Wayne Charlie | pul-hwulets’e’
Recorded May 19, 2026
- ’een’thu pul-hwulets’e’ tun’ni’ ’utl’ kwa’mutsun, shni’s tthunu lelum’, shni’s kwunus ni’ ts’isum.
- I’m Wayne Charlie from Quamichan, the place where I live and where I grew up.
- yath tsun ’ula’ulh ’u tthu snuhwulh kw’akw’i’ukw ts’uhwle’ kw’suts ’i’ ni’ kwunnuhween’ ts’uhwle’ ’i’ sxuw’q’um’.
- I was always on the canoe fishing and sometimes I got trout and sometimes steelhead.
- ’i’ ni’ tsun t’a’thut kwunus sht’eewun’ kwunus ’uunthees nem’ t’a’thut ’u kwthu ni’ yu teti’ ni’ ’utl’ tl’ulpalus.
- And I was thinking that I would like to go practice canoe pulling at Cowichan Bay.
- ni’ ’uw’ tsun ptem’ut thunu si’lu’eelh ’uw’ niis xwum ’i’ ’ulqels ’ukw’ ’uhwiin’ snuhwulh, a single.
- And I asked my grandmother if she could buy me a little canoe.
- ’uwustelum, “’uw’ hay ’ul’ niihw wulh sil’anum ’i’ xwum ch ’i’ kwunnuhw tthu snin’hwulh.”
- But she refused, “You have to be old enough before you can own a canoe.”
- ni’ thulh ’uw’ ’iluqutus kwthu snuhwulh hakw, ni’ hakw ’u tthu sta’luw’ kwutst tsetsul’ulhtun’.
- However, she brought a river canoe to use for fishing on the river.
- $75 ’i’ ’ulqels ’u kwthu snuhwulh yu hakw ni’ ’u tthu sta’luw’.
- $75 she paid for the river canoe.
- qul’et ’ulqels ’u kwthu hun’utum’ kayak, hay ’ul’ ’uy’, ’uy’ tthu kayak ’i’ ni’ ch t’uyum’t tthu ni’ hun’utum’ spray skirt ’i’ ’uwu ch niihw hwu lhuqw kws tum’xuy’tl’s.
- And she also bought a kayak, a very nice kayak when you attach a spray skirt so you don’t get wet in the wintertime.
- ’i’ nuw’ huy’thusthelum ’uw’ niihw ch sht’eewun’ kwus tse’ hwu teti’ mustimuhw, skw’ey kwus hay kwus yu t’ut’a’thut, mukw’ skweyul ’i’ ni’ ch wulh t’ut’a’thut.
- And my grandmother was telling me if you want to be a canoe puller, you can’t skip your training, but you must practice every day.
- ’i’ nuw’ huy’thusthelum ’uw’ niihw ch sht’eewun’ kwus tse’ hwu teti’ mustimuhw, skw’ey kwus hay kwus yu t’ut’a’thut, mukw’ skweyul ’i’ ni’ ch wulh t’ut’a’thut.
- And my grandmother was telling me if you want to be a canoe puller, you can’t skip your training, but you must practice every day.
- kwunus ni’ kwunnuhw tthu ni’ hun’utum’ kayak, ’i’ t’uyum’t kwthu hun’utum’ spray skirt, tun’ni’ tsun ’utl’ kwa’mutsun ’i’ nem’ tuyul.
- When I got that kayak with the spray skirt attahced, I went upstream from Quamichan.
- ’i’ ts’twa’ st’e ’u kw’u yuse’lu tintun kwunus ni’ ’i’shul’.
- And it was maybe two hours that I would paddle.
- ’i’ ni’ tus ’u tthu Silver Bridge shq’utuw’ulh ’i’ tsun hwuhwu’a’lum’.
- I would go up to Silver Bridge and back.
- ’uw’ xwum ’ul’ kwunus ’i hun’umutnamut kwunus ni’ m’i wuqw’ilum tun’ni’ ’utl’ Silver Bridge.
- And I’d be coming downstream really fast when I was heading home from Silver Bridge.
- ’i’ nilh ni’ sul’uthut kwunus ni’ yu ts’its’usum’
- And that’s what I was doing when I was growing up.
- ’i’ nuw’ wil’ kwunus ni’ yu teti’ ts’twa’ ’apun ’i’ kw’ lhihw sil’anum kwunus tl’ehwun’uq ’u kwthu hwnuts’a’.
- And I was maybe 13 when I started winning on the singles.
- hwunuts’a’ wulh snin’hwulh ’i’ ni’ tst ’aalh ’u tthu hwyey’sul’u ’i’ tthunu shuyulh luschim kwutst tl’lim’ulh ni’ tl’ehwun’uq.
- The singles were the little canoes, and then I was on the double with my big brother Luschim (Arvid Charlie) and we were winning alot.
- ’i kwu’elh ni’ tuw’ nu sxwi’em’ ’u tun’a kweyul kwunus ’i’ he’kw’me’t kwunus yathulh ’uw’ ’ula’ulh ’u tthu snuhwulh mukw’ sil’anum.
- And that’s my story today remembering about when I was on the canoe every year.
- hay tseep q’a’.
- Thank you.