RIDGEFIELD — One March afternoon, rain clouds parted, revealing a mild glow onto the Ridgefield Nationwide Wildlife Refuge’s sloping grasslands and woodlands beneath.
A gaggle of Cowlitz Indian Tribe members, refuge employees and neighbors walked alongside the Oaks to Wetlands path, surveying native crops, equivalent to cattail, nettle, wapato and blackberries. They’re only a few examples of what the tribe can use for meals, medication, weaving and ceremonies.
The tour is the primary of its variety — born from a partnership between the tribe and authorities company that permits Cowlitz tribal members to reap crops on the federally protected web