Fish netting, ulu training, gas delivery
(Attn Boyd Staff: Hello! and notice Heidi's t-shirt below.)
A couple of days ago I helped set up this elaborate fish netting system. The result has been about twenty-five fish a day. It's great! Every evening at 5:30 a few of us (whoever can make it) meet on the beach, pull in the net, and untangle the fish (as shown below). Today we caught twenty-four. You can see Neffy in the background trying to help.
After we gather all of the fish, we set the net again to catch fish for the next night and day. Usually we use fillet knives, but today we received a special treat from one of our future students, ulu lessons. Below is a picture of the ulu that we used to cut today's haul. This traditional knife is still preferred by all the native peoples in this region.
Most of the our fish preparation so far has been done by men, but it is Yupik tradition that the women do all of the meat preparation. In fact, little Yupik kids always laugh at Nick and me when we are filleting. Heidi has done her fair share of work, but just to help her out with some of the customs, a local offered to give ulu lessons.
Below: Our new friend showing Heidi how to use the ulu.
Above: Heidi dove right in.
Above: That's our school in the background. I'll get more pictures later I promise.
Below: Heidi's first ulu prepared salmon fillet. Looks pretty good. The ulu's curved blade and handle placement, as well as the new way that we learned to cut the meat, really helps save a lot of meat. Ulu prepared fillets are the thickest.
Below: On another note, here is a picture of the tug, barge, and tanker that delivers gas to all the Bush villages on the coast. It showed up yesterday morning. Notice the gas truck parked on the barge. I'm sure that the hull of the barge was holding gas as well, because they filled up several large tanks in town that day.
A couple of days ago I helped set up this elaborate fish netting system. The result has been about twenty-five fish a day. It's great! Every evening at 5:30 a few of us (whoever can make it) meet on the beach, pull in the net, and untangle the fish (as shown below). Today we caught twenty-four. You can see Neffy in the background trying to help.
After we gather all of the fish, we set the net again to catch fish for the next night and day. Usually we use fillet knives, but today we received a special treat from one of our future students, ulu lessons. Below is a picture of the ulu that we used to cut today's haul. This traditional knife is still preferred by all the native peoples in this region.
Most of the our fish preparation so far has been done by men, but it is Yupik tradition that the women do all of the meat preparation. In fact, little Yupik kids always laugh at Nick and me when we are filleting. Heidi has done her fair share of work, but just to help her out with some of the customs, a local offered to give ulu lessons.
Below: Our new friend showing Heidi how to use the ulu.
Above: Heidi dove right in.
Above: That's our school in the background. I'll get more pictures later I promise.
Below: Heidi's first ulu prepared salmon fillet. Looks pretty good. The ulu's curved blade and handle placement, as well as the new way that we learned to cut the meat, really helps save a lot of meat. Ulu prepared fillets are the thickest.
Below: On another note, here is a picture of the tug, barge, and tanker that delivers gas to all the Bush villages on the coast. It showed up yesterday morning. Notice the gas truck parked on the barge. I'm sure that the hull of the barge was holding gas as well, because they filled up several large tanks in town that day.
