Re: Braving the Cold at Heritage Festival

Ray Fletcher | Feb 25, 2016

Re: winter camping in Arden

As much as I like Julie Druker and her usual *spot on* reporting (Re: Braving the Cold at Heritage Festival), there are a few corrections that need airing about the great sub-arctic sleepover. No mention was made of Bob Miller, who was inside having his bowl of soup. Mr. Miller was really the host *Trapper* for this sleepover as Mike Procter was at home, flattened by some kind of ailment that seems to be making the rounds in our community. As for us taking care of Pat and Robin, nothing could be further from the truth! All we did for the ladies was put up the tent. Mike and I did that early Friday before Mike dragged himself off to his sickbed. My new best friend Pat, not only lent me a buffalo robe to help keep me semi liquid through the long cold night, but she was the first of the over-nighters to be up and about, tending to the fire in the early morning! She took good care of me, rather than any one of us needing to help her! Not only that, but the wonderfully generous lady made me a gift of the life-saving buffalo robe that brought me through the endless, frigid night. Also worth mentioning for her kind watch over me was *firefighter/first responder Sue, who made sure that we, at all times had a proper roaring camp fire to help keep back the chill, and hovered over me like a guardian angel to make sure I had a blanket around my shoulders and did not develop into a hypothermic ice sculpture. There were many kindnesses from many wonderful new friends that turned a stupid idea into a memorable adventure. And Bob Miller, as he promised my sister, did not let me die! Bob also, very generously, has given me, over the past several years, many of the clothes, equipment and blankets etc. that allow me to be the usually un-named third trapper in the Miller-Procter camp. I would not have missed it for the world - and "I ain't never doin’ it again!"