The Difference between being Safe or Sorry!!!

Bryan had headed out at 3:30 pm to use the new trail grader/groomer on the bottom of the trail to Walkers' Valley.  He said he would "Be Back Shortly".
Vikki had made up pizza dough for 3 L and put all the fixings on.
Now it was 5:30 and he should have been back.  It's a 2 1/2 km trip along the lake to where the trail begins up into the high valley.
Vikki had this terrible feeling........ after 5 min. her snow cloths were on and off she went along the lake in her little Tundra 300.
It's getting dark now and she could see no bright skidoo light breaking the dim.
Vikki went up the trail..... but as she passed the corral, she stopped and turned off her machine and listened.  Could she hear the 800 Skandic or what?????  It seemed she could and then she couldn't.
It is incredible how much light the snow reflects.  She could see every tree trunk for 100 meters.  
Here she was with no diesel or matches to start a fire with if she got stuck.  A new coat had come in on the heli and she had grabbed it instead of her normal coat.  It was only -7 cel.  Not terribly cold, but once she started up the hill trail she was committed.  She did have snowshoes and a flash light.
Vikki knew Bryan had diesel and would lite a fire as soon as he got cold and also he was not one too panic.
Should she go ahead..... to see what the hold up was or should she sit and wait for awhile.  She wished she had thought of the lighter before.
But now "good judgement" was needed.  She is not prepared to be way up in the Mountains alone.  Vikki decided to wait another 1/2.  
At 6:25 she had a feeling of great relief as the trees started to light up.
Bryan said he'd taken the grader up to the first Moose tree stand and unhooked it and carried on breaking trail to swamp 3 (5Km).  Everything went well until he headed back home.  He got stuck for an hour at the 1st Bridge.  He had the grader down when he went into the steep V bridge and it got held up on the 2nd bump before getting out.  The 800 Skandic was tilted down onto the grader and wouldn't go up or back.  It took a lot of shoveling.
He was only 1/8 km away from Vikki.  Vikki's machine could have towed him out.
SHE SHOULD HAVE GONE......  BUT THEN SHE SHOULDN'T HAVE!!!!


Side Notes.....   Bryan put a small container of diesel in Vikki's tundra before he left again to head back up to Walkers Valley for 5 days.
Vikki put lighters in her new coat and skidoo.
In previous years we always traveled together, but now old Hannah, our good dog, has to stay at home and so she needs someone to look after her.

The Air Strip

 The limbs of a small spruce tree work great.  They are only about 2 feet tall and soft.  Once the air strip is laid out we can keep it maintained.  So even if we get more overflow we just keep packing this same strip til it becomes hard and deep ice. 

A Fisher and A Marten

 Now... that looks like something.  
Bryan dug it out and it was a beautiful dark male Fisher.  A real old timer.  It had 5 porcupine quills still stuck in it's bottom jaw.  They were broken off but still a 1/2" long.

3000 Honda Generator..... getting ice and dirt out.

There is ice and dirt in the fuel tank.  Probably from condensation in the 5 gal jugs he fills for Vikki to use.  
This cleaning out ..... should have been done in the summer time.  Then Bryan would have been able to pour hot water in it and let it drain out the bottom and used cotton swabs to clean out the dirt......... instead of having to dismantle the whole thing.  Quite the job.

Fuel tank is in the warm cabin ..... the ice turned to water and drained out.

Bryan cleaned these with either.

Either for cleaning small parts.  It took about 3 hours to take it apart and put it back together, but there were lots of going back into the warm cabin to get his fingers working again.  The generator worked great again.  This 3000 Honda uses 1/4 the amount of fuel the 5000 Honda does.