From octopus to giant moose, my father is known for…..
when I first moved here to Hoonah, I never knew where to hunt or where to go get clams, where to get the different fish around here. I didn’t know where to go, but by the second year, after the second year here, I used to ask, well I asked this one person … if he would give me some of his deer meat ’cause I hadn’t got any that year and I didn’t want to tell him all we’re living off of was rice. I had got some small steamers [clams] and mixed that in with our rice. Finally, the guy gave me some deer meat but just a little bit on the backbone. By that time I had two kids… I gave them the meat. Boiled the back bone till all the meat fell off the bones. I gave them the meat and the rice, my wife and I just ate rice and [deer] juice. That’s when I finally made up my mind, I told my wife, “I’m going to learn this place so well that people will come and ask me where to go.” I learned … where to go get deer, seal, clams, cockles, anything I wanted.
The way I learned it was the elders. When I’d go out on the beach and get clams, I take it to the elders, give it to them, whatever I got, even if it was little, I gave it to them. I’d go out and get a seal, I’d give it to them. They started telling me where to go hunting, fishing, get the clams I want. They would tell me where to go, and the short cut to get there.
Owen James
When I first started learning, I was sitting on the … city dock, before they had the boat harbor. I was sitting out on the dock one day. This young guy asked me, “how did you learn this place so well?” I said, “see that old man up there sitting by the window?” The guy says, “oh year, that old, senile man don’t know what he’s talking about half the time.” I says, “Yeah. That old, senile old man that you’re talking about up there, he told me where to go to get deer and showed me where to go get clams and the short cut to get there. Do you see that guy walking by the street over there?” [The guy} says, “yeah, you mean that wino? He’s so drunk he doesn’t know what he’s talking about half the time!” That’s what they told me, those young guys. I says, “Yeah, that wino up there you’re talking about, that drunk, told me where all the reefs were at on the beach. How he goes through, how to get through it, and he told me where to go to get deer and the short cuts. He told me where to go fishing to get halibut.”
“I met Owen in January ’94 or ’95. A friend and I were walking the beach near Flynn Cove when we noticed a skiff motor up to some nearby islands, then stop and drift. After 10 minutes we heard 2 shots, followed by 2 more 20 mins later. An hour later, that skiff motored to where we’re standing and stopped to visit. It was Owen with his big smile and two dressed seals.
… two impressions were formed that remain today. First, I have rarely met anyone look like they truly belong to a place as much as Owen. He blended in as seamlessly as the ocean and beach gravel. He and his skiff, rifle and seals were part of the place, were supposed to be there. And second, this guy was the real deal. Truly. If he’s around, watch and listen.
Unsurprisingly, Owen mentioned when back in Hoonah he would share the seal w/ elders and others who couldn’t harvest their own and offered us some, too. It was very satisfying to see that skiff, any skiff, with anybody from the village out hunting seals that beautiful January day. The fact that it was Owen made it special. It is deeply reassuring to know that people like Owen still exist. We could use a few more.
Paul Barnes, Gustavus, Alaska
Owen’s world view, love for people, and respect for the natural world all come together when he is feeding people off the land. Most conversation I’ve had with him comes around to a hunting and gathering story or a description of some subsistence technique like drying black seaweed or smoking cockles. I’ve heard from folks in Hoonah how much he has contributed to the traditional diets of locals. Whenever he visited me, the hello was accompanied by something to eat that he had harvested. I’ve always kept a professional and personal eye on natural happenings around Icy Strait. Owen’s keen observations have been valuable to me, and a deeply pleasurable connection between us.
Greg Streveler, Gustavus, Alaska