Sweetgrass culture camp returns to Fort Smith, N.W.T., after four-year hiatus

For many students at Paul William Kaeser High School in Fort Smith, N.W.T., the Sweetgrass culture camp is the highlight of the year.

This year's camp is the first since 2019 — it had previously been cancelled due to COVID-19, flooding and wildfires.

While at Sweetgrass, students learn survival skills, connect with nature, and gain a deeper appreciation for the area's history. Allie McDonald, a teacher at the high school and one of the camp organizers, said it's a one-of-a-kind opportunity for students.

"It feels very exciting to have the camp back up and running," McDonald said. "It really means a lot to our school, to our school community."

McDonald said students learn how to set up camp, cook on a fire and identify different types of wildlife and trees. With the help of knowledge keeper Louie Beaulieu, they also learn about different medicines and resources from the land.

Students sit around the Sweetgrass camp after a four-year hiatus. (Submitted by Janna Jaque )

While the camp has a deep educational focus, it's also about personal growth and connection among students. McDonald said it's an excellent opportunity for students to build relationships during the trip they usually may not have.

"The bonds and the relationships that our students create while they're out at camp are really special, especially because they're disconnected from technology. They're just out there with their classmates, building this valuable experience together," she said.

McDonald has been involved with the program since 2014. She said Sweetgrass is vital to the school's on-the-land learning initiatives. For Grade 7 and 8 students, the camp marks the beginning of their journey as "on-the-land learners."

"We're very fortunate and lucky to be able to offer on-the-land programming for each of our grades," she said.

Paul William Kaeser teacher Allie McDonald says having the camp return "means a lot" to the school. (Submitted by Allie McDonald )

Learning on the land 

Sweetgrass Station, where the camp is held, is located inside Wood Buffalo National Park. The site was developed in the 1950s to study and manage bison populations. The area was used to test bison for diseases like tuberculosis and anthrax, and it was once a bison ranch and abattoir site.

McDonald said the journey to Sweetgrass is an adventure in itself. It begins with a three-hour bus ride to Moose Island, Alta. From there, they load into boats driven by community partners and local Indigenous governments and travel to Sweetgrass Landing.

After a half-hour boat ride, students hike 14 kilometres to the camp.

Grade 7 student Elli MacDonald Jaque said the hike into camp was one of her favourite moments of the trip. (Carla Ulrich/CBC)

"The pride that the students feel about walking 14 kilometres out to camp is very magical," she said.

Students must carry all their supplies for the four-day trip on their backs, adding to the physical and emotional challenge of the experience.

"That's part of the experience — being conscious of your ecological footprint and being able to pack smartly so your bag doesn't weigh 50 pounds. Because you're the one that has to carry it," she said.

For Grade 7 student Elli MacDonald Jaque, the hike in was not among her favourite moments during her first Sweetgrass trip.

Luckily, her mom was one of the organizers and had helped revive the camp in 2001, which came in handy when packing their bags.

"I didn't know how to pack them personally. But I think I had the lightest bag because of my mom going there a bunch of times. Everybody had bruises on their shoulders, and I had nothing," MacDonald Jaque said.

A photo of one of the first Sweetgrass camps in the 1980s. (Submitted by Janna Jaque )

MacDonald Jaque's connection to the camp goes further than that. The camp was initially conceived in the late 1980s by Don MacDonald, a former PWK teacher and her grandfather. At a time when such programs were less common, MacDonald saw the value in taking students beyond the classroom walls and into the wilderness.

The early trips were monumental but also challenging. Organizing and executing a camp in such a remote location required significant planning and resources, but MacDonald believed in the program's importance for his students.

His vision laid the foundation for what would become a deeply cherished tradition. However, the program paused for several years after a few initial trips.

The Sweetgrass culture camp is the highlight of the year for many students at PWK High School in Fort Smith, N.W.T. (Submitted by Janna Jaque )

In 2010, Don MacDonald's daughter, Erin MacDonald, and his daughter-in-law, Janna Jaque, recognized the initiative's value and sought to revive it for a new generation of students at PWK High School.

Despite the long hike and cold nights, MacDonald Jaque said it was an amazing experience, and she's ready to do it again next year.

"I'm totally going in Grade 8."