This year's annual Chumash tomol paddling across the Santa Barbara Channel is scheduled for today, the sixth time in 150 years descendants from various Chumash nations have taken the journey in a traditional plank canoe made from redwood trees.

“It almost didn't happen this year,” Reggie Pagaling, a member of the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians and a tomol paddler in four previous crossings. “Our tomol, which we named 'Elye'wun, was recently damaged on a practice course in Malibu, and we were concerned that she may not be able to make the journey this year.”

With monetary donations from the Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary and the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians, along with hands-on sweat and labor from the community, the tomol was repaired.

“It was a real coming together of the community,” Pagaling said of the week-long repairs. “We tested her in the waters this past weekend and she's roaring and ready to go.”

Like previous years, the paddlers will meet at 3 a.m. at the Santa Barbara Channel Islands Harbor to embark on the 21-mile journey across the ocean - a voyage that can take up to 10 hours, depending on ocean conditions. They anticipate arriving in Scorpion Bay on Santa Cruz Island, where they will be greeted by a crowd of several hundred people, including family and friends.

The landing site, Limuw, was once the largest Chumash village on the island, and is now part of the Channel Islands National Park.

Last year, Pagaling and fellow paddlers negotiated swells up to seven feet and had to paddle a three-mile sprint across shipping lanes that accommodate massive tankers.

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“Speeding through those shipping lanes to get out of the way of tankers was harried,” Pagaling said. “But it was also special because it reminded me of how our ancestors followed certain routes between points on the islands and the mainland.”

Pagaling and others from the Santa Barbara Chumash Maritime Association train mentally, physically and spiritually for the rigorous crossing.

Following custom, the paddlers sit on their knees as they cut through the ocean, each stroke representing a strong connection with their past. Paddlers train for months with ocean outings to prepare for their crossing.

Paddlers who participate in the tomol crossing range from young men and women to elders all with a common goal: to take the journey of their ancestors and experience the special bond that their ancestors experienced with the water.

Tomols, or plank canoes, were eight to 30 feet long and were originally made using stone tools and redwood trees which floated down the coast. Because redwood swells when it gets wet and does not shrink when it dries, the redwood that washed up on the beaches made the best tomols. This quality of wood helped maintain a very tight fit between the planks.

The highly maneuverable tomols were used to create an extensive trading network among various Chumash villages, with tomols following certain routes moving between points on the islands and the mainland, similar to modern shipping lanes. The last Chumash tomols used for fishing were made around 1850.

In 1913, an elderly Chumash man named Fernando Librado, who had grown up witnessing tomol building, made a tomol for anthropologist John P. Harrington. The anthropologist took meticulous notes and over the years his notes were used as a blueprint for modern day tomols. Today, the tomol is one of the oldest living examples of an ocean-going watercraft in North America.

“The tomol crossing demonstrates our commitment to tradition,” said Vincent Armenta, tribal chairman of the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians. “The annual crossing is just one of the many ways we work to keep our Chumash culture alive.”

Spectators and supporters of the crew can board a boat on Island Packers Cruisers (www.islandpackers.com or 642-1393) and spend the day on the island.

September 8, 2007