Payomkawichum Kaamlam present 513th Annual Alta and Baja California GRUNION FESTIVAL Revival Sunday, July 13, 2003 FULL MOON Noon till 9 pm Pacific Beach/Kumeyaay Village of Jamo (End of Grand & Garnet Avenue, South of Crystal Pier) FREE TO THE PUBLIC Contents  Introduction and Highlights  Daytime & Nightime Activities  The Grunion Story  Grunion Festival Location Map  This event is FREE and everyone is invited!   Introduction & Highlights Grunion Festival Location Map MUSIC  DANCE  FOOD  ARTS & CRAFTS  ACTIVITIES  FUN The 513th Annual Grunion Festival is a revival of a traditional Native American gathering of local tribes to celebrate the coming of the grunion. Hashuupill, (Kumeyaay/Diegueno word for grunion or 'fish out of water) 'or Ha-il (Paipai "water worm") swims ashore to lay its eggs at high tide after a new or full moon. In the Southern California Native American myth, 'Moyla' (the moon in Payomkawichum/Luiseno-Juaneno language) was sent up into the sky to watch the people and regulate everything because 'all goes according to the moon' (Constance Goddard DuBois, 1908). The word "grunion" comes from the Spanish word meaning 'grumpy, agitated, to shake irritably' and is perhaps what the Spanish pioneers observed as the native people introduced the 'fish out of water.' (back to contents) Daytime & Nightime Activities Coastal Indian Village Exhibit and Historical Native American Timeline Grunion presentation by Birch Aquarium at Scripps Institution of Oceanography Native American Stories by the SUAVE Program Childrens Mime Troupe- California Center for the Arts, Escondido Children's Activities include pottery making and much more California Native American Dancers and Singers "Running Grunion" by Abel Silvas Flutist Robert Tree Cody, Internationally Known with Grammy nominee Flutist Hovia Edwards, INDE Award Winner and Native American Music Award Winner Native American Comedian, Drew LaCapa PLUS back by popular demand "Antonio Garra" ~ Portrayed by Jose Rivera. Garra was a Cupeno Indian who led the 1851 Indian tax revolt in Southern California. He also fought for Indian rights to due process in the American judicial system. (back to contents) Come Early To Allow Time To Park - Bring Your Beach Chair WARNING: Grunions will not run on this date. The expected Grunion Run will be two nights later on July 15th and 16th at high tide. Fishing licenses are required for people 16 years and older. Grunion may be taken by hand only - no nets! Funding provided by Viejas Band of Kumeyaay Indians QUESTIONS? CALL ABEL SILVAS AT (858) 274-1326 email: runninggrunion@juno.com

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What is a grunion and why a Grunion Festival?  Grunion are small silvery fish that beach themselves by the thousands on a particular shore during the high tide of a full or new moon in order to reproduce.   They are unique to California and northern Baja, and are the only fish in the world to do this.  After laying their eggs and fertilization takes place, the grunion squirm their way back to the surf and return to the ocean.   If you have ever witnessed this natural phenomenon, the grunion run is an amazing and beautiful event to see.  The eggs that were laid in the sand mature and the new fish are carried back to the ocean on the next high tide.

The fossil record indicates that the grunion have been around for millions of years.  California Indians have been collecting them as a food source for thousands of years.  Abel Silvas (descendant of the Juaneno Band of Mission Indians, area stretching from Camp Pendleton to Newport Beach) has revived a Native American tradition learned from his great great grandfather, the grunion festival. Traditionally, the Grunion Festival was a gathering of coastal Indians who invited friends and relatives from other villages to join them in collecting the fish and enjoying a social occasion that included storytelling, song, dance and a feast.

In reviving the festival in 1991,  rather than calling it the first annual, which wouldn't be accurate anyway, and to honor his family and his people, Abel chose a number that preceeded the landing of Columbus.  A lighthearted reminder that the native peoples of the Americas have age old traditions existing long before European contact.  This year's festival is the 513th!

Where and when! The Grunion Festival will be held again on the beach in Pacific Beach, just south of Crystal Pier, on Sunday, July 13, 2003.  The festival will begin at Noon and go on until 9:00 p.m. Grunion Festival Location Map