08/16/2024
This Sunday, August 18th, Robert George is hosting a Q’ushin’tul Ancestor Walk up Swuq'us mountain. We will be meeting at 8 am at Bings Creek parking - all invited.
Over the past 4 years, many gathered in prayer, song, connection, remembering and longing for ways to meet together in peace and harmony. Hope to see you there.
While we will be hiking, there will be lots of undesired noise from the race track that North Cowichan allowed t be built and expanded upon, despite the multitudes of attempts to negotiate a better, responsible and caring way to care for a mountain in our community. The sound disturbances echo for miles upon miles, I live quite far way and often can hear the ripple of the track from my garden. Imagine the huge strain it has for the local neighbours that live near by?
Also imagine the disturbance that this kind of radical car racing activity has on the environment and it's consequences for noise pollution for our local Indigenous community who hold ceremony and other activities there for time immemorial. We will certainly hear the noise during our walk our Ancestor walk on Sunday.
This will be a 9 hour motorcycle “charity” event at the Vancouver Island Motorsport Circuit that same day, organized by a motorcycle race club called “Higgy’s on the Track”. The event will be heard all the way to the summit of Swuq’us.
The impact of activities such as this on the cultural use of Swuq’us is significant and has been, imo, ignored for too long.
Ironically, one of the recipients of the charity is the Theraputic Riding Program at Providence Farm, a place that has history with the Cowichan people. More ironically, Higgy’s has managed to recruit the RCMP’s precision motorcycle team for the event.
I choose to believe that neither the Theraputic Riding group or the RCMP are aware of the noise impact on the mountain. But Higgy’s and VIMC definitely are because we have told them.
You can’t change something about what you do if you don’t know you’re doing it so I would urge members of this page to contact the charity and the RCMP to express your concerns if you have them. Consider contacting media groups to bring attention to this issue. Let them know how precious the mountain is.
Please share your thoughts, share this post, call CBC and see if can raise awareness for importance of respecting our Sacred Mountains, which includes noise pollution and land use.
CBC Vancouver CBC Victoria , , The Cowichan Valley Voice Cowichan Valley Citizen
