Kayak History

This is the type of writing that made me take up the kayak in the first place.
Check it out. http://pubs.aina.ucalgary.ca/arctic/Arctic47-2-193.pdf
It's never ceases to amaze me at just what kayaks are capible of, not just now but a few hundred years ago.

My interest in the carving of California Native American dugout canoes is what "hooked" me on paddling. A read I found interesting because it connects building kayaks and canoes with the material culture of Alaska Native Americans is Qayaqs & Canoes: Native Ways of Knowing.

Janice aka "Big J"

Big J it sounds like you, I and P & F are kindred spirits. I've long had an interest in Native watercraft. When I got out of the army I went to live at a wilderness school in the Northwoods. Life revolved around fishing and the canoe. We spent all day everyday building skin kayaks, reed boats and many of these here White pine Dug-out canoes (Amikawandaas). On the project for the below photos we lived 80 miles deep in the middle of the forest near a creek. It took 3 months to find the downed tree, cure it, blank it out, dig it out and then paddle it out back to our wilderness camp. What an adventure, glad I was young. You can see how low the freeboard was on that canoe for our maiden voyage and that block in the canoe with us became a ceremonial drum for Ojibwa Mideweyan rites.
 
I'm currently into Yurok Indian dug-out Redwood canoes and carving a greenland style paddle for my 5 yr old daughters beginning kayak instruction this summer.

Cool pics and tales from the formative days of the "Hawk".   

Swellrider, yeah, we need to share our experiences someday. I spent lots of time in Trinidad shadowing Axel Lindgren as he carved dugout canoes, gave school programs at Sumeg, and shared his life and heritage with me on hikes and at the ancient Tsurai village site. He and his oral history were the subject of my late-in-life Master's thesis, which was abbreviated and published in News from Native California. This chapter of my life was one of the most satisfying and life changing of times...each visit with Axel was more magical than the last. I miss him.

Janice aka "Big J"

Great pic's swell rider.
Greenland paddles for your daughters excellent ideal.
I've used Greenland paddles for years now.
However I'll be making my next one. They're expensive even at pro price.
You guys still paddle a canoe?

great pics!

You guys still paddle a canoe?

I'm an ACA certified canoe instructor and I've been trying to bring it back for years but the kayak is still king

Carving the greenland paddle is much harder than a canoe paddle. I have to measure it to her little grip.