe to Celebration.
“Gunalcheesh for having us,” he said, addressing the Áak’w Ḵwáan elders. “We are so grateful to be here. Forgive me if I miss protocol, this is our first journey in over 100 years.”
In downtown Juneau, three yaakw made their way to shore as hundreds stood watching. As the yaakw neared, Shangukeidí Casey Moats stood up to greet the crowd and T’aaḵu Ḵwáan elders.
After he landed, he said being a part of a yaakw journey is a symbol of how much he’s learned about his community and culture.
“I had heard that I would never know my language. I’d never belong to a clan. I’d never have a name. I wouldn’t know my songs,” he said. “And to do this means everything in the whole world.”
X’ash Kugé ka Yaanasax Barbara Cadiente-Nelson is a tribal council member and secretary for Douglas Indian Association. She was one of the original planners for the first-ever Celebration in 1982. As she watched the yaakw arrive downtown, she said that for Alaska Native culture to continue to flourish, the next generation has to be grounded in place.
“When you take a look around and you see our people of all ages and our youth, we are, yeah, and the young people that are singing and dancing, that they’re connected to place, they’re their understanding and growing in their responsibility as Lingít, Haida, Tsimshians,” she said.
Celebration officially starts Wednesday, with a Grand Entrance parade into Centennial Hall downtown. Over the coming days, there will be numerous events and ceremonies dedicated to honor and uplift Alaska Native culture.
Celebration events will broadcast live statewide on KTOO 360TV and stream on Sealaska Heritage Institute’s YouTube channel and ktoo.org/tv. You can also watch live on KTOO’s Roku and AppleTV apps.
Disclosure: KTOO’s production department is contracted to provide television and streaming services during Celebration 2026. It operates independently from the news department.
