a legacy of
paddling to
the islands
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The Channel Islands lie just 15 miles off the coast of California. Over the centuries, many different watercraft have made this journey.
For thousands of years before European arrival, this journey was made exclusively by paddle power.
The Chumash people have called the islands and much of the nearby land home for over 10,000 years.
They invented a redwood plank canoe called the tomol to travel back and forth between the islands and the mainland.
Measuring up to 30 feet long, tomols helped the Chumash build extensive trade networks across the channel.
The tomol was also an ideal fishing vessel. Chumash crews used them to harpoon swordfish up and down the coast.
Tomols are built out of planks fashioned from fallen redwood trees that drift down the coast. The planks are shaped with sharkskin
Craftsmen drill holes in the redwood planks. They then stitch them together with a braided twine made out of milkweed.
The tomol is glued together and sealed with yop, a paste made of pine sap and asphaltum, the tar that you might see on the beach.
Abalone shells harvested from the sea are broken up into small chips. These chips are then used to decorate the bow of the tomol.
For generations, many tomols made the island crossing every day. Then, they all but disappeared from the channel.
Arriving in 1542, Spanish explorers brought diseases that killed many Chumash. The population of the islands plummeted.
The surviving Chumash were forced into missions, where many cultural traditions like the tomol were lost.
Today, the Chumash have revived this seagoing tradition. They now build tomols not for fishing or trade, but for annual ceremonial crossings to the islands.
The evolution of the tomol is just one example of how the Chumash community has survived to the present day. Here are a few ways that you can see and support Chumash culture today:
You can see a tomol IRL at the Santa Barbara Natural History Museum. The Santa Barbara Maritime Museum also has a replica on display.
Go “read” the Syuxtun Story circle, a mosaic near West Beach in Santa Barbara. It tells the story of Chumash in the region through the present day.
Want to help support Chumash efforts to conserve local lands and waters for future generations? Check out and follow the Wishtoyo Foundation.
