during the summer months, the inuit were able to gather berries and roots to eat. they also collected grass to line their boots or make baskets. often the food they found or killed during the summer was put into a "cache" for use during the long winter. a cache was created by digging down to the permafrost and building a rock lined pit there. the top would be covered with a pile of rocks to keep out the animals. it was as good as a freezer, because the food would stay frozen there until the family needed it. inuit cultural traditions and traditional stories provided each new generation with the lifeskills and knowledge to survive their environment and work together. they usually moved around in small groups looking for food, and sometimes they would get together with other groups to hunt for larger animals such as whales. the men did the hunting and home building, and also made weapons, sleds, and boats. the women cooked, made the clothes, and took care of the children. children and infants under the ages of 5 became easy victims of hypothermia, and if they were to die, their mothers would weight the children's corpses with stones and wrap them in fishnets before placing the bodies through holes in the ice. the mothers believed the children's souls were being offered to the god phallus, who would reincarnate them as whales.