Introduction
Baidarka Home
Reviews of The Aleutian Kayak
Notes on the first edition of The Aleutian Kayak
Table of Contents
Introduction
Scope
This set of pages is designed to give you, the reader, basic instructions for building a version of an iqyax^ or Aleut kayak. This set of instructions is an updated and more limited version of the first edition of my book, The Aleutian Kayak. Missing from this set of instructions is historical information and coverage of tools and other general background information.
If you built a kayak from the first edition of my book, you got a fairly faithful replica of an Atkan kayak that is now in the Phoebe Hearst Museum in Berkeley, California. The instruction on these pages will give you a wider and slightly shorter and more stable version of that same boat.
Skills
This set of instructions does not assume that you have much in the way of woodworking or boatbuilding experience. As a consequence, the experienced woodworker or boatbuilder will likely find parts of these instructions needlessly detailed. The experienced woodworker will also likely know better ways to do a lot of the procedures illustrated in these pages. Feel free to use your own methods where appropriate.The Process
If you follow the building process illustrated here, you will end up with a kayak that is a fair approximation of a traditional iqyax^. The process is a blend of my own inventions, reverse engineering of museum specimens and techniques gleaned from books and other builders.Terminology
The speakers of the Aleut language call themselves Unangax^, plural, Unangan. The posessive version is Unangam as in Unangam tunuu, the Unangan language. The letter x^ is pronouced like ch in the German ach or the Scottish loch.
The term Aleut was introduced by the Russians and was used by them to designate the Unangan as well as the Alutiiq of Kodiak and the Prince William Sound area.
The Russian word for the Unangan kayak was baidarka. Baidarka is a generic word and applies to one, two and three hole kayaks of both the Unangan and the Alutiiq. George Dyson's book, Baidarka did much to popularize the term with modern kayakers and so most kayakers will know the boat by this name.
There is no Unangan word like baidarka that covers all of their kayaks. The Unangan word for a single hole kayak is iqyax^. The Unangan word for a two hole kayak is ulux^tax^.
Iqyax^ Parts
The drawing above shows the major parts of the iqyax^ and the names I call them in these instructions. The drawing shows the Atka baidarka in the Phoebie Hearst museum. The baidarka we will be building in these pages will be slightly simpler. The keelson will be in one piece and the bow assembly will be of the straight type.
- a. gunwale
- b. deck beam
- c. deck beam - back rest
- d. deck beam - front cockpit support
- e. deck beam - foot brace
- f. bow block
- g. stern block
- h. rib
- i. keelson - center section
- j. keelson - bow section
- k. keelson - stern section
- l. keelson joint
- m. hull stringer
- n. bow assembly
- o. lower bow
- p. upper bow
- q. bow slit
- r. tail fin
- s. front deck stringer
- t. rear deck stringer
- u. cockpit coaming
- v. coaming stanchion
Improvements and Suggestions
This being an online manual, changes can be made much faster than in the conventional printed book. To this end, I encourage you, the reader to send me suggestions for improving the manual. I won't guarantee that I will incorporate all suggestions in the manual, but I will if they seem reasonable and I find the time to incorporate them. You can also send me review comments. I will print them if they are favorable. If they are not, I may still print them if they are funny enough.
Also, if you have links to resources related to iqyax^ construction, feel free to send them to me.
Send comments, suggestions and praise to my email address which is listed on the home page of this site.
And don't forget to stay current by reading my blog at skinboatjournal.blogspot.com.