Five people sitting in a circle on grass about to participate in a smudging ceremony.

Two men smile as one ties a red patterned Métis sash around the other’s waist while a woman smiles.

A group of people crossing the Walterdale Bridge.

A group gathers for a ritual as one person sprinkles tobacco into another’s hand.

A Métis guide is talking about the local fur trade history near a white arch bridge on a sunny day.

Edmonton River Valley Askiy-Geo Discovery Tour

Edmonton River Valley Askiy-Geo Discovery Tour, located in Edmonton’s river valley, offers a guided cultural walking experience with deep historic insight. Travellers join Métis guide and professional geologist Keith Diakiw to explore sacred and historic sites in North America’s largest urban parkland. The tour begins in a good way with an opening circle, followed by a tobacco offering and smudging at a sacred burial ground and the Fort Edmonton Cemetery. Along the way, guests learn about more than 11,000 years of Indigenous presence at this ancient gathering place on Turtle Island, and the holistic history of amiskwacîwâskahikan (Beaver Hills House in nêhiyawêwin/Cree). The experience also shares stories of the fur trade era, revealing how this extensive history from 1794 to 1907 still hides in plain sight today.