The women then braid it into beautiful mats for qayaq s . The tall grass found in the highland land areas is used for insulating sod houses, as well as for boot insoles and bedding for camping outdoors. It can also be used in emergencies. Placing it between the skin and wet clothing prevents severe frostbite. Another grass, the blade-grass that grows along the lakes, is the diet of geese and goslings.
Mice also eat grass roots.
During fall freezeup, mice gather two kinds of grass roots on the lowlands and store them in small burrows. The tall grass root is called utngungssaaq and the small grass root is called marallaq . The people of this region, in turn, gather these grass roots to add to soup. In the highlands, mice gather a root called iitaq . By air, travelers can see thousands of lakes dotting the landscape of this region.