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Check me out on 40-10m at 1900z on 7.032 and 14.032 and pse qsl via VE2xb and thanks,
Dr Mike,VY0ZOO

The Ungava Bay Inuit were the first people who made kayaks from Walrus skins and then raced them and they are still competitive Kayak racers. The word Kayak is an Inuit word. 

You can see from the picture that the water is flowing in the form of rapids, so you must know what you're doing to be out on the open water.

 The kayak (or qajaq in Inuktut dialects) was invented by the Inuit, Yup'ik, and Aleut peoples in the Arctic region, including what is now Nunavik, over 4,000 years ago. It was a vital tool for survival, designed for hunting marine mammals in the Arctic waters. 

Traditional Construction and Use

The traditional kayak was an ingenious piece of engineering, developed using locally available materials and custom-built to the hunter's body for maximum maneuverability and stealth. 

• Materials: Frames were made of a lightweight structure fashioned from whalebone (in the eastern Arctic, including Quebec) or driftwood. This frame was covered with stretched, waterproof seal or walrus skins, which were oiled periodically with fat to maintain their watertight capability.
• Design: The kayak was a one-person, closed-deck hunting craft, known as the "man's boat" or "hunter's boat" in the Inuit language. The design varied by region, with different styles developed for specific environmental conditions.
• Function: Its shallow draft, narrow width, and quiet operation allowed hunters to approach seals and other marine prey stealthily. A special garment called a tuilik was worn by the paddler and sealed to the kayak's rim, allowing them to roll the craft without taking on water. 

Historical Context in Nunavik

The use of kayaks was a way of life for the Inuit, integral to their interaction with the Arctic geography and ecology. In the Nunavik region of Northern Quebec, some communities, such as Puvirnituq, continued building kajait (plural of kajak) with traditional methods and materials well into the mid-20th century, up until the 1960s. 

Archaeological evidence, such as the petroglyph site Qajartalik (Inuktitut for "where there is a kayak") near Kangirsujuaq, Quebec, indicates the long history and cultural significance of the kayak, with the site having been used by the Dorset people, who preceded the Thule Inuit in the region. 

Modern Legacy

While modern materials like plastic and fiberglass have largely replaced skin-on-frame construction, and motorboats are now common for transportation, the kayak remains a powerful symbol of Inuit culture and heritage. The traditional knowledge of building and using kayaks is being actively preserved and revitalized by individuals and cultural institutions like the Canadian Canoe Museum.  I am a big fan of the Kayak and in the Cree regions, it is the canoe and even the larger war canoes that were given to me as gifts. I will treasure them always. I swim every day about 50 laps of the community pool and in the summer, I swim and bike for several hours each day. Remember, the couch is the new cigarette...

Map

This shows you where the town of Kangiqsualujjuaq is in relation to Kuujjuaq, QC. It's about 167 km to the east and close to Labrador.