Subarctic natives: GAmes
In the subarctic, the natives needed many skills in order to survive. Life was harsh, but they could still enjoy themselves while helping them be successful. Some games they played were to improve hand-eye coordination, hunting or quick thinking. Boys would play snow snake in the wintertime; a game of accuracy where they took turns trying to hit a snow covered stick. A mens version of this game was axe-throwing wherethey threw axes to hit the axe of the last thrower, often embedded in a tree. The bone and stick game was an indoor game of accuracy. The object of the game was to put the stick through the hollow piece of bone attached to each other by a leather string. Young girls would play this and games with bowls and dice but most of the time they would carve wooden dolls. A very large social game, often played between two groups as a friendly competition, is the hand game. Each member of one team would have token in their fist and the other team would have to guess which fist it was in using a series of complicated hand gestures. If they got it right then the “geusee” would be eliminated until the last man was standing(or sitting). If the guesser got it wrong, then the other team would get a point. Score was kept with sticks and pegs. It may seem like a dull game, but the intensity of the players and beating of drums kept the atmosphere exiting.