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Gudakut -
(Tree
Frog) -
A Kalapuya cedar
dugout canoe.
LOA = 22' - LWL = 20' 8" - Beam = 2' 4" - Hull Depth = 12"
- Wt = 275 lbs
more photos
We carved this Kalapuya canoe in 2005 for the Kommema Cultural
protective Association, a group of the Kommema band of the Kalapuya
Tribe. Esther Stutzman, a Kalapuya elder, was absolutely central to
getting Gudakut carved. There was very little information to guide
the making of this canoe. I chose the basic shape of the central
section of the hull to conform to the lines of a shovel-nose river
canoe. The hull ends are based on the Kalapuya canoe at the Marion
County Historical Museum at Salem Oregon, and on two descriptions
from the 1930's. One is from John Wacheno, a Clakamas elder, who
recorded excellent descriptions and sketches. This material was from
the huge Southwest Oregon Research Project (SWORP) Collection. We
would never have found this indispensable information with out the
help of David Lewis, the manager of the Cultural Resources Department
for the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde, who did so much to
create the collection.
The other description is from Esther's uncle Joe, who described a
ride in a Kalapuya canoe in 1930 on the Coast Fork of the Willamette
River at Cottage Grove Oregon. John Wacheno said that these smaller
canoes were used to carry news up and down the rivers in the
Willamette Valley. I followed his sketch of the profile of the canoe.
Uncle Joe said that the canoe was pointed at both ends and that the
ends were sharp so that it looked like canoe could plow through
something. He said that the canoe was 80 years old. US Forest Service
archaeologist and anthropologist Tony Farque helped with interpreting
the shape of the bow of the canoe at Salem.
Esther's brother Jim Cederstrom did quite a lot of the carving on
this canoe. The canoe was carved with straight sides. Then it was
steamed open using water and fire-heated rocks to spread out the
sides into a curved shape. The donated log was fire-killed and
brittle so the hull did not steam open as much as we had hoped. The
hull is narrow and needs ballast for stability, but she is very fast.
Gudakut has raced several times at the Coquille Indian Tribe's Salmon
Days. She has also been featured at the annual Kalapuya Pow Wow in
Yoncalla.
Gudakut on Fernridge Lake near Veneta Oregon
Poling in the shallows on Fernridge Lake
Gudakut after steaming
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©2006 John McCallum