A Cottonwood Tree, Amethyst & the Ancestors of the Land

Along the Fraser River, there stands the largest cottonwood tree on my homestead property. It doesn’t stand alone, but is a large focal point within a cluster of 5 trees. The large cottonwood, a smaller birch and 4 spruce. All together they form a portal location which merged into my awareness last year in 2025.

Last fall I was taking a stroll along the river with my daughter and the dogs, checking out rocks and more or less dilly dallying around this tree cluster. I began picking up the energy of many indigenous ancestor spirits gathering around, watching closely. They were lined up on the nearby hill looking down, and some I could feel just a few feet away watching us, almost in fascination. The energy was intense but I didn’t feel threatened. This scenario repeated a few times during visits to this area.

On December 20, 2025, the eve of winter solstice, the spirit of a native american man visited me before I fell asleep. He had urgent instructions for my assistance on the solstice. He showed me my amethyst crystal (a specific one that I had charged in the river) and told me to bring it down to the cottonwood tree and leave it by its trunk. This key would release lost soul fragments of the ancestors of the land, and allow them to return to source for wholeness once again via the portal held within the tree.

Winter Solstice 2025

OF COURSE I would ablidge. This was the first time since working with the land that I was requested for a very specific and literal task. I believe they had been watching me for some time leading up to the solstice, like they were vetting me. There is certainly no coincidence that they chose the winter solstice, a portal in itself, or the cottonwood tree. This tree had been oozing portal vibes for some time, but as a fairly new nature communicator I naturally chose to doubt was I was receiving… waiting for some kind of validation. Well I found it.

I left the crystal there for several days to let it work its magic and in the following weeks, I could feel the energy shift in the land. Since moving here there has always been a heaviness felt near the river and adjacent locations. The solstice prompted a much needed healing for the land and I’m so glad that those souls found peace and wholeness.

I live and homestead within the unceded traditional territories of the Simpcw First Nation and the Lheidli T’enneh First Nation in B.C. Canada. There is minimal written stories (that I know of) pertaining to this specific location, however it is known that these ancestors here were very nomadic in nature. Hunting, fishing and travelling with animal and salmon migrations year round. This area was also a major trade route following the Fraser River connecting Prince George to Tete Jaune, known as the “Leather Pass” which today is known as the Yellowhead.

There is another prominent river that pours into the Fraser a stones throw from my property, which makes me assume this vicinity would have had a lot of ancestral activity. Territorial conflicts between nations as well as conflicts with nomadic gold prospectors would have been likely, and let’s not forget about the railroad construction in the early 1920s. Whether recorded or not, the land here witnessed tons, and has held onto these memories.

If you’re in Canada, or anywhere in North America, the land where you live is holding onto stories. Some of the earliest stories coming from pre European colonization, when the ancestors of the land were the original earth tenders. From there the layers add up, infusing trauma into the landscape in many places where history got ugly.

This is why I consult the ancestors of the land for every property reading I do. Almost anywhere in the world you can follow the timeline back to a group of indigenous people who lived IN harmony with nature, with the spirits of the land.

I have SO much more to share about this cottonwood tree, the land and working with this portal, including its oceanic connections in another upcoming post.