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The Tlingit canoe, or yaakw, was historically the primary mode of transportation for clans living along the Southeast Alaska shoreline. Today, it remains a crucial component of Tlingit culture.

One might think that a person riding in a traditional canoe would be called a “paddler,” but instead, they are termed “pullers” as they literally pull the heavy, 2,000 pound (1-ton) canoe through the often rough waters of Southeast Alaska. Every puller who joined in the two-day journey from Hoonah to dedicate the Tribal House in Glacier Bay was required to carve their own paddle, or axáa, and participate in safety training.

Traditional Tlingit canoes are made from spruce, although some clans used cedar because it is lighter. A perfectly shaped paddle will move easily and soundlessly through the water, traits important when heading off to war – or to hunt wary seals. Tlingit paddles almost always include a v-shaped notch by the handle and taper slowly from thick to thin towards the blade’s end. Form line designs announce the bearers clan or moiety.

NPS / American University