How Gorabe Came About
 Gorabe (Manitou Island) is a long, narrow island located off the south
shore of the Keith Arm on Great Bear Lake. With its sweeping
tapered shape and two prominent red rock outcrops, Gorabe is a sacred
site for
the Dene.
George Kodakin served for many years as Chief of Déline.
He was also a hunter and trapper, and lived and worked in
Port Radium for over twenty years with his family. He passed
away in 1992 at the
age of 64. Permission to reprint this story was obtained
from the storyteller’s
daughter, Irene Betsidea.
How Gorabe Came About
By George Kodakin
I don't know the time this story took place, but the story
has been passed on by our ancestors for many generations.
A long time ago there used to be tipis all along the shoreline,
from the mouth of
Great Bear River, which is near Déline, all the way to the
point which is called Kweweæõhdá in Slavey. If my
grandfather was telling the truth you can imagine there must have been
about two
to three thousand tipis along the shoreline. In the springtime,
just after the ice was gone from the lake, people came from all over
to meet
their families and friends.
My grandfather told me that in order to keep warm, they had
to keep a fire going constantly during the cold winter weather.
He also told me that on the calm cold days there was so much
smoke in the air
that sometimes ravens flying over would fall dead to the
ground because of smoke inhalation.
In those days, only birch bark canoes were used for transportation,
for fishing and hunting. When people organised a hunting
trip, or went to a bush camp somewhere on the lake, they
would often travel along the
south shore of Sahtú and head towards Saoyúé. There
were some places on the lake which were very mysterious to
them. Places where they believed giant mother animals kept guard over
the land. One
such place was about forty miles from Déline. It is known
today as Manitou Island. Before the people became aware of this place,
many canoes were
lost in a large whirlpool in that vicinity of the lake.
At the beginning of the story, I said that people gathered in the spring
to meet their families and friends. There were so many people in the
area that tipis extended as far as the little lake about a mile behind
Kw’átáratô. One calm morning when everybody
was asleep, a woman who was sewing heard something in the water in the
direction of Saoyúé. She went outside to see what it was
and saw a big animal going into the water where the whirlpool
used to be. But just as soon as she saw it, the animal turned into a
large rock.
This animal, which was a giant mother wolf, turned into the
island that today in English is called Manitou Island.
Today you can clearly see the outline of a wolf when you
are a distance away
from that
island, as well as the cave where the wolf once lived.
That is why our elders before us taught us to show respect
by making an offering when we are in the area.
Before I end my story, I would like to point out some of the danger
the island still has. In the springtime, it is not wise to be near what
we believe to be the two pointed wolf ears because it will give a person
snow-blindness. It also is not wise to pass the island right in front
of the nose of the wolf, because we believe the nose is guarded by unseen
powers. These last words of warning are for the younger people and for
future generations.
HOW
GORABE CAME ABOUT | FOR
MY CHILDREN'S FUTURE |
