Report of the First Thule Expedition 1912. 



291 



the snow. A hole is cut in the foremost end, through which the nose 

 of the sledge runner can be thrust; the rear end of the ski, however, 

 should preferably somewhat overlap the runner, projecting slightly up 

 over the heel, which makes it easier to fix securely. Along the sides 

 of the ski four or five holes are cut, close to the edge, in corresponding 

 pairs; through these are drawn the hide lashings with which the ski 

 is fastened to the runner. 



After all these preparations have been made inside, in the warmth 

 of the snow hut, the ski thus improvised is carried out to the sledge 

 and laid under its runner in a soft, thawed state, and care is then 



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Walrus-hide runner, with same in position. 



taken to see that it freezes firmly on, and exactly in the form desired. 

 The fleshy side is of course laid inward to the runner. 



The advantage of using walrus hide instead of wooden ski is 

 firstly, that it is absolutely unbreakable, even with the heaviest load, 

 and secondly, that the snow ice with which it is shod (the layer 

 of ice over the skin) holds far more securely to the hairy surface of 

 the hide than on a smooth slip of wood, which will, in colliding sharply 

 with hard irregularities of the ground, often have the shoeing knocked 

 off in big flakes. 



As soon as the hide ski, which is as a rule an inch thick, has 

 been firmly fixed to the runner of the sledge and frozen in the shape 

 desired, the next thing to be done is to cover it with a layer of ice. 



