Sometimes it doesn't take much (Mad Trapper of Rat River)

[gene_225]

Was reading an article by Col. Thomas Moore about the "Mad Trapper of Rat River" in the Jan/Feb 23 mag The Backwoodsman. It seems that the "run" was made with pretty much what he had handy in his cabin: a Savage 99 in 30-30, a sawed off Iver Johnson 16 ga, and a shortened Winchester single shot .22 plus whateverhe seemed to have in his "go bag". And he made it 240 KM in 48 days and -40 degrees (Northern Territories, Canada): Albert Johnson (criminal) - Wikipedia

[ironglow]

I ran into that story some time back.  He was truly MAD..  Perhaps he had a naturally paranoid mind, which was compounded by his spending so much time alone. (13 min historical video)

  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vy6n3A7eW2k

[gene_225]

Mad or not, it seems a feat few, if any, could do today. No fancy or prepositioned gear, just what was on hand in his cabin at the time. How many would even try it now, let alone have the internal "stuff" to try. Maybe that's actually where the "mad trapper" part comes from. I saw -55 degrees in Alaska when stationed there. The idea of 48 days of no fire, nothing but raw meat to eat, and nothing but your own body heat to keep you warm seems almost unbelievable. Tough dude. Live those types today? Not me for sure.

[ironglow]

  A "feat" for sure, but to what end?  Was he saving lives of others/  Was he standing up for other's freedoms?
    What noble thing was he doing?

   Yes, he was tough.." The idea of 48 days of no fire, nothing but raw meat to eat, and nothing but your own body heat to keep you warm seems almost unbelievable. Tough dude. Live those types today? Not me for sure."

      He is not alone, because we have perhaps all read the accounts of downed Navy fliers, or survivors from a shipwreck, who survived 20-30 days with "water, water, everywhere, but not a drop to drink".. living off what little rainwater they could catch, and the occasional fish that jumped onto their raft.

  Obviously he was quite mad... his violent temper got the best of him, and he became a fugitive.. He could have surrendered and face life in prison or perhaps execution.  As it turned out, at his own insistence,,he died of 'lead poisoning', provided free, courtesy of law enforcement.

  Here's a story of survival.
    https://www.ebay.com/itm/203029950640?chn=ps&norover=1&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-117182-37290-0&mkcid=2&mkscid=101&itemid=203029950640&targetid=12627798

[gene_225]

Guess it depends on who's account you read or believe whether he was actually a criminal at the start or a persecuted "free man" as some seem to see him. Not my thing in this case. I'm just interested in the fact of surviving that long under those conditions.

[Mule 11]

Guess it depends on who's account you read or believe whether he was actually a criminal at the start or a persecuted "free man" as some seem to see him. Not my thing in this case. I'm just interested in the fact of surviving that long under those conditions.

That is the way I see it and found it very interesting...

[Dee]

Guess it depends on who's account you read or believe whether he was actually a criminal at the start or a persecuted "free man" as some seem to see him. Not my thing in this case. I'm just interested in the fact of surviving that long under those conditions.

To me, it truly is amazing that the guy was obviously resourceful to not only exist in such an environment, but actually travel that kinda distance in it. He was not only tuff, but had to have been knowledgeable.

[gene_225]

Even today it would be tough to consider starting a trek like that.

[Casull]

Guess it depends on who's account you read or believe whether he was actually a criminal at the start or a persecuted "free man" as some seem to see him. Not my thing in this case. I'm just interested in the fact of surviving that long under those conditions.

To me, it truly is amazing that the guy was obviously resourceful to not only exist in such an environment, but actually travel that kinda distance in it. He was not only tuff, but had to have been knowledgeable.

Surviving those conditions is impressive, but the distance isn't.  That's only 3 miles a day.

[Ranger99]

I don't know
Im semi amazed at all the people
in the north that love gallivanting
around in belly deep snow in this
time period
There's no way I could make any
headway in those subzero conditions

Then again,  nobody has ever really
known whether or not the man had
supplies cached along his route or not 
or whether he was a genuine crazed
killer or just somebody that was persecuted
and harassed or exactly what

Facts get screwed up between books
and movies and such

[Dee]

Guess it depends on who's account you read or believe whether he was actually a criminal at the start or a persecuted "free man" as some seem to see him. Not my thing in this case. I'm just interested in the fact of surviving that long under those conditions.

To me, it truly is amazing that the guy was obviously resourceful to not only exist in such an environment, but actually travel that kinda distance in it. He was not only tuff, but had to have been knowledgeable.

Surviving those conditions is impressive, but the distance isn't.  That's only 3 miles a day.

So covering 3 miles a day while surviving those conditions, isn't impressive?   . I would think that surviving those conditions, and still able to travel in those conditions would make it even more impressive.