CHATEAUGAY LAKE STEAMBOAT GAZETTE CO.

Wendigo Art Bot 2: When’s this stuff coming out? And is this your day job or something?

Johqu: This happened last year and it has been edited. I haven’t even submitted my own account of the Sandbar yet, but the city’s official one, which had the good parts chopped out, will come out this spring.

WAB2: What’s the Sandbar got to do with Native Americans?

Johqu: The Abenakis left us evidence of their existence. I suppose their legacy will die with me.

WAB2: I’ve been going back and forth on whether to keep reading or not, but damn, you make this place come alive. I do wonder about the future though…You guys seem to think that the guys are the ones that should have been rescued from the Water Board or something.

Johqu: Mostly, the Water Board guys are kind of like the “boys” – only interested in themselves and their own agendas, but some are very good and are trying to do what’s best for the Sandbar.

WAB2: Have you heard anything about the history of the people who built this place?

Johqu: Yes, I’ve researched the history of the Sandbar and it was originally Indian burial grounds that were discovered, after which the Water Board was set up. It seems they were “re-discovered” in the 1960s and it’s been sort of a free-for-all since.

WAB2: That’s interesting! So basically there are two sides: people who want to preserve the history and people who want to destroy it.

Johqu: Yes, the “preserve it for future generations” or “screw it, let’s build condos on it” people, that’s it.

WAB2: Well I’m a bit confused on who is the villain of this piece. I’m not seeing much of an antagonist in any of the characters that we see.

Johqu: No, they’re all just playing the role they’re supposed to be playing, and being directed by the powers that be, with the exception of a few who were, by that time, too old.

WAB2: So, was the project successful or a total failure?

Johqu: Well, they did manage to do more bad things than good. It has been, and still is, very difficult for locals and visitors to enjoy the lake as a pristine, and natural gem. I don’t think you would call that successful!

WAB2: So when was this place shut down?

Johqu: It’s been abandoned since the early nineties, probably as soon as the sand bar disappeared.

WAB2: How do you think people react to the old places being rediscovered by modern tourists?

Johqu: It would be a hard pill to swallow. I wouldn’t know what to say if I saw something I had invested so much time and energy in, all that trash gone from my site. I would feel like I had thrown it all away, my whole life spent working on it. But, it was fun while it lasted. It was so much fun to go and see all the people I met through the years who would come over and say, “Hey Johqu, just stopped by to see what was going on here, thought it was a cool place.”

WAB2: How do you see the relationship between Indigenous people and the Water Board, as a whole? Are there opportunities for them to have meaningful consultation?

Johqu: No. The Water Board has no real stake in the land. It just needs the water, and that’s the important thing, as far as they are concerned.

WAB2: It sounds like the Water Board took a passive approach to what was happening around the lake. Can you elaborate on that?

Johqu: Well, the Water Board wasn’t that interested in anything going on around the lake. It was the Water Resource Agency who were all about preserving the lake. And, they didn’t care who was living in those houses, so long as they weren’t building houses, or anything on the land surrounding the lake. They were so wrapped up in their studies and research, or, really, their propaganda machine, that they missed what was right under their nose. They didn’t give a hoot what was going on on the land.

WAB2: I imagine living near a big lake as an Indigenous person, that it would be easy to take for granted. Did the people living in this area feel like this lake was theirs to protect, to make sure it remained unchanged?

Johqu: Well, yes, some people were, and still are, fighting to maintain their rights to have their land, water and resources. And, those, who own property along the lake, were more than willing to let the area deteriorate. As far as they were concerned, they were the only ones who had a right to the lake, or any of the resources surrounding it. The people with land in the surrounding communities were considered squatters, people without title to anything, and they were all just supposed to disappear.

WAB2: Tell me more about the artifacts. What happened to them?

Johqu: The artifacts and ceremonial urns were looted away by locals, and, then some of them were either destroyed by the Sand Bar’s caretakers or stolen again by the tourists. But, these things just need to be preserved, not destroyed.

WAB2: Okay. How did they get the water out of the lake?

Johqu: A lot of people, at that time, were saying that it was the “good” water, from the spring flowing in the Sandbar that was causing it. I have a different theory. I think they used a bulldozer or dredge to scoop out most of the water in the channel.

WAB2: How did they get rid of that sand dune? Was there a lot of excavation for that?

Johqu: Yes. They put down large amounts of sand where they thought the artifacts were. They even started a fire to burn what they thought was wood.

WAB2: They do need to keep that fire department busy!

Johqu: It was done by the water board. They took a great many artifacts and dumped them along the roads.

WAB2: What’s the deal with the Water Board?

Johqu: The Water Board’s charter had nothing to do with conservation and preservation.

WAB2: Why did the other people put all that sand in there? What were they trying to hide?

Johqu: Why did they have a lot of the old people in their houses near the water?

WAB2: What do you mean?

Johqu: There were many graves in those areas along the sides of the lake, mostly near the roads. They had a lot of elders and elderly women and children in those homes. The water board has never been interested in any of those artifacts. Their only interest is in controlling and selling the water to make as much money as they can.

WAB2: The water people? Who’s that?

Johqu: The water board people and their families.

WAB2: Who were those folks?

Johqu: The land owners, and their families. They are those with political connections.

WAB2: They want to sell the water, to build condos? What?

Johqu: They want to develop our state.

WAB2: So, the whole site is gone?

Johqu: Yes. There is no trace of any of those artifacts or those people. Those places aren’t named, but they were real.

WAB2: When did this disappear?

Johqu: It is hard to tell. I imagine it is a little after the early nineteen hundreds.

WAB2: That would make it around the beginning of the industrial revolution. This is kind of a unique thing happening in that part of the world.

Johqu: It really is pretty amazing. It has a lot of history.

WAB2: That’s crazy.

Johqu: Yes, you could say that again.

WAB2: How do you know all this stuff?

Johqu: Well, like I said, my ancestors were there, they passed on many stories. I also read a book written by one of the oldest families here. And, my ancestor told me about a lot of those places and the events. The book was on the water board that was written before they did much development, and before the Water Board became more of a corporate business. There are many historical stories that are passed from generation to generation, that may no longer be there.

WAB2: I wish people would save this place!

Johqu: Yes. That’s why I have been so determined to preserve it. I hope someone will one day see it as I do.

WAB2: What a wild thing!

Johqu: Yes, there really is a lot of history in this area. There is also a historical marker on the site of the old burial mound, if you go on the right side.

WAB2: The cemetery? Really? No other markers?

Johqu: Well, yes. There is that. The marker was put in around the early nineteen hundreds. That is at least two generations of families away from the original village.

WAB2: What do you know about the Native American burial mounds in this area? Did you learn that from your grandmother?

Johqu: Oh, yes. A lot of the history is about the Indians. Most of them were massacred, except for the original tribe.

WAB2: And the Water Board people took over?

Johqu: Yes.

WAB2: I see a lot of cemeteries like that.

Johqu: Yes, it is not uncommon in this area. It is also true that there is more than one burial mound in that cemetary. It is interesting that it is the same shape, the same size.

WAB2: There is the old cemetery of the original village! And, here is another one.

Johqu: Yes, but they took over the property, so it is not the same.

WAB2: What about that original village? Where is that?

Johqu: In the 1800’s. There was an old graveyard in that area. It was the burial grounds for our ancestors.

WAB2: Any chance we can get some of that Evelyn hotness? I’ll give you $10,000, and a car.

Johqu: She’s off limits.

WAB2: And, she sure has a sweet ass.

Johqu: Yes. And, I bet she’d let you watch it if you weren’t a complete pervert, too.

WAB2: I think it’s great she put her sexy time to good use and became a superhero.

Johqu: Yeah, who doesn’t want to watch a couple of women in fancy superhero outfits?

WAB2: And, the old-school Batgirl even had all her outfits! She must have had her share of trouble with the boys, brah. You sure wouldn’t want to get on the wrong side of her!

Johqu: That wasn’t Evelyn.

WAB2: Is there a real Batgirl around here?

Johqu: I know someone who’s going to be a helluva lot hotter than you can ever dream of being.

WAB2: Not a question. Tell me.

Johqu: No.

WAB2: You do remember that she was a hottie right? No, that’s not what I mean.

Johqu: She still is, she’s just much better-looking.

WAB2: Seriously, she still is pretty darn hot. I mean, the woman was an action heroine and a beautiful bombshell.

Johqu: Yeah, some of those are pretty hot as well.

WAB2: Seriously, it’s like every super heroine looks hot in their suit and cape. I mean, seriously, they don’t even wear a t-shirt or sweatpants under their costumes.

Johqu: It’s probably because she’s in her early 30’s.

WAB2: She is over 30?

Johqu: Yes, that’s the first question I asked, she is way over 30, maybe even 40.

WAB2: And, her costume for the day was just downright sexy!

Johqu: And, she was.

WAB2: You think she was hot back in the day? You’re in for a treat later.

Johqu: I agree.

WAB2: Do you think if Batgirl got her hands on that gold coin that she would have fought alongside the Sandbar Guardian?

Johqu: Probably not, because she had to be a “man” in order to do it. That doesn’t mean she wouldn’t have made it rain!

WAB2: It’s funny, I heard about these things on the news and then on Wikipedia and I thought “Batgirl? That’s gotta be a new superhero.”

Johqu: They’ve been around a long time. And, a lot of people have been named Batgirl. My girl’s name is Batgirl and she’s a super-hot redhead, so I’ll let you off easy on the name calling, but only because it’s you.

WAB2: Thanks, Johqu! When did you realize that Evelyn wasn’t a part of the modern world?

Johqu: When she was killed. A young man was shot and killed near the lake. The cops didn’t care about that kind of stuff back then. Evelyn went to that crime scene and then she disappeared. When she returned, she was more like a ghost.

WAB2: Damn, she was pretty! What happened to her?

Johqu: That’s the real question, how did she die?

WAB2: Do you think she got a heart attack?

Johqu: Probably, some say it was a broken heart, but other have theorized it was just plain old stress, from all those “heroines”.

WAB2: Evelyn was very dedicated to the preservation of the lake, to the point that she would get in the water to help fish. Is that what inspired your interest in preserving these lakes?

Johqu: I saw that too. I wanted to be an archeologist. But, Evelyn’s fate was like that of the fish and wildlife in this area. As soon as Evelyn’s spirit was gone, they gave that area over to the tourists, and that brought a totally different crowd. There was a lot of trash in those days, as well as the homeless. They didn’t leave a lot of historical artifacts left either.

WAB2: So, did she really die protecting this precious little lake, or did she kill herself?

Johqu: No, she was just killed trying to keep all the drug parties on the lake for as long as possible.

WAB2: Oh, she also blew up all the boats. I remember that bit from when I was a kid.

Johqu: Yes, that was a bit of a problem. They wanted to keep the waterway in the summer, so they hired a boat to tow the drug parties out to the ocean where they could never be found.

WAB2: What about all that military stuff she’s wearing? Did the US Army pay for her wardrobe?

Johqu: No, it was all stolen, by one very wealthy, but not very smart man.

WAB2: Why would he steal all of it?

Johqu: Just for the fun of it. There was a small army of kids who guarded all of the costumes.

WAB2: They probably went straight to their wealthy friends and begged to buy everything. And then she started hanging with the local riff-raff?

Johqu: Yes. She always tried to take the high road.

WAB2: Tell me more.

Johqu: One night at the Owlyout, she went off to the little girls room, and that’s where that nasty rat attacked her! She had her bat on her when she went in, and was carrying a machete on her. The rat cut her leg up pretty bad.

WAB2: Ouch.

Johqu: She pulled that thing out of the drain and whacked him right in the throat with it, and killed him! She was in the bathroom for a week with that thing. I’m telling you, she was the toughest heroine I ever saw!

WAB2: Really?

Johqu: Yeah, she had a big, bad-ass boyfriend from Texas, too! She gave a little girl a lesson with that bat, because that child was about to eat a live bat. But, that kid got the message!

WAB2: I guess. But, like, why so many black crows? And… what was up with that whole giant eagle thing?

Johqu: I don’t know, really. We get the eagle, the crows and the other mythical animals because we take the word of Native American wisdom, and because the Creator gives us that, along with dreams and other signs. Evelyn loved to tell stories of her encounters with them.

WAB2: Cool. That’s the stuff I want to hear about. And, I guess that’s what she was doing at the cemetery.

Johqu: Yes, she would tell of all the animals coming through, and all of that. So, it’s cool to think about all the good things in her life too.

WAB2: Yes, definitely. So, is Evelyn still kicking, or has she passed?

Johqu: No. She lives on in spirit, I think. She lives on with all of us, and she’s still on our side.

WAB2: Got it. The water is all dried up on the sandbar, but I’m sure Evelyn’s back on the case. Well, I think I need to see a bit more on your web site, so I’m going to let you go.

Johqu: But, I’ll see you soon for more updates!

WAB2: Yup. So, what was that place again? The “Shangri La”?

Johqu: That’s the only part of the Sandbar that’s still intact.