When I first moved to Fort Simpson, I met a fella on the jobsite and we became friends. One day after work he asked me if I wanted to go out on the river with him for the weekend, do some fishing, maybe shoot a moose.
I had never been out on the river yet at that point. So I agreed instantly. The added bonus- his wife would take beckers for the weekend.
So off we go, I'm loving it we're zooming down river. I've never seen this kinda big river, so I'm fascinated.
After about three hours we come to a confluence with another river-the North Nahanni river.
Nice big gravel bar to camp on, lots of wood handy, nice mountains..perfect.
We caught a few fish, played around in the boat. Shot off a couple boxes of shells target shooting. We stayed there for three days,and didn't see a soul.
My buddy, Stan, is Inuit from WAY up north. To say that these folks don't waste words is an understatement. Long periods of quiet and isolation don't seem to bother these hearty people either. I'll admit while we were there, there were some loooong silences.
But on the afternoon of the third day, and we haven't seen another soul for days...we hear a boat motor in the distance. I can barely see it going down the far side of the river.
Stan looks at me and says in all seriousness "Jeez, busy place around here".
I burst out laughing- to me we were two guys in the middle of nowhere, and if there was someone else there, who was so far away I could BARELY see them, that was fine. I still felt isolated, away from it all.
Stan felt crowded.
It's all about perspective.
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Wednesday, March 26, 2008
okay, where was I?
oh, yeah read the previous post or this might not make sense.
The weather was getting worse, I don't know if it was snowing or just blowing snow, but I couldn't see the moon or stars or anything by this point.
I was getting a little bit nervous. I knew enough to know that if I walked by the camp, or worse the wrong direction I was done.
The boys would notice me gone at some point, but the helicopter wouldn't be able to look for me til daylight.
So I sat down for a second and tried to imagine I was looking down from above kinda like a google earth shot. I knew where I was sitting, I knew where the boulder was I had a smoke by-and the direction I had approached it from.
BOB'S YER UNCLE as I say, and off I went, secure in the knowledge that over the next eskar was the camp, by my reckoning.
Man, when I got to the top of the hill-(Jeez I still get goosebumps when I think about this!) and saw below me-...NOTHING-every direction, as far as I could see(wasn't far because of the snow)
nothing. An unbidden google earth type image popped into my mind of me standing alone in all that frozen nothing. Oddly enough, I was able to instantly push that thought aside, and convince myself that if I kept walking, til the NEXT eskar, the camp would be behind that one for sure.
I couldn't even see the next eskar and the longer I walked the more doubt started to whisper in my mind.
It sure seemed like a long time, but finally I came to the steep side of a long curving eskar I climbed to the top and there on the other side were the tents, all warm and glowing in the night.
When the wind turned I could hear the generator chugging away.
I walked down into camp, and into the kitchen tent. There were four drillers playing crib and this one guy says to me " where were you cookie?" (cookie a nickname reference to camp cook)
My knees were knocking, my face was covered with frost, "Nowhere", I told him " I just went for a walk."
The weather was getting worse, I don't know if it was snowing or just blowing snow, but I couldn't see the moon or stars or anything by this point.
I was getting a little bit nervous. I knew enough to know that if I walked by the camp, or worse the wrong direction I was done.
The boys would notice me gone at some point, but the helicopter wouldn't be able to look for me til daylight.
So I sat down for a second and tried to imagine I was looking down from above kinda like a google earth shot. I knew where I was sitting, I knew where the boulder was I had a smoke by-and the direction I had approached it from.
BOB'S YER UNCLE as I say, and off I went, secure in the knowledge that over the next eskar was the camp, by my reckoning.
Man, when I got to the top of the hill-(Jeez I still get goosebumps when I think about this!) and saw below me-...NOTHING-every direction, as far as I could see(wasn't far because of the snow)
nothing. An unbidden google earth type image popped into my mind of me standing alone in all that frozen nothing. Oddly enough, I was able to instantly push that thought aside, and convince myself that if I kept walking, til the NEXT eskar, the camp would be behind that one for sure.
I couldn't even see the next eskar and the longer I walked the more doubt started to whisper in my mind.
It sure seemed like a long time, but finally I came to the steep side of a long curving eskar I climbed to the top and there on the other side were the tents, all warm and glowing in the night.
When the wind turned I could hear the generator chugging away.
I walked down into camp, and into the kitchen tent. There were four drillers playing crib and this one guy says to me " where were you cookie?" (cookie a nickname reference to camp cook)
My knees were knocking, my face was covered with frost, "Nowhere", I told him " I just went for a walk."
lost in the barrens
When Chuck Fipke first discovered diamonds out on the barrenlands it set off a staking rush that hasn't been seen since they found gold in the Yukon.
Claim staking is a very labor intensive activity. Then once a claim has been staked and recorded, the company or individual, as the case may be, must "work" the claim. This usually means moving around the claim with a big drill, and taking core samples of the rock at certain depths to see what was there.
When working out on the barrenlands you stay in tents, big canvas tents. Usuallly four guys to a tent.
I was working as a cook and camp man. It was my first trip out on the barrens and I was jazzed!
My day started at about 4a.m. and usually ended at about 9p.m. There was nothing to do in camp, there was no TV, just books, magazines and newspapers.
One night after supper, it was about 6p.m., I decided to go for a walk and check out the lay of the land. It was just coming up on twilight but you could still see pretty good as there was not a cloud in the sky and about a 4/5ths moon just coming up. It was about -35 and there was a stiff breeze(the only kind you get out there).
So I'm walking along, the cold air biting my nose, back of my throat, and lungs.
At the end of the last Ice age as the ice sheets retreated back northward, they left behind these big, long tall piles of gravel and rock called eskars. These eskars are pretty much the only physical feature out there (no trees or anything) They wind along, stop, start, turn back on themselves. I guess I had climbed over a few went and around a few more. I figured I'd have a cigarrette and then head back to camp. I crouched down in the lee side of a boulder and lit my smoke.
As I watched the wind grab the smoke and my breath and instantly carry it away I got a funny feeling. But I didn't know why....until I looked down and saw my feet buried in the snow.
I looked at my tracks in the snow and saw them filling like a time lapse film.
I stood up and stepped out from behind the rock. My tracks were gone. shit. okay.
It was considerably darker out by this time. I kinda remembered which way I approached the boulder from, so off I went. Around the end of one eskar, over the top of the next.
I was breathing heavy, and decided to stop and have a look around, I climbed to the top of the eskar and looked. Nothing. In every direction. Right to the horizon, nothing.
My gut crunched up to the size of a walnut. I had no idea where camp was. My tracks had been obliterated by the blowing snow. I was lost in the barrens at night, in what was quickly becoming very bad weather.
Claim staking is a very labor intensive activity. Then once a claim has been staked and recorded, the company or individual, as the case may be, must "work" the claim. This usually means moving around the claim with a big drill, and taking core samples of the rock at certain depths to see what was there.
When working out on the barrenlands you stay in tents, big canvas tents. Usuallly four guys to a tent.
I was working as a cook and camp man. It was my first trip out on the barrens and I was jazzed!
My day started at about 4a.m. and usually ended at about 9p.m. There was nothing to do in camp, there was no TV, just books, magazines and newspapers.
One night after supper, it was about 6p.m., I decided to go for a walk and check out the lay of the land. It was just coming up on twilight but you could still see pretty good as there was not a cloud in the sky and about a 4/5ths moon just coming up. It was about -35 and there was a stiff breeze(the only kind you get out there).
So I'm walking along, the cold air biting my nose, back of my throat, and lungs.
At the end of the last Ice age as the ice sheets retreated back northward, they left behind these big, long tall piles of gravel and rock called eskars. These eskars are pretty much the only physical feature out there (no trees or anything) They wind along, stop, start, turn back on themselves. I guess I had climbed over a few went and around a few more. I figured I'd have a cigarrette and then head back to camp. I crouched down in the lee side of a boulder and lit my smoke.
As I watched the wind grab the smoke and my breath and instantly carry it away I got a funny feeling. But I didn't know why....until I looked down and saw my feet buried in the snow.
I looked at my tracks in the snow and saw them filling like a time lapse film.
I stood up and stepped out from behind the rock. My tracks were gone. shit. okay.
It was considerably darker out by this time. I kinda remembered which way I approached the boulder from, so off I went. Around the end of one eskar, over the top of the next.
I was breathing heavy, and decided to stop and have a look around, I climbed to the top of the eskar and looked. Nothing. In every direction. Right to the horizon, nothing.
My gut crunched up to the size of a walnut. I had no idea where camp was. My tracks had been obliterated by the blowing snow. I was lost in the barrens at night, in what was quickly becoming very bad weather.
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
just a story
When I lived in Yellowknife, I guess I had been there about a year maybe a little more. This would be about maybe 15 or 16 years ago now.(where does the time go?) Anyways I got a chance to move in to this really nice big log cabin about 8 miles outside of yellowknife, right on the yellowknife river. It was awesome. Back then even 2 or 3 miles outside of town and you were in the bush.
It was a cool place to live and I really felt like I was doing the farley mowat thing(I would take that theme to it's limits)but walking into town absolutley sucked(I once walked in to town and back 3 times in one day..at -30)but I loved it.
One of the things that I had to do was fill the water tank from the river, we had an 1100 gallon tank in the basement and we would run this great big long firehose from the tank to the river and put a pump on it and fill the tank. The house was maybe 40 yards from the river.
In the summer you would put he pump on the end of the dock, in winter you'd drill a hole in the ice.
Usually this was a two man operation, you'd need a guy at the tank in the house to yell out the window and tell you when to shut off the pump.(or you'd flood the basement)
I timed it a few times and then could pretty much do it on my own. The only trick was getting that firehose rolled up and back inside before it froze.
One day I had just finished drilling a new hole and decided to go for a walk up the river before
I filled the tank. So I started walking up the river, the ice was about 21/2 feet thick. i walked maybe thirty yards up from where I had drilled my hole and my dog stopped and started barking. I walked about ten feet more, told the dog to come, she wouldn't.
I took one more step...Bam! right through the ice! my arms caught on the ice and the current of the river started pulling me sideways under the ice. My brain never processed information so fast in my entire life. " I'm dead" I thought. "this is what kills people up here" I remember thinking. The water was so cold-I panicked, I went completely bats**t. The riverbank was only about 8 or 10 feet away and the water was about 10 feet deep. I'm splashing and gasping, the dog was on the bank barking. I got my belly up on the ice and pushed forward I grabbed some willows and pulled myself up over the bank and lay down. I instantly felt relief and then terror as I realized that even on the bank I was screwed. I was soaked, It was about -30. I honestly thought I was going to die before I got back to the cabin.
I got up and started walking my teeth were chattering and every breath came with an involuntary uunnnhhh! every breath uuunnnhhh, uuunnnhhh step after step along the bank back toward the house. My boots crunching on the snow. crunch, crunch uuunnh crunch crunch uuunnh. My footsteps and breathing giving me a rythm to focus on. crunch crunch uuuunnnh.
Finally I made it to the short hill up to the cabin. My clothes were already almost frozen stiff, I could still move my legs but it was getting harder to do.
When I got back to the house I had another problem-there was no one else home. And I couldn't open the door my hands were useless. The door had been booted in previously and repaired hastily. So I figured I could maybe bash my way in.
BANG! nothing. I swear I had tears in my eyes(I thought I was done for) But I tried again and crack! the doorframe cracked, one more time and I was in.
It took me awhile to get out of my frozen clothes, but I was okay.
It was a cool place to live and I really felt like I was doing the farley mowat thing(I would take that theme to it's limits)but walking into town absolutley sucked(I once walked in to town and back 3 times in one day..at -30)but I loved it.
One of the things that I had to do was fill the water tank from the river, we had an 1100 gallon tank in the basement and we would run this great big long firehose from the tank to the river and put a pump on it and fill the tank. The house was maybe 40 yards from the river.
In the summer you would put he pump on the end of the dock, in winter you'd drill a hole in the ice.
Usually this was a two man operation, you'd need a guy at the tank in the house to yell out the window and tell you when to shut off the pump.(or you'd flood the basement)
I timed it a few times and then could pretty much do it on my own. The only trick was getting that firehose rolled up and back inside before it froze.
One day I had just finished drilling a new hole and decided to go for a walk up the river before
I filled the tank. So I started walking up the river, the ice was about 21/2 feet thick. i walked maybe thirty yards up from where I had drilled my hole and my dog stopped and started barking. I walked about ten feet more, told the dog to come, she wouldn't.
I took one more step...Bam! right through the ice! my arms caught on the ice and the current of the river started pulling me sideways under the ice. My brain never processed information so fast in my entire life. " I'm dead" I thought. "this is what kills people up here" I remember thinking. The water was so cold-I panicked, I went completely bats**t. The riverbank was only about 8 or 10 feet away and the water was about 10 feet deep. I'm splashing and gasping, the dog was on the bank barking. I got my belly up on the ice and pushed forward I grabbed some willows and pulled myself up over the bank and lay down. I instantly felt relief and then terror as I realized that even on the bank I was screwed. I was soaked, It was about -30. I honestly thought I was going to die before I got back to the cabin.
I got up and started walking my teeth were chattering and every breath came with an involuntary uunnnhhh! every breath uuunnnhhh, uuunnnhhh step after step along the bank back toward the house. My boots crunching on the snow. crunch, crunch uuunnh crunch crunch uuunnh. My footsteps and breathing giving me a rythm to focus on. crunch crunch uuuunnnh.
Finally I made it to the short hill up to the cabin. My clothes were already almost frozen stiff, I could still move my legs but it was getting harder to do.
When I got back to the house I had another problem-there was no one else home. And I couldn't open the door my hands were useless. The door had been booted in previously and repaired hastily. So I figured I could maybe bash my way in.
BANG! nothing. I swear I had tears in my eyes(I thought I was done for) But I tried again and crack! the doorframe cracked, one more time and I was in.
It took me awhile to get out of my frozen clothes, but I was okay.
Monday, March 17, 2008
the ship
The oil lamp casts a shadow on the wall, and it dances and sways in the slight breezes that play with the flame on the wick. I notice and exhale a little harder and grin as the shadows dance.
The cool blue formica table top is cool on my cheek as I sit in the chair, with my head lain down on the table.
In an instant the wind is howling, sea spray and rain. The deck tilts wildly, then dives down forward into the trough of a wave; as it comes up the other side the wave breaks over the bow.
The sails are cracking tight overhead. A large groan and the big ship crests the wave and dives down into the next trough.
Water runs everywhere on the deck, the ship pitches suddenly to one side. A loud creaking cracking sound and the ship seems to turn in place.
My face is wet. I close my eyes.
When I open them, I'm awake, the power is back on, mom has put out the oil lamp and is making us go to bed.
When we were kids and the power would go out in the winter(it happened lots) we would use mom's old newfie oil lamps in the kitchen, and she would tell us stories about growing up in a fishing outport in Newfoundland, or maybe dad would tell a rare story from his time on the ships in the navy.
That dream I had was SOOO real at the time(I was like 5 or 6 yrs old). I kind of thought that little ship was maybe magic or something.
And since all I have to do is look at it, and I'm that little kid again for a second or two, I guess it kinda is. it's my most prized possesion. my talisman.
Sunday, March 16, 2008
Why?
Good question. Honestly I think it's because of all the hours I spend at work when I'm not busy.
Lots of time to think and read and then think about what I've read.
I guess I'll probably just ramble on about some of the crazy stuff I think about as well as some of the normal mainstream things that I'm sure we all think about.
I read a lot of books about history,both modern and ancient. Religious history (I know weird, huh?) Astronomy and theoretical physics.
So I'll be yakking about everything from ancient cave art, to the theory of faster than light travel,with a few childhood reminiscences thrown in for good measure.
I also may at times comment on current events, but I'll try keep that to a minimum.
no promises though.
I guess I'm hoping that maybe this blog will help me tidy up the messy mind of a fool.
Lots of time to think and read and then think about what I've read.
I guess I'll probably just ramble on about some of the crazy stuff I think about as well as some of the normal mainstream things that I'm sure we all think about.
I read a lot of books about history,both modern and ancient. Religious history (I know weird, huh?) Astronomy and theoretical physics.
So I'll be yakking about everything from ancient cave art, to the theory of faster than light travel,with a few childhood reminiscences thrown in for good measure.
I also may at times comment on current events, but I'll try keep that to a minimum.
no promises though.
I guess I'm hoping that maybe this blog will help me tidy up the messy mind of a fool.
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