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.
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5 comments:
Well, Vickie knew Bryan was prepared and would look after himself unless something really bad had taken place.
If she had waited longer she could have taken more time to prepare and been in a position to comfortably spend a night on the trial is she got stuck.
I think these situations can be viewed like a sliver lining in a cloud so there is better communication and preparation the next time.
"The Right Stuff" by Tom Wolfe has a comparable situation of doing the opposite thing and both are right at exactly the right time. Those situations are a combination of being prepared, taking the risk when you need to and intuition...our best actions are not always the logical ones. Glad it worked out.
Glad to hear you are both safe!
I am going to start keeping a small kit bag handy to stuff in my pocket with matches, knife, compass etc.
That way the one time I actually need it, I will know exactly where it is- on the kitchen counter where I left it most likely...
Hi Vicki and Brian...I know exactly how you felt Vicki...when Trev is out on the line and he isn't back when I expect him to be I'm never sure if I should go find him or stay put. Usually, I just trust that he's held up for some reason and stay put. He has a SPOT in case there is a real 911 emergency. Plus, with the kids at the cabin with me I feel it's best to stay with them. No use us both getting stuck in the bush!
Some trapper buddies put me on to this site. Ate up an hour reading old posts, some great tales. Visited Atlin Lake fishing two years ago and looks like some real wild country.
As a trapper and bushman I've learned to depend on one guy, me. It's nice to know you've got someone back at the cabin waiting for you but you can't depend on them to rescue your butt.
Shovel, come-along, chainsaw, rope, and patience will get a guy out of most situations. Speaking from experience sometimes the worst part when you're stuck is knowing others are fretting when you're late.
Love your stories folks and will be back to check in often.
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