The Innu Aitun website has some fantastic videos of traditional Innu canoe construction. The videos are a combination of French and Innu languages, but have english subtitles. I've embedded them here but if you can't see them because of missing plug-ins, they are available on this page regarding the canoe in Innu culture(Quicktime needed to view).
The most interesting one for me was part 2 where the men use a PVC coated canvas instead of birchbark as the skin of the boat - a very practical solution given growing scarcity of quality bark. Also, check out the last video which details the method of lashing paddles for the portage. It is exactly as described in Paul Provencher's book about the Montagnais method - with an angular position of the blades and the grips crossed onto the forward thwart.
I'm an avid canoeist and general "outdoorsy type" guy with a bit of an artistic side. Started this hobby of making custom canoe paddles after my disappointing experience with most commercial brands. This site documents various styles of single blade canoe paddles I've made or researched as well as other canoe related info I've stumbled across on my internet wanderings. Kindly note that this site is a non-commercial enterprise and no paddles are for sale. Information provided is for educational use and purposes only. Hope you enjoy your visit.
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4 comments:
Thanks for posting these films, they are fantastic!
Mark
Great craftsmen at work, thanks for sharing them :)
Thanks for posting....very interesting especially in use of modern materials....
Thanks enjoyed the videos very much
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