The Trapper

THE TRAPPER

By

Lloyd Antypowich

Copyright © Statement

No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including recording, photocopying, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the written permission of the publisher.

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Table of Contents

Other Books

Dedication

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

About The Author

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Other books published

by Lloyd Antypowich

A HUNTING We Did Go

Lloyd is an avid hunter, he loves the mountains, and has a great knowledge of the animals in the wilderness. This book makes the reader fell like they are riding along on the journey with him, experiencing the beauty of nature, the thrill of the hunt, as well as the animal he was stalking. Time and again, people have said, I felt like I was right there with you.

Moccasins to Cowboy Boots

This is a journey of the author’s life as he followed his dream to become a rancher. Filled with history and humor, his journey takes him from the homestead where he was born in the northern wilderness of Saskatchewan. Then moved to northern Alberta where his family logged and sawmilled. Later, he worked in the oil fields and road construction, then he became a farmer at Stettler, Alberta, and a coal miner at Elkford, British Columbia. But his dream carried him into the south Cariboo, where he bought a ranch at Horsefly, British Columbia, and become a logger to help support his dream. This is not a diary of his life, but a humorous and determined journey of a man who refused to ever accept no or can’t for an answer, until he achieved his goal.

Horns and Hair of the High Country

This is a collection of stories based on the author’s experience of these animals in the wild. An elk, grizzly, goat, sheep, and a Cariboo. Closing with a section that he shares with you some real-life experiences. These are all wilderness animals, and the book portrays how they might feel as they associate with and are confronted by humans. This book draws upon the author’s intimate experience with animals of the wild. This book will be enjoyed by those who know animals, those who are curious and young and want to learn more about the animals of the wild.

Chip OFF the OLD block

This is a tribute to the author’s daughter, Cherie Jackson Maitland. They have a very deep bond and are very much alike. Except she is a female who comes in a very tiny package, and he is a big strong man. He is constantly amazed by what she accomplishes and is delighted that she shares his love for the mountains, and loves to be out in them with her husband who is a guide and outfitter. A wonderful read about a courageous little package of dynamite, a true chip off the old block.

Louisiana Man

This is a fictional book inspired by a man the man the author spent an afternoon with while he was in his late teens. This man had lived a remarkable life and was happy to share his harrowing life stories, as well as showing off the spots in his back where buckshot still lay under the skin. The hero of this story, Tom Menzer, is the authors reincarnation of this sort of man. Tom Menzer leaves his home in Louisiana to follow his dream. This is a story in the best of historical Western tradition, filled with drama, insight into the Indian culture in the late 1800’s, the role of the white man as they pushed them aside, the struggles of a man who had a foot in both camps, and his journey into Canada to avoid the conflict. It is a tale well worth your read.

Dedication

I dedicate this book to all the Trappers old and young, but to the old ones who have tramped many miles on snow shoes and used dog teams for transportation, I take my hat off to you. You will understand this book as it was meant to be. To all the bush pilots that have flown that northern land, before all the modern equipment came available, when the compass was your main instrument. Before all the roads, seismic lines and oil development took place. And to any of you who just might have walked away from a hard landing. To all the pioneers who were brave enough to have pioneered that north country. And to the natives, that lived where few other people dared to live; you are a courageous people.

Chapter One

In the mid forty’s/early fifty’s, the town of Slave Lake, Alberta, was a sleepy little town, except for on Saturday night. That was when the Slave Lake Hotel and Bar come alive. People came from miles around to exchange stories, catch up on all the latest news, and drink a few beers.

Lesser Slave Lake itself is a big part of history. It is eighty-five miles long and sixteen miles wide, and although no one knows for sure the date of its birth, it has been around for a very long time. It is marked as a spot on the map of this planet for all to know and has facilitated life to the millions of creatures that were designed to do their part in the chain of command as the creator planned it to be. It gave birth to millions of creatures that live in the water, and on the water. It was a resting place for the migratory birds that flew on to the Arctic to nest. As to all creatures that are dependent on water to sustain their life, it did that as they came to its shores to drink. As the creator looked down on his mighty handiwork, I am sure that he was pleased as he looked at Lesser Slave Lake. It has been the starting point in life for many, including man.

It was the starting point for Bert Babcock. As he grew in life, he learned to be a great friend with the lake, just as many others did. He learned to respect it and to love it for its strength and its kindness. As a young lad, he would go to the lake and learn all about nature; the fish, frogs, bugs and beetles. It entertained him for hours. And what he did not understand, he came back and asked his dad about. His dad would say that he spent so much time in the water that he would start to grow webbed feet. As he grew older, he realized that it not only entertained him, but it was his source for food. It not only gave his family fish to eat, but it gave his dad fish to feed his little mink ranch, that in turn would enable them to buy all the other things that they needed to sustain them.

He learned to fish with a net to catch the fish that were needed to feed his father’s mink. Fishing could be a lot of fun, but also a lot of work. He would row the boat, while his father picked the fish out of the net. Sometimes it would be a big load, and if it wasn’t they would have to move the net to another spot in the lake to find a better run of fish.

His dad taught him how to trap for the mink that ran along the shore looking for any dead fish that might wash up. He also taught him how to trap the rats that lived in the marshy bays. To Bert, this was exciting and very interesting. Soon he was getting quite good at it. And that of course made his dad real proud of him. He nick-named him Trapper.

There was a little village along the lake called Wide Water, because it was the widest part of the lake. It serviced the people that lived nearby; it had a store, post office and a man that was handy at helping anyone that might need help as they journeyed through the area. There was also a boat builder, and he built sleighs and toboggans for dog teams as well. Later on, the community grew bigger, and a school was built for the young members of the population.

Joe, Bert’s dad, would get his mail and groceries at that store. It was Joe’s opinion that one-day Slave Lake would be a thriving metropolis: that people from all over the province would want to come and live by this great lake.

In the summer the lake was a source of transportation by boat, in winter it was done by dog team. The road was just a trail for horse and wagon. In the winter you could get snowed in, and in the summer and spring time you were most likely to be stuck in a mud hole. But that never stopped the aggressive pioneer that struggled to press on in search of a dream; a dream that would pave the way for others to follow, one that has opened up the northern part of our country.

Wherever there was land that people could plow up a few acers to grow a garden and feed for their animals, they would. That usually turned into way-side houses to service the people that were going to places beyond. Some stayed in little communities that were developed all along the lake. And at some locations, the land was very much suited for farming, and at those places, bigger communities developed.

In the Slave Lake community, there were trappers, mink ranchers, loggers and the mill laborers, with a healthy sprinkling of native and part natives. That made for a good mix on payday or Saturday nights at the bar. The source of income was mainly logging, milling, fishing, mink ranching, and trapping, along with the merchants that served the area. As the area opened up more with each passing year, there were people that worked on the weather stations and the construction of roads and highways to facilitate the coming of the motorized vehicles. When the second world war broke out, it encouraged the upgrading of the railroad and highways to facilitate the American Army to connect to Alaska.

Brawls and fisticuffs were a common occurrence on Saturday nights at the bar. To keep the peace, the Royal Canadian Mounted police had a detachment there as well. And they did a good job of keeping the lid on things. The Royal Canadian Mounted Police in those earlier years logged many miles with a dog team to get to places, that were inaccessible in any other way, to enforce the law.

There are stories told of the old and bold; old pioneers and trappers that braved that northern land and brought it into civilization. And after a few beers at the pub, a little more got added to each story. Some were worthy of becoming a book as they played such a dramatic part of the history of that northern land.

One such story was an Indian lady that trapped rats in the back waters at the