For a truly traditional kayak you would need a bunch of driftwood and several dead seals. This is not environmentally correct unless you kill the seals and eat them (every part.) Be my guest. Using commercially available cowhides, etc., is no more traditional than a fabric covering and would give you worse performance at more cost. Using found wood instead of lumberyard wood and staying as close as possible to traditional design and construction but with a fabric covering would keep you very close to the spirit and performance of a traditional craft.

: Check out Harvey Golden's pages. He comes as close as anybody else to
: traditional. He's also very helpful.