Washoe walk ancestral trail

Washoe youth will start and end on Indian land when they retrace the trail their families took to traditional summer camps at Lake Tahoe.

On Saturday, about 25 young people and chaperones from the Native Extreme Team Challenge program from four Washoe communities - Woodfords, Dresslerville, Stewart and Carson - will start the approximate 8-mile hike at Kings Canyon in Carson City to end at Skunk Harbor on the east shore of Tahoe.

Native Extreme Team Challenge involves children from grades 6-12.

"The group has practiced hiking around Spooner Lake to get ready for elevation," said Liz Garcia, program coordinator for the Native Extreme Team Challenge. "A lot of people from the Washoe community are doing the hike - it's not just for youth."

The event starts 7:30 a.m. Saturday at the Carson Colony gym where the participants register, have breakfast and receive an opening blessing. A van will drop them off at Kings Canyon to begin the hike.

The hikers will stop for dinner and spend the night at Spooner Lake and continue on to their destination the next morning.

"Sunday at Skunk Harbor is a community event to congratulate them," said Garcia. "We'll have a meal of Indian tacos and parents are invited to acknowledge what they've done."

This is the first time a hike has been on the team's program. The trail follows one of many ancestral routes families walked to get to Lake Tahoe after the snow melted and before the heat rose in the valleys.

"For a long time the community would go to the Lake in the summer," said Garcia. "Next year we'll plan a hike to start from Dresslerville."

Native Extreme Team Challenge is open to all Native American youth who want to participate in physical, mental, spiritual and educational activities to promote healthy lifestyles.

Volunteer opportunities are available in the program. For more information, contact Garcia at 265-8620.