Outdoor Life Archives | Women of the Nistawoyou

Sled Dogs Pulling Toboggan

Dogsledding was a method of winter travel developed by northern Indigenous peoples.

Moose Alongside the Athabasca River

Moose hunting is an important source of sustainability among Indigenous people. In Alberta, Indigenous hunting and fishing rights are recognized in law and provincial government policy. The Government […]

Clearwater River near Fort McMurray

The Clearwater River is located in the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Alberta. Chipewyan and Cree people lived in the Clearwater River area. According to Fort McMurray 468 […]

Transportation in the North

Dog teams were the primary mode of travel during the winter season for Indigenous people, and sleds were used well into the early 1970s in the Wood Buffalo […]

Elsie Yanik at the 2019 Olympic Torch Ceremony

Elder Elsie Yanik represented the Wood Buffalo region as an official torchbearer for the 2010 Olympic Winter Games. The torch relay event was a 106-day run held from […]

Fort McMurray residents in 1913

In 1913, the population of Fort McMurray was an estimated 55 people. The group photo shows a wide variety of ages and includes children, women and men.

The Houle’s Family Reunion in Vernon

Bertha Clark-Jones at the Houle’s Family Reunion hosted in Vernon, B.C., in 1992. Bertha has maintained strong family ties and spent time with them often.

Girty Sanderson with her Sisters

Girty Sanderson with her sisters in the 1940s. The girls were playing with dogs and sitting among hunting satchels and a gun. A very carefree way of spending […]

Dorothy fishing with her family

To understand the context of Dorothy’s fight for the land and heritage, she knew the importance of the river and its sustainability to the community.

Katie Sanderson picking berries

Katie Sanderson picking some berries rampant in the boreal forest.

Katie Sanderson drying fish

Katie Sanderson dries fish on a stick alongside the riverbank.

Katie Sanderson drying hides

One of the great skills Katie Sanderson demonstrated was trapping and preparing the fur for drying. She has sustained these skills for a considerable amount of time even […]