Robert Twigger shared a video on his Facebook page about how Indian peoples (in this case Algonquian peoples) built birchbark canoes. The video is really old (1947) but that's what makes it so special.
Robert has written several absolutely awesome real life explorer/adventure books. My favourite so far has been Angry White Pyjamas, because he writes about several Aikido masters that I also had the privilege to study with! Another of the most incredible tales was Voyageur: Across the Rocky Mountains in a Birchbark Canoe. Leave it to a Brit do so something so audaciously Canadian!
Canoe trips have always been in my blood since I was a child. The romance of the "coureur du bois" or "voyageurs" was part of our elementary school Canadian history curriculum and I read books about Radisson and Grosseillers. Because our house was on the edge of a large forest we used to practice running through the woods as fast as we could, jumping or climbing over fallen trees.
I learned how to canoe fairly early in life at the Northern Ontario cottage our family owned. In those days the lakes were more pristine and on short canoe trips we could put a detoxifying pill in our boiled lake water to make it potable for cereal, dried foods and tea. I later learned expert skills on how to travel on longer canoe trips at YMCA summer camp. In my early and middle teens I made several 2 week canoe trips into Northern lakes near Algonquian park with a friend. These trips involved carrying our own food, boiling our own lake water, portaging and camping in off the beaten track lake areas. With only that small experience, I can fully appreciate the astounding birchbark canoe trek Robert Twigger made across the far north of Canada.
Later in life I was living north of Ottawa on the way to the traditional Algonquian hunting and fishing territory near Maniwaki Quebec - very much I suspect where this video was filmed. I visited reserves and heard teachings from their elders - some of whom carried on this same tradition of birchbark canoe making. This old video features those same peoples, albeit it is 1947 or something like that. The singing at the beginning is French Canadian but I think it is has Algonquian language in it as well - not sure. I bought a few books about building birchbark canoes written by some local apprentices - David Gidmark - Birchbark Canoe: Living Among the Algonquians.
Watching this video is amazing. The skill and knowledge required to build these splendid crafts is truly awesome!
Robert has written several absolutely awesome real life explorer/adventure books. My favourite so far has been Angry White Pyjamas, because he writes about several Aikido masters that I also had the privilege to study with! Another of the most incredible tales was Voyageur: Across the Rocky Mountains in a Birchbark Canoe. Leave it to a Brit do so something so audaciously Canadian!
Canoe trips have always been in my blood since I was a child. The romance of the "coureur du bois" or "voyageurs" was part of our elementary school Canadian history curriculum and I read books about Radisson and Grosseillers. Because our house was on the edge of a large forest we used to practice running through the woods as fast as we could, jumping or climbing over fallen trees.
I learned how to canoe fairly early in life at the Northern Ontario cottage our family owned. In those days the lakes were more pristine and on short canoe trips we could put a detoxifying pill in our boiled lake water to make it potable for cereal, dried foods and tea. I later learned expert skills on how to travel on longer canoe trips at YMCA summer camp. In my early and middle teens I made several 2 week canoe trips into Northern lakes near Algonquian park with a friend. These trips involved carrying our own food, boiling our own lake water, portaging and camping in off the beaten track lake areas. With only that small experience, I can fully appreciate the astounding birchbark canoe trek Robert Twigger made across the far north of Canada.
Later in life I was living north of Ottawa on the way to the traditional Algonquian hunting and fishing territory near Maniwaki Quebec - very much I suspect where this video was filmed. I visited reserves and heard teachings from their elders - some of whom carried on this same tradition of birchbark canoe making. This old video features those same peoples, albeit it is 1947 or something like that. The singing at the beginning is French Canadian but I think it is has Algonquian language in it as well - not sure. I bought a few books about building birchbark canoes written by some local apprentices - David Gidmark - Birchbark Canoe: Living Among the Algonquians.
Watching this video is amazing. The skill and knowledge required to build these splendid crafts is truly awesome!
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