March is just about half done, time sure flies.
Last week my son Richard watched a lady lead a horse across on the ferry. This you don’t see very often.
Livestock crossing
This brings to mind when horses were used for all transportation both riding and driving. Very seldom would you see a ferry without horses on it. Any livestock was not popular with Capt. McKinnon. When we came to Francois Lake cattle trucks were few and far between so cattle were hauled lose on the ferry. They had gates that closed up both ends of they ferry and then unloaded on the northside and trailed into town and held in the stockyards to be shipped out by rail. There was always excitement both loading and unloading.
There was a sheep rancher called Ed Nichols who ranched at Marilla and the family would trail a herd of sheep down to the ferry and taken access. This one time a couple of sheep jumped overboard into the lake. It was quite a trick to get the swimming sheep back onto the ferry but they were caught and reloaded and all went well for them. Capt. McKinnon was happy when the cattle trucks started to haul. To name some of the trucks as I remember Fred Beach, Andy Anderson, Earl Horning and Durban brothers.
If my memory serves me right I rode on the last cattle drive before the trucks took over. Peebles were one of the first who took the long hauls to Edmonton and elsewhere.
This little story goes back many years too and I wish that at that time I would have had a camera, this would never happen again. It was like a Russel painting. This was a pack train of the moving of the White Eye Jack tribe and it was a ferry load. There must have been 20 horses, some packed and some ridden. They had come from White Eye Jack reserve at Cheslatta Lake area. They did not stop for long. I met White Eye and we had a short visit as he did not speak much English.
This was the one and only big pack train I had ever seen. Where they were going to I do not know. This remains a piece of history that has gone. I just wonder if some of the older First Nations will know and maybe I will stand to be corrected – please let me know.
There is a lot of history that I wish would be brought up to speed about the First Nations people and their way of life on the Southside, now so many years ago.
I would like very much to meet any of the First Nation people who were no doubt on that journey now over 70 years ago. Please call me if you know this story at 250-692-3554.
Back in the day
In the early years of the store, keeping our store was a trading post and a meeting place as well. The ferry only made four trips a day so there was always folks waiting for the ferry. We had a big old drum heater and benches and Mothers always teapot. It was a time for some wonderful stories about the old days.
Frank Henson who was a guide and outfitter from Ootsa Lake was very interesting with some of his stories. Frank had brought a pack horse string across on the ferry from his home place on Ootsa Lake. He was going to pick up supplies from Burns Lake for their trading post on Ootsa Lake He would overnight at the landing and continue the next day. He had hobbles on his horses so they would not get away on him. Next morning one horse was gone. They looked all over but no horse and he had to have this pack horse. A man with a team told Frank that there was a lone horse with hobbles on heading south. This had to be Frank’s pack horse. So Frank caught the ferry with his saddle horse and brought it back. It still was hobbled and it had swam over two miles.
Frank said no one will believe me as it’s impossible but it really happened. So Frank finished his trip for this supplies in Burns Lake and made it back to Ootsa Lake safe and sound.
Stompin Tom
I understand that Stompin’ Tom came to Burns Lake for a concert. He was very popular and filled the hall. It kind of slipped my mind but I do remember taking it in. We used to get quite a lot of traveling entertainers stop over and put on a show.
In those days before there were amps and all the fancy speakers etc. that are in use now you had to be good and they were good. This a little story that will no doubt bring back some great memories. This was in the mid 40s or give or take a year two. The old hotel was still there.
One Sunday I had a fare in town with the cab and I saw a few folks on the walkway of the hotel and I heard a fiddle and a guitar tuning up and if there is any music I’m there. The guy on the fiddle was teamster for some logging outfit west of town and he was called by his last name Champlain, he was French Canadian I think, and the guitar player about 20 and he was an albino, not only no colour to his skin but he was blind. He came from Fort St. James and was well known for his playing guitar and singing. He played this guitar backwards to the usual.
There was a basket in front for cash donations and he really got his share. His music and singing was out of this world. He ended up with half the town there. The fiddler was also one of the best with the violin that I had heard and he had never had a lesson. Folks would ask him to play some song they wanted to hear and he would know it and play it for them.
During the summer I think these two came out to entertain a couple of times. It was no doubt a coincidence they were at the old hotel together but they gave Burns lake some really high class music for such a short time. Many years later I met a lady from Fort St. James and I asked her if she had known this young blind albino guitar player and she had known him, also he had done very well with his music. If anyone remembers these two entertainers please let me know I would like to hear, great memories.
My head is pretty good but not much room left for storage space.
Take care as the life you save could be your own. Always remember every day that God loves you and so do I.
