Relaying the water cycle

Left on its own, the snowmelt would have flowed into Lake Coeur d’Alene. For months, or maybe even years, it would have flowed through the massive lake, carrying oxygen for fish, supporting tendrils of aquatic plants and being churned around by a summertime fleet of pleasure boaters.

Instead, the water from the St. Joe River was scooped out of the southern end of the lake and unwittingly became part of a ceremony aimed at reminding North Idaho residents of the story behind the water.

“Some people still don’t appreciate what they have here,” explained Mark Stanger, an employee of the Coeur d’Alene Tribe and member of the Colville Tribe of Indians, who helped start the water’s journey Saturday morning.

The clear plastic tubes of water made their way north across Lake Coeur d’Alene, first escorted by the tribe, then by a fur trader re-enactor. Kayakers, a wheelchair athlete, cyclists and even a kid on a skateboard helped carry water during this first annual Water for Life relay.

The event wasn’t designed to raise a dime, said Joe Reiss, a Post Falls librarian who helped organize the relay. It was simply meant to show people how water connects the region. “We take it for granted,” Reiss said.

The water eventually made it to Q’Emlin Park in Post Falls. Some of the water was sprinkled on a tree planted in the park that day – the tree stands in view of the Spokane River, just a few hundred yards upstream from a hydroelectric dam.

As the water was poured onto the tree, Stanger tapped a drum and sang an honor song.

The rest of the water was returned to the river, where it began its journey toward Spokane, then the Columbia, then the Pacific.

Few other things are worth honoring as much as water, Stanger explained.

Post Falls Mayor Clay Larkin said people seem to lose sight of the importance of clean water and air.

Those are the two things, along with shelter, that must be present for life. “All the rest of the stuff you can take care of on your own,” Larkin said.

After the water was poured on the tree or returned to the river, Reiss and a small group hiked through the park to watch the massive rapids fueled by an abundant snowmelt. “Sure reminds you of your humanity, doesn’t it?” he asked, staring at a river chute full of churning whitewater.

Reiss said he doesn’t know if the relay will happen again next year.

“If we do it again, we’re going all the way to Spokane. And the year after that we’re going to the ocean,” he said.