9.16.22 Friday
9.16.22 Friday
Mouse Trapline Tally: 7
(Total to-date for this year!)
Let's catch up!
So it was 39 degrees this morning when I got up. Winter is definitely coming...
Since we last visited, there has been some adventure, for sure! Bernie and I did NOT go to the party at the Fairview last Saturday night. It has been raining so much that we decided driving the trail, having a couple of drinks, then driving the trail back in the dark just wasn't worth the trouble. There is another party for remote dwellers this coming Sunday on the actual train. They promised to pick us up at our milemarkers for free, drive up to Hurricane Gulch, food, drinks, and door prizes. The weather looks good. It should be fun!
In the meantime, over the last week...Some creature decided to chew the casing covering the wires for the connector from the generator that powers up to the house. I went to start it up one night and realized something had made a meal out of it! (I'm told it was probably a squirrel or a porcupine.) Anyhow, I duct taped it up, put mothballs and bleach around the generator, and haven't had any problems since. We'll see how long it lasts...
A guy down the trail killed a massive moose in the last few days. Orville called me to get a message to Bernie, because he needed help processing it. Bernie came back with a tenderloin and something else close to the backstraps. What a blessing! I processed it all and split it with Bernie. I have eaten on it twice and was still able to put up almost four pounds into the freezer!
Bernie and I did go into town on Wednesday because Kevin and I bought a couple of older snow machines from a guy. He was willing to bring them to the trailhead and that is how Kevin plans to ride back into the cabin after he's done working this season. I made the deal, did some errands, we ate dinner then drove back home. The trail is REALLY water-logged right now. It seems to get a little more dicey each time we go out. I told Kevin, at some point, probably early October, I will no longer do it. I am pretty fearless about a lot of things and that trail really tries me. For now, I'm guessing I may have one more trip in my wheelhouse, based on the fact that it just won't stop raining and it's starting to get colder...
Today's exercise in learning to live off-grid was definitely a challenge! We bought a snow blower last week. It was delivered on the Tundra truck yesterday. I needed to make sure it had enough oil, etc. to crawl up the hill. When I woke up this morning, it wasn't raining for the first time in days! So here was my opportunity...it's a beast of a machine...28" wide on tracks. It's awesome. The problem was the mud up the trail from the tracks. The trail is probably 1/4 mile? Anyhow, after getting all the fluids right and figuring out all the levers, I started it up the hill. I didn't engage the auger and was trying to lean on the machine with my entire body to keep the auger and bucket from gathering mud up the hill. I've lost weight (that's a good thing!) since we moved here so me throwing my entire body weight on the handles to tip it up going uphill did NOTHING to keep mud from getting into the bucket! Anyhow, with the grace of God and everything I had, I was able to walk it up the hill and get it safely into the barn. I'll have to clean the mud out of it tomorrow so it won't freeze in there and make problems later. Kevin just happened to call me right after I'd gotten it in place and still couldn't catch my breath. I told him I will be one tough sonofab**ch by the time this is all said and done and I might be slapping 20 year olds around when I'm 90! He was not amused and I don't care. He wasn't here and I got the job done. I am bound and determined to conquer this lifestyle we have chosen and will NOT let it beat me. Bring it on! 😎