Wemindji Eeyouch, Travelling People: Our Story

ᐧᐋᒌᔭ! Wachiya! We live in Wemindji on the banks of the Maquatua River where it meets the waters of James Bay. This town is one of the ten Eeyou (Cree) communities of Eeyou Istchee.  Our hunting territories extend far inland (270 km) and out to the coastal islands of the Bay.

Wemindji and the banks of the Maquatua River in early summer, 2016.

Life has always been an expedition for Wemindji Eeyouch. Our ancestors walked, snowshoed, paddled, and portaged long distances finding animals they needed for food and the best places to camp or to select trees for building and plants for healing. This is a good life. We know the land and the land knows us.

William Stewart boiling tea on a hunting trip, ca 1940.

Travelling our lands and rivers to camps and other familiar places continues to be our way of life.  Nowadays we also embark on trips to far distant places for business meetings, post-secondary education and specialized training, shopping, and vacations. Wemindji Eeyouch are still travelling people.

Location of Wemindji on the eastern shore of James Bay, in northern Quebec, Canada.