I cover this because our Peninsula Tribes participate in this. It is an important event for them to carry on their traditions, as the article states.
The arrival on July 29 of about 13,000 American Indians, representing some 130 West Coast tribal communities, dressed in regalia and landing in beautifully carved cedar canoes, sounds a lot like another spectacular Olympia party. It is not. Charlene Krise, a member of the Squaxin Island Tribal Council and executive director of the tribe’s Museum Library and Research Center, says the revival of the canoe journey has rejuvenated tribal nations to reclaim their traditions.
http://www.theolympian.com/2012/06/24/2151654/support-squaxin-tribes-journey.html