The Trail of the Okanagans is named for the traditional trading route of the Syilx people that spanned the Okanagan Valley. This 6,000-year-old trail connected Syilx communities, important cultural locations and provided a ribbon of trade connecting the people of the Columbia River system to the people of the Fraser River.
And yet the original logo for the Trail of the Okanagans did not reflect this rich traditional history or the cultural values of the Syilx people.
In this time of cultural reconciliation, the Trail of the Okanagans Society realized that we needed to do better, to reach out, to learn and to involve the Syilx people in all aspects of the trail. Rethinking our logo was a first step in this process.
In early 2022, we put out a call through the Okanagan Nation Alliance’s newsletter for Syilx artists to create a new logo for the Trail of the Okanagans. We expressed a desire for the design to emphasize the trail’s First Nation history and respect Syilx cultural values.
Emily Pooley, a talented young Syilx artist was the successful respondent, and her concept exceeded our expectations!
The logo celebrates the intrinsic link between Ntytyix (Chief Salmon in the Syilx language) and the trail. Salmon are central to the Syilx Nation culture and beliefs. For thousands of years the Syilx Okanagan Peoples followed the sockeye salmon as they journeyed up the Okanagan River and lake systems to spawn. The result of the movements of the Syilx Peoples to celebrate, harvest and trade salmon was the “Trail of the Okanagans”.
Emily’s design imprints an image of our warm Okanagan Valley full of ponderosa and shining waters onto the back of Ntytyix – much as the memory of this place is imprinted on the instinct of the salmon to return here to spawn. Our hope is that the Trail of the Okanagans will continue to link people along Okanagan waters and this new logo is an opportunity to teach us all about the history of this place and its First Peoples.
Trail of the Okanagans
