Grand Junction Daily Sentinel, October 10, 2024– Indigenous youth got the opportunity recently to dive into the traditional harvesting and tool making practices of Native Americans at an educational event at Ladder Canyon Ranch in Glade Park.

The event, which was organized by Colorado West Land Trust, Crow Canyon Archaeological Center and the Western Slope Native American Resource Center, provided Indigenous youth, including Ute Mountain Ute tribal members, with an in-depth look into Native American history and tradition on the ancestral lands of the Utes, according to a press release.

Ladder Canyon Ranch is a property conserved by Colorado West Land Trust and maintained by landowners Roberta Nieslanik and Mercedes Cameron. Cameron said she felt lucky to live at the ranch and play a part in protecting the land for the future.

“That means I must share it with others who will also love it and treat it with respect, and those who have done so in the past,” Cameron said. “This was an amazing day of immersion in a culture here long before me, a day that taught me so much about some of the things I see here and what it might have been like living here hundreds of years ago.”

Tyson Hughes, representing Crow Canyon Archaeological Center from Cortez, led the participants in a series of activities designed to highlight the ingenuity of ancient cultures, the release stated. The group examined ancient tools and artifacts and Tyson guided the youth in crafting arrowheads and jewelry using traditional methods and tools. A Ute elder also taught the group how to harvest and enjoy pinions, a traditional food of the region.

“We all live, work, and play on Native ancestral lands,” Nieslanik said. “It was deeply moving for me to invite the Ute Mountain Ute tribal members and their guests back to their land and join with them for this event on what we call Ladder Canyon Ranch.”

Youth from the Clifton Community Wonder Kids and Western Slope Native American Resource Center’s youth program participated in the educational outing. This event is part of Colorado West Land Trust’s ongoing Traditional Harvest Program, which seeks to reconnect Indigenous communities with the land and provide opportunities for them to harvest traditional foods.

Read the Daily Sentinel Article Here