WHAT:
Cherokee Nation to host a send-off ceremony for the 2026 Remember the Removal cyclists.
WHEN:
Tuesday, May 26 at 9 a.m.
WHERE:
One Fire Field Pavilion west of W.W. Keeler Tribal Complex*
17675 S. Muskogee Ave.
Tahlequah, OK
WHO:
Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr.
Deputy Chief Bryan Warner
Council of the Cherokee Nation members
Cherokee Nation Cabinet
Cherokee Nation Education Services
2026 Remember the Removal cyclists
TAHLEQUAH, Okla. — The Cherokee Nation will host a send-off ceremony for 12 Cherokee Nation cyclists who will leave Tahlequah, Okla., on Tuesday for the 2026 Remember the Removal Bike Ride.
The Cherokee Nation cyclists will join six cyclists from the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians in Cherokee, N.C., and will begin their ride from New Echota, Ga., on June 1, and will conclude nearly 950 miles later in Tahlequah on June 19.
Cyclists follow the Northern Route of the Trail of Tears, spanning Georgia, Tennessee, Kentucky, Illinois, Missouri, Arkansas and Oklahoma, to retrace the path of their ancestors. Of the estimated 16,000 Cherokees forced to march to Indian Territory in the late 1830s, about 4,000 died due to exposure, starvation and disease, giving credence to the name Trail of Tears.
*Will move to the Chota Conference Center in case of inclement weather.