Men waited for favorable weather and ocean conditions and then paddled out, eight in a canoe. They timed their departure so that they would arrive on the whaling grounds at daybreak. Paddling silently, whalers studied the breathing pattern of their quarry. They knew from experience what to expect. As the whale finished spouting and returned underwater, the leader of the hunt directed the crew to where it would next surface. When the whale rose, the paddlers held the canoe just to its left, their speed matched to that of the animal. As the back broke the surface, the harpooner struck and the crew instantly paddled backward, putting all possible distance between the canoe and the wounded prey so as to avoid the thrashing tail flukes.
A hit in the shoulder blade interfered with use of the flippers and slowed the whale. Floats of sealskin blown up like huge balloons were attached to the harpoon line to slow down the whale. Harpoons weren’t intended to kill the whale, but to secure the sealskin floats to them until they tired themselves and could be fatally lanced. Shafts of yew wood measured 12 to 18 feet long. The heavy wood added to the harpooner’s thrust to help the blade pierce deeply. Splices in the shaft deadened the springiness to permit for further penetration. They also let the shaft break rather than hit the canoe repeatedly if the whale rolled.
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