Canada, Eastern -- Description and travel -- Fiction; Outdoor life -- Canada, Eastern -- Fiction
“I’m always afraid that the one of you at home may go wolf-baiting
again, or something,” said he, “and I feel better to know you’re both
here taking care of each other.”
On a day late in March Amesbury came in from his trail with the
announcement that he had struck up his traps for the season, and they
would presently start for Winnipeg. This meant that at last they were
to turn homeward, and as much as they had enjoyed their winter they
were overjoyed at the prospect.
By prearrangement, Ahmik arrived simultaneously with Amesbury, and all
were together in the cabin during the following week while pelts were
made ready to carry to market, and the cabin made snug for Amesbury’s
extended absence.
Dan had succeeded in capturing thirty-two fine martens and Paul
twenty-six. Utilizing the wolf and other carcasses for bait, they had
also trapped five red, two cross, three blue and fourteen white foxes,
setting the traps for the foxes in common. Dan declared he had caught
twice as much fur during these few weeks as his father had ever had in
a whole winter. “And Dad’s a wonderful fine hunter, too,” said he,
“but they ain’t no such furrin’ where we lives as they is here.”
One cold, clear morning they said good-by to the little cabin on
Indian Lake, and, each hauling his toboggan, turned southward. Day
after day they traveled, through forests, over frozen lakes, across
wide barren expanses of snow.
All wore amber-colored glasses, which Amesbury provided, to protect
their eyes from the glitter, for, he explained, were they to travel
with naked eyes they would quickly be attacked by painful
snowblindness.
Now and again they were held prisoners in camp for a day or two, when
severe storms visited the country. Occasionally they killed
ptarmigans, spruce grouse, porcupines, or other small game, sufficient
to keep them well supplied with provisions.
They did not hurry, and April was well spent when they reached Moose
Lake, where Amesbury had a small hunting cabin, and, under a cover
built of logs, two Peterboro canoes and one birch canoe. The cabin
itself was small and naked of furniture, save camp cooking utensils, a
tent stove and a couple of three-legged stools. Bunks were built
around two sides of the room, which also served as seats.
“This was my first camp,” explained Amesbury. “I built it twenty years
ago. There’s a Hudson Bay post down the lake, and in those days I
didn’t want to wander too far from a base of supplies. I come in here
and do a little bear trapping after I leave Indian Lake, and every two
or three years take a run down to Winnipeg in a canoe. I take some of
my provisions in from here, and get some from your old friend Davy
MacTavish.”
Here they went into camp, and before the ice in the lake broke up made
a snowshoe trip to the post, where flour, sugar, pork and other
necessities were purchased and hauled back on toboggans.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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