L
ong ago, say the Nez Perce, an enormous monster
ravaged the area around Kamiah, Idaho, gobbling
up Coyote's animal friends. So Coyote gathered up
pitch pine and fl int, crawled into the monster's mouth
and kindled a fi re. e animals that were eaten by the
monster broke free under cover of the smoke through
the monster's orifi ces. A erward, Coyote and the es-
caped animals cut up the monster's body and fl ung the
bits far and wide. Where the pieces landed, various In-
dian tribes sprang into life. But Fox was unhappy and
confronted Coyote, because Coyote had populated the
rest of the land, but not this place. So Coyote washed
his paws, and blood from the monster's heart fell on the
ground at his feet. From this blood sprang the Nez Perce
Indians.
If you don't know about the monster's blood and the
birthplace of the Nez Perce tribe, the mound of dirt
just off Highway 12 in Kamiah looks like any other hill.
During a road trip last summer, we stopped to visit the
origin site, which is still called Heart of the Monster. I
pushed a button on a post and was able to hear a record-
ing of a tribal member telling the origin story.
~ By Teresa Bergen ~
Escape to the
Nez Perce Wilderness
Hiking, Hot Springs &
Native American History
Photo
courtesy
of:
Nez
Perce
National
Historic
Park
28 wholelifetimes.com
