Learning to fish ‘for tradition and life’ with Lac du Flambeau youth

The name for the Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa stems from French traders who observed tribal members harvesting fish from canoes at night by torchlight. More than 200 years later, the Lake Superior tribe is trying to keep such traditions alive by holding camps that teach tribal youth how to fish.

Dozens of tribal youth, parents and officials joined together on July 10 for the 2024 Youth Fishing Day at the Lac du Flambeau Campground. Before loading up their boats and heading out on Flambeau Lake, the group gathered for a prayer and several drum songs.

Lac du Flambeau Tribal President John Johnson, Sr. said they hold camps like this one to teach kids what they learned when they were young.

“We wanted to bring back those cultural activities for these youth, so they can pass them on to their grandchildren,” Johnson said.

Following the drum songs, each person is given some tobacco, or asema in the Ojibwe language. They throw it into the water, giving thanks to the Creator. Then, officials give instructions on boating safety before listing off kids’ names as each one grabs lures and a fishing pole.

With their gear in hand, kids of all ages walk to the boats before tribal members and elders guide them out on the water.

Fishing instructor Kenny “Penny Hook” Jack said members of Lac du Flambeau have been harvesting fish for hundreds of years. He said there’s nothing he’d rather do than get kids out on the water.

“I love it,” Jack said. “This is what should be going on with the kids, instead of the kids sitting home with a cell phone.”

While their fishing gear or methods may have evolved over time, Jack said it’s important to keep youth tied to their culture. He took Barrett Ciskowski, 13, and Jonah Johnson, 9, out on Pokegama Lake.

Ciskowski said he almost got a “monster” crappie about 15 inches long, but it got away from him. He said it’s important to take part in the tribe’s traditions.

“It’s important to us because we get to practice our rights and show others that we’re not just people who like to fish,” Ciskowski said. “We’re people who fish for tradition and life.”

Ciskowski said he doesn’t often have the opportunity to get out on the water. Elliot Brownrigg Johnson, 14, says that’s the case for a lot of kids on the Lac du Flambeau reservation. He said he’s grateful that his grandfather taught him how to hunt and fish.

“I just hope in the future that these kids will do the same thing. That’s why we need people now — or kids now —  to learn this stuff so that we have people later on in years,” he said. “We teach younger kids how to do it, so they know it. Then, they keep going on and on.”

John Johnson’s 7-year-old granddaughter, Janae, said she loves catching fish, reeling them in and taking pictures with them. In a small cove, she caught more than half a dozen panfish, as well as “a big monster” bass.

She said she’s learning a lot from the camp.

“Like how to cast, how to reel it in and how to clean it,” she said.

After reeling in her fair share, she and Johnson made their way back to the campground. A group of kids gathered around a table there, scaling and cleaning the catch of the day. Josh Randall Schuman, 14, was among them, cutting the head off a fish.

“It’s good they’re teaching things that people may not have been taught,” he said of the camp.

Lac du Flambeau tribal member Jeffrey Bauman said he and others didn’t have the same opportunity when they were growing up.

“We just had to learn from older people kind of one-on-one, you know, rather than the camps, so these are good,” Bauman said.

Once the kids finish cleaning fish like bluegills and crappies, Bauman coats them in flour and other seasonings before frying them for a feast.

When it’s ready, elders like Tom Maulson, Sr. are the first to get a taste.

“(It’s) delicious, like always,” he said.

Maulson said youth camps like this one and language revitalization efforts are helping tribal members to remember their culture and traditions.

“We have to keep doing it,” Maulson said. “Because if you keep practicing it, using it and doing it, then it gets repetitive. Then, they’ll be able to do it themselves.”

Johnson said anything that’s left over from the day would be used in tribal ceremonies or given to elders in the community.

“There’s a lot of need in our community, so it might look like we take a lot, but in all reality, you’re feeding other families,” Johnson said.

He said they just want to teach kids how to take care of their community for future generations.