In the beginnings, the umiak was both a hunting and traveling craft. Brought by Inuit cultures from Alaska and Canada, it disappeared around 1970. In hunting, the umiak was used for whaling. For traveling, it was used by family members and rowed by the older children or the women. It was a traveling vessel mostly for people without a kayak. The umiak could be paddled but in a favorable wind, it could also be propelled by a square sail.
Greenland umiak under oars, W.A. Graah, 1832 – from H.C. Petersen, Skinboats of Greenland
[source]
This boat, made traditionally from a whalebone frame over which walrus skins are stretched, is not very fast. A kayak is more suitable at sea, but the umiak’s advantage was that it could move whole families at once, and it had a much larger cargo capacity than the kayak. Its seaworthiness was limited because the skin covering became soggy after too much time in the water. The good thing was that in spite of having to be drawn upon the land for the skin to dry out, it provided shelter for the night when it was turned up with its bottom in the air. It was easy to carry on land, easy to be pulled over ice, and back again on the water.
Umiak built by Canadian students for a film made in Mingan, an Innu reserve on Quebec’s Lower North Shore
[source]
Maintenance requires the skin to be replaced every year, which was rather a costly task. An umiak requires a minimum of seven walrus skins or up to twenty-four seal skins. The sewing must be completed while the skins are still wet, thus making the proceedings a matter of urgency, so the whole community participated. The umiak’s owner ensured that there were enough material and food, and he provided also some entertainment, which is nice. Unfortunately, collecting skins for the umiak was more a burden than a joy, as they could otherwise be sold for money.
By the end of the twentieth century, in the seventies, the umiak was replaced with rowing boats made of wood. They could be used for several years, but they haven’t the same mobility on land, being much heavier.
If you like what you read, please subscribe to this blog by completing the form. If you want to help more, start by following us on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook. You don’t know what good things may happen. To lighten your day, check our pins on Pinterest, we can be friends there too. Oh, and if you need a really good looking blog attached to your site, or just for fun, to express your feelings more competitively, read this Own Your Website offer! Thank you very much.
