The trip out to the trapline was a lot different last fall than we’ve ever experienced before. We had to leave a lot later than usual because of Tyler working for Charlie doing moose guiding for Double Shovel Outfitters. Tyler’s Dad, Uncle and good friend Scott came up for another visit and we had to figure out how to make that happen logisitcally which isn’t easy. As the moose season dragged on so did a run of bad weather and it was Sept. 21st before Tyler was done guiding, meanwhile I was in town with the kids wrapping all loose ends up for the winter. This might be hard for some people to follow. Some may not be interested but I am going to attempt to paint a picture of what a logistical pain in the ass our lives can be at times… I don’t know what it says about us, but we keep doing it year after year.
The master plan for the fall logistics sounded somewhat doable with not a moment to spare. Tyler was hopefully going to get done guiding by the 18th or 19th. His Dads party was going to fly in from Nebraska on the 19th. Tyler was going to do his best to get on the river with a load of dogs and gear by the 20th. We had 3 airplanes chartered for the 21st 22nd and 23rd, enough space to cover the extra people and the winter supply of goods. The plan was that Tyler would be up at our trapline before any of the charters came in because obviously, I wasn’t going to fly out there with a new baby and a toddler alone. The only place to land near our cabin right now is across the river and nearly a mile away. We have a canoe on the airstrip side of the river but it takes some real work to get it down to the river because when we put it up for the winter we put it back in the woods off the main channel quite a ways to make sure it wont get ruined or washed away in the springtime floods. I would be in a pretty bad position to be out there alone with the babies with a river to cross, a cabin to open up and in bear country. Scott was to boat up with Tyler and help with those details. Danny, and Uncle Bob were going to be on one of the charters and weren’t fond of going up alone before Tyler got there either since they are getting up there in age and Danny doesn’t get around very well anymore.
Our plan had no wiggle room and the charters were pretty rigid since air charters are booked up during hunting season. You can cancel your flight but you aren’t going to get another chance to book a plane for a while. The 19th rolled around and Tyler was still stuck out with his hunter in bad weather. His Dads party flew in from Nebraska and got ready to go. Still no Tyler. The 21st came and I chose to use the 1st charter for gear I didn’t worry about bears getting into like some building supplies, more traps, a new sled, etc. I sent it out with a new tarp for the pilot to cover it up with. Tyler finally made it in after what seemed like endless foggy conditions that same evening. We chose to cancel the Charter on the 22nd. At this late in the game Tyler could not be up at the trapline with the boat in time to meet either of the remaining flights and I was absolutely not going up at that point. You see, there was going to be a whole other set of logistics to get the boat back downriver after fishing season and we had to get the visitors out to go home eventually also . This was all happening very late in the season and more could still go wrong. Snow was already in the forecast and the rivers could start icing up at any point that close to October. From where I saw things, Tyler would likely rush to get the boat back to town leaving me with the inlaw,s who were planning on flying out of the trapline on the same plane Tyler would fly back out to the trapline in after putting the boat back up in town.( Side note; we bring the boat back to town in the fall for a few reasons one being it would be a major pain to get a boat that heavy stored safely for winter another being that it has to come back out eventually because we use it to freight our supplies in. We could spring out with the boat sometime but that would mean staying out at the trapline till mid May, which would cut into gardening season among other things.) So the way I saw things, if I flew to to trapline with the inlaws, and Tyler took the boat to town and got stuck in Fairbanks because of weather, I would be on the trapline alone with two babies and my inlaws for possibly weeks, maybe even a month! Heck no! (I know I sound like a brat but you don’t know my inlaws haha) I would stay in town and fly out to the trapline with Tyler after fishing season. His family would stay out at the trapline and take care of the dogteam when he boated back to town, which is the job I normally do.
A night at the Central Hotel
There was no way Tylers dad and Uncle could make it out to the trapline if they didn’t take the last flight, the flight on the 23rd. There just isn’t enough room or weight allowance in the boat with our dogs and gear to get upriver with the jet motor which is about the only way to get up to our part of the river. You might do ok with a prop in high water but it is a tough river to navigate and has a solid rock bottom. With only one day to recuperate and pack to go upriver Tyler left with Scott in the boat the morning of the 23rd. Danny and Bob didn’t have much choice if they wanted to visit the trapline. They had to take the flight and figure out how to make it up to our cabin alone and wait for Tyler to get there with the boat which takes 2 days minimum. They were a little worried about bears and they were also nervous about finding our hidden canoe and crossing the river. They pulled it all off but not without a good story to tell. Once they landed at the airstrip they had no problem finding our canoe and packing their gear over to load it up. Once they launched into the river they started arguing about the most affective method to paddle and make their target, a little slough that runs back up towards our cabin sight. You can just imagine two old grumpy brothers yelling at each other in a canoe in a stressful situation. They missed their target. The worry about missing their target was that Danny REALLY doesn’t get around well, walking up to our cabin from further down river wasn’t much of an option for a guy who doesn’t walk well around the house let alone through bush Alaska! Bob pretty much jumped out of the canoe with the ropes and pulled Danny and the canoe back up to the slough where he planned on lining the canoe up to our cabin. The current was so powerful Bob wanted Danny to get out of the canoe to reduce weight. That’s when Danny fell into the water and claims he nearly drowned he had such a hard time getting his footing and shocked by the icy water.
Tyler reading the kids a story at the central Hotel
Tyler made it up there and they all had a nice time and did the fishing. Tyler drove the boat to town around October 1st as the first shore fast ice was starting to form. We spent a few days closing down our town cabin and then we were ready to go once again. Charlie was done with his flying for the guiding season and agreed to fly us out but his airplane was in Central Alaska. He had been shuttling loads in and out of Central to avoid the White Mountains during bad weather. As it turned out the weather took a turn yet again and we were having trouble even driving through the white mountains to get to Central and the airplane. Eagle summit can get really nasty and the road was closed and blocked off three days in a row. On the day we tried driving during good weather, we left town, and by the time we got to the gate 2 hours later it was blowing and closed down for the night once again and we had to drive back to Fairbanks and open our cabin up yet again. The next day we decided to leave early and follow a plow if we had to. We would get to Central too late to do any flying so secured a couple rooms at a little ramshackle Inn they have there. It was already October 12th and just felt like an epoch fall journey to get our family reunited and back to the trapline. The road was good that next afternoon and we made it to the Inn and had fun visiting with Charlie one last time before the winter. Tyler and I each slept with a baby in the single beds and finally had a beautiful day to fly the next morning. After dropping us off on our gravel bar airstrip Charlie dropped Tyler’s Dad off in Central to drive his truck back to town and he had enough time left in the day to get his airplane back to Fairbanks where it was awaiting it annual inspection.
Charlie dropping us off at our trapline airstrip last fall
At last we were alone on our gravel bar with two babies. The first thing Sydney said when she got out of the airplane was”Wheres my fishin pole!?” I had to admit just getting from the airstrip to our cabin seemed like an ordeal with two kids that young. I laid Blaze down in the snow next to the river and put his life jacket on and then Sydneys. I have a sobering fear of babies and rivers because of Heimo and Ednas misfortune. They have to wear life jackets no matter what the distance. I am willing to pay top dollar for the best ones. After we crossed the river Sydney rode in a sled that Tyler pulled gear up to the cabin in and I wore Blaze in a front backpack and had a duffel bag to carry in each arm. There is another slough in front of our cabin to wade across and then we were finally there. A family in the woods for a snuggly winter on the trapline. Voila, so easy, nothin to it.
Hang in there everyone. Corvid-19 will pass eventually and hopefully we are all learning something from the experience. For us isolation is the norm. I can’t really give any advice for extroverts out there except to say you can get used to just about anything with a little time and an open mind. Its good to have a routine in your day. Find a craft or something to do. Get outside for a little bit everyday if your able to. Dont feel sorry for yourself. Think of people less fortunate then yourself if you start feeling the self pity coming on. We are busy sewing and creating as well as working on garden plans and playing with the dogs. We go for a family walk every afternoon pulling the kids around in a sled for their nap time. In the next article I will talk about trapline food and food storage as well as share a treasured recipe. I figured it seems like a relevent topic for people right now. Stay tuned.
Shameless plug. I know finances may be tight for some right now but if you know anyone at all interested in the type of stuff we sell in our store please refer them our way. Also we are willing to do custom work so if you have any ideas let us know at tyseldenfur@gmail.com Also wanted to let people know who hesitate to subscribe to things online, I don’t ever plan on sending out junk email or solicitations only notifications for when I write a post on my blog. I write at random and that way you wont miss a story. Please share my blog with people who might find us interesting.
Wolf ruff for coat hood by Ashley Selden
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