Basil Smith uses split spruce root to sew the seams of a new birchbark canoe . The birchbark  has been laid out on a sand building bed and staked into the shape of the canoe ; from &#x27;&#x27; Building an Algonquin Birchbark Canoe &#x27;&#x27; ; photo Henri Vaillancourt , Maniwaki , Quebec 1980