Use and fitting of Qoorutit

Whether you always use a Greenland paddle or you bring it along as your spare paddle a Paddle Qoorutit will let you benefit from your Greenland paddle in more ways.
The Qoorutit can be fitted in different ways depending on you deck setup and in some cases a couple of new deck fittings might be needed. The Qoorutit works by means of friction created by the exterior of the Qoorutit. Normal polyester or nylon rope will be too slippery and will not work.

After fitting the Qoorutit you need to adjust the rope so the paddle is kept tight when the qoorutit is pulled apart.
Generally speaking the Qoorutit works best the flatter your deck is. It can be fitted in front of your cockpit but most prefer it fittet on the back deck just behind the cockpit where it is easy to operate and does not interfere with paddling.

Why a Paddle Qoorutit

A paddle Qoorutit enables you to climb onto the back deck in settled weather to 'stretch your legs' or reach your back hatch without having to land. In a Greenland kayak a paddle float is often unnecessary because of a Qoorutit. This way a paddle is fitted perpendicular to the kayak creating a ‘prop stand’.
Entering a kayak by the use of a paddle float can be a time consuming and demanding experience especially in cold wavy conditions. It takes great skill, balance and practise inflating a paddle float when lying in cold water is a less than optimal experience. By use of a Paddle Qoorutit entering a kayak becomes easier and more importantly faster with or without a paddle float. You simply push the paddle under the Qoorutit and tighten the system by pulling the wooden pins toward the gunwales. It usually takes less than 10 sec. to achieve great stability. Of equal importance is the fact that a Qoorutit can be operated with cold fingers making it invaluable when entering narrow kayaks with small cockpits.

Historical back ground

GreenlandPaddle Qoorutit is a modern type of the qoorutit used by Inuit for centuries. Traditionally the qoorutit was made of bone and seal skin and came in many different variations. The system was versatile and was used in a wide variety of situations and conditions where the hunter was in need of additional stability. The qoorutit enabled the hunter to use both hands which was often needed after having harpooned the prey. Also when the hunter had to pee or tie a seal to the deck it was a most practical device at hand.

For the Inuit the kayak was a hunting platform where all thinkable – and unthinkable – situations that could happen to a seal hunter had to be dealt with while afloat. For example kayaks were used to carry people over lakes or rivers on the deck of kayaks tied together. The same system was used then getting a polar bear back to camp in East Greenland. Here the kayaks were arranged in parallel so you could still paddle with the polar bear lying across the fore and afterdeck of the two kayaks. When two kayaks are fitted with qoorutit you can turn two kayaks into a catamaran stable enough to stand up in. Useful in many situations when you need to 'stretch your legs', use a sail or like a cup of afternoon tea on the after deck on longer outings. Entering the low riding Greenland kayaks becomes a breeze with a Paddle Qoorutit.