The Young Inuit.

                                                  A short story inspired by  the history of the kayak

                                                       The Young Inuit
   Picture this, but first go back in time several hundred years, a young Inuit hunter sitting in his kayak on the water, about to begin his first solo hunt. He has prepared and he has been prepared all his life for this day. Both the Inuit and kayak have been created for their environment. The young hunter spies a seal  just barly able to make out its shape swimming in open water. The stalk begins. Silently paddling the hunter moves across the water closeing the distance between him and his prey, This Inuk’s kayak is prepared for the occasion. Strapped  to the kayak deck just below his hand... within easy reach is a harpoon with over thirty feet of thong made  from walrus hide attached to the end of its shaft, strategically placed for a quick exchange with the paddle when the moment arises.
   The desired distance has been achieved. He has paddled his kayak  to within twenty-five feet ot the seal. The animals back is to him. That moment has arrived, paddle quickly echanged for harpoon. The young Inuit prepares himself, raising his harpoon  he hurls it, the harpoon finds its mark.The young hunter has proven himself as a hunter and a kayaker.
Until this day he could not take a wife and start a family; because the way of the Inuit is that a hunter must have a kayak and know how to use it.  On this day he had done so, using three weapons, the kayak, the harpoon and stealth.   
   

Sounds like the beginning of a great adventure! Some books I've enjoyed from this genre are: Mowat's "The Snow Walker", an amazing series of short stories, including one of kayak survival against all odds;Mitchner's "Alaska" tells the Aleut story and much more;a childhood favorite "The Eskimo Hunter" the tale of a young Inuit hunter named Kapunga and his adventures providing for his tribe during a brutal winter with a cloven-pawed polar bear stalking him ominously.

Let me know any I've missed and I'll add them to my reading list.

"The Eskimo Hunter" the tale of a young Inuit hunter named Kapunga and his adventures providing for his tribe during a brutal winter with a cloven-pawed polar bear stalking him ominously.

Let me know any I've missed and I'll add them to my reading list.
[/quote]
Was his father killed by a walrus? It it was it's one of my all time favorite.


As for the Young Inuit with a bit more research I will eventually  finish it.

Yes, I think his father was killed by a walrus.I remember curling up one night with winds howling outside during a storm and reading the chapter where the polar bear breaks through their igloo and tries to eat Kapunga.I was totally enthralled. That's a great read.

Stick a seal and score a chick.  Guess some dudes just got it like that.

Now ...it could just be me, but those young ladies sure do look apprehensive. 
I think it's gonna take more than a seal or a salmond for da mooch to score!

...that blond broke my heart 

Art - thanks for bringing up bitter memories Can someone photo shop out the ladies from the pic so I can look at this pic without the heart ache 

I am thinking we could photoshop my face in for the blonde and bill's face for the brunette,
maybe that would be better, 

J

Advice from An Old Honky to The Young Inuit is if he sees that one coming he should run for all he's worth That is if he wants to keep fishing in peace

Advice from An Old Honky to The Young Inuit is if he sees that one coming he should run for all he's worth That is if he wants to keep fishing in peace

Sound advise OB Wan Kanobi of Salmon slaying  But sometimes the mooch needs a cuddle partner (not you jmairey ) when the fishing is slow   

Well, Mooch, just hold your cards close to your chest and if you start smellin marital bliss run for your life If you have to do it at the very least get a solid fishing rights pre-nup agreement, on paper

The wedding band drops your averages way down It's not that you cant get out, it's that you cant get out enough and when you should

RF's etc you can do anytime, salmon you have to keep a bead on and be able to go when your gut tells you



and I dunno, jmairey looks pretty cuddly in the photos

blue, you worry me son! 

mooch, please don't say "cuddle" ever again, 

so I got this disk sitting on my dvd-watching machine...

J

J - would you prefer the word "spoon" 

get a solid fishing rights pre-nup agreement, on paper

funny you mentioned that....Tim (who paddles a red Hobie Adventure) just got married....and he made sure the wife knew THE GOLDEN RULE....which is: "I get to fish one day during the weekend"

Congratulations and Good luck with that "Golden Rule"  Tim  I truly hope that this rule will survive and that future of mankind  can truly benefit from it 

I get a weekend day myself, you just have to be willing to pay the price! 

Hey, so I watched 'Nanook of the North' last night and my boys watched some of it this morning.

My youngest son often takes me aside and asks "is it real" on anything we watch, because with today's
technology, it's just so hard to know real from not real. he likes to know.

It was great to tell him that it was 100% real, from the walrus harpooning to the puppy hidden in
the parka hood with the baby to the igloo built in under an hour with an ice block window.
He was stunned that something so alien and yet human could be so real!

J

"Nanook of the North" arrived yesterday!  With rain in the forcast, that may be the closest I get to a kayak this weekend  .  J, I hope my little girl is as appreciative of the real footage as your son was.  I have a feeling she may not be  .