Restoring the sacred

RAINDROPS FELL through gusts of fresh April air as clouds and mist draped the ridges above the Skagit River near Hamilton, Washington, a few dozen miles upriver from Puget Sound. Lifelong fisherman Scott Schuyler, an Upper Skagit Tribal elder and a policy representative for the tribe, was dressed for the weather in green rubber boots beneath an orange and yellow rain slicker. His 20-year-old daughter, Janelle Schuyler, in similar gear, hopped on board her father’s boat as he shoved off from shore in search of salmon.

“We hope to have a good day out here on the river,” Scott Schuyler said. He wanted not only to catch some fish, but also to use the trip as a learning opportunity for