The Trek: Darwin's World, Book II (The Darwin's World Series 2) (28 page)

And they would need to move faster if they were to reach the western mountains in time to build permanent shelters before winter.

#

Matt considered what to do if there wasn't time to find that perfect location he had in mind. Could they stay here, near the river? Perhaps build shelters on one of the ridges? Maybe they could drag timbers into place to serve as a hasty protective barrier around the camp?

Carrying water up the slope would be a chore, but at least they were no longer threatened by human enemies. The river might flood and there was no telling how severe the winter might be around here, and there would always be danger from animals. But the predators had kept their distance, at least so far.

How much food was available in the vicinity? How hard would it be to build shelters that could protect them through the winter?

The tribe would be in much better shape to continue next year, but after spending fall and winter near this river, would they want to? Would they choose to improve this location rather than look for something better? It was preferable to the place they'd left, but still not easy to defend, even if they built on the high ground atop a ridge.

No; they wouldn't stay here, although stopping and constructing temporary winter quarters farther west might become necessary. They should be able to reach the place where the downtime city of Albuquerque stood if they could begin moving within two or three weeks. A river ran through there too, and natives had farmed and ranched in that area long before the Spanish came. The climate was not severe, not quite the warm winters of El Paso to the south, but still rarely dipping to zero on the ancient Fahrenheit scale. Nights were cold, followed by days where the temperature rebounded thirty or forty degrees. The nearby mountains would provide shelter from prevailing winds if the tribe chose their location carefully. And if that place couldn't be reached in time, there were two other options to consider.

The tribe would need a reliable water source and a sheltered location wherever it settled; if they found a place that provided those things, it might have to do. The tribe could build durable shelters of stone or earth, not difficult if everyone pitched in. They would have time afterwards to collect food and furs for bedding, then store everything in case the winter should prove more harsh than was the norm downtime.

Two other locations might work if this country was similar to what existed downtime; the small West Texas town of Balmorhea was near the location of a huge spring that never failed, and south of there lay the Big Bend country. It was desert downtime, but probably temperate and lightly-forested on Darwin's World. There were numerous mountains and canyons there that probably contained the sort of location Matt wanted. Either location could be made to serve as a permanent home for the tribe.

Yes. It could be done. Matt would talk to Colin, Sal, and Lee tomorrow and see what they thought.

Chapter 25

Tex had spent two weeks preparing. The steep-walled gully now had partial obstructions, fences made by dragging and piling trees and brush into place. Openings had been left, but more vegetation was piled nearby in readiness to complete the fencing.

Best of all, Tex had spent late evenings by the fire braiding reatas, the rawhide ropes used by cowboys throughout the west. Mexicans had made the first ones, but American cowboys had adopted them soon after. Incredibly strong, thin, and lightweight, they served a variety of uses.

Tex had begun by preparing the raw skins. A string served as his drawing aid to produce the largest circle possible given the size of the skins. The circle told him how large to dig the shallow hole he needed. An elk, two stag-moose, and a lion had provided the skins.

In each case, Tex used a shallow hole dug into the ground to prepare the raw skin for de-hairing. Placing the skins so that the center portion lay in the hole, flesh side down, he weighted the edges with large stones. The skins would serve as the waterproof liner. Tex added water to his makeshift basin, leaving room for the next step.

Raking hot stones from the campfire, he added them to the water and let the skin soak. Half an hour later the softened skin was ready and Tex began ripping away huge swaths of hair.

Between hunting, preparing meals, and preparing the hides, Tex made an improved slicer using a sliver of steel, a gift from Piotr. After shaping the steel by rubbing it on sandstone, he sharpened the edge using a variety of small stones. Finally, he wedged the steel blade into a split at the end of a sturdy branch, leaving a slightly-hooked blade that was razor-sharp on the rear edge. Tying the split firmly closed, he decided the slicer was as good as he could make it.

Tex prepared a rawhide circle by soaking it in cool water until it was soft and pliable. Beginning at the edge, he carefully began pulling the skin into the slicer blade, trying to keep the thin strip a quarter of an inch wide. He continued the cut, slowly spiraling in toward the center of the hide. He was patient and worked slowly; a mistake now could ruin the thong.

Patience helped, but he made mistakes until he mastered the technique. The first circle made useful tie-strings, but the mistakes meant they weren't long enough to be plaited into a strong rope. The second attempt at cutting a single, long thong went much better.

The steel blade of the slicer required sharpening occasionally. Tex trimmed the laces after the initial slicing when they were too wide, this time using the belt knife that had been a gift from the Futurist. He stretched the finished thongs between small trees to dry.

A simple four-strand plait would work. Downtime rawhide artists sometimes used six, even eight thin strands, but Tex had never learned their techniques. Still, the four-plait was simple enough that a child could do it. The trick lay in pulling the strands tight before moving to the next plait. Lay one strand loosely across the end, secure it in place with the next strand, repeat using the third one, then do the same with the last strand, pulling it under the folded thong he'd started with. The final strand locked the previous ones in position, and pulling all the elements tight into a square meant the plait wouldn't unravel. As for the square corners, they would become worn and rounded in use.

Finally, everything was ready. Two reatas, hung from tree branches by grass cords, waited near the trees and brush Tex had piled to create a partial barrier across the gully.

Tex put water and jerky into his small pack and prepared for the ordeal.

He had two choices, and either might allow him to catch most of the horses. The preferred method was the join-up technique popularized by Monty Roberts, once called the 'horse whisperer'. During his downtime life, Tex had learned as much as he could from what Roberts had written. If it worked, Tex could corral all the horses in the band and take his time training them to be riding stock.

The alternate method was more a brute-force approach, try to drive the horses into the trap. This was much more difficult for a lone man on foot, and might not be successful.

Tex turned away from the sod house and trotted toward where the horses were grazing after their morning drink.

#

The oldest mare of the band spotted him first and her shrill whistle alerted the others. The stallion responded by placing himself between the small band and Tex. They watched as he trotted toward them, bow in his left hand, reata swinging in his right. The horses stood nervously until the mare pealed her alarm, then all of them pelted away down the gully. As expected, they climbed rapidly up the trail and vanished as soon as they reached the flat ground above. Tex kept trotting and saw the horses in the distance as soon as he topped the gully’s wall.

He knew he wouldn't catch them today and probably wouldn't do so tomorrow. But if he could make Roberts' method work, perhaps on the third day he could begin returning to the small sod shelter. Meanwhile, he had miles of running to do.

#

Matt and Lee had started west at dawn and soon spread apart to cover more ground. Slipping silently through the scattered trees, they watched for game, and danger.

Each knew where the other was. Occasional glimpses seen through the trees were enough to ensure their paths remained close, and either could break off his hunt and help the other as needed.

Lee pulled slightly ahead and bent his course to intercept Matt.

"Big hill to the northwest, Matt."

"Might be deer or elk up there. They like to bed down high up where they can watch for predators."

"That's what I was thinking. Gets them away from the flies too. And they like the cool breezes this time of year. We could go up from two sides, catch anything that spotted one of us and decided to leave."

Matt nodded. "You want to go in from the north while I take the south slope?"

Lee finished drinking from his gourd and replaced the stopper. Nodding, he slipped away leaving Matt to work out his own approach to the hill.

He found Lee waiting halfway up the slope.

"See something?"

"Looks like a dozen or so stag-moose, Matt, bachelor bulls I think. They know I'm here, probably know you're here too by now. Our scent will be rising ahead of us."

"We'll stay together from here on, then. They're too dangerous to hunt alone, and we need to spot them before they see us. And a big tree is always better than a small one if they get antsy!"

Lee grinned at Matt's comment and moved away up the hill, crouching slightly in readiness. The animals were always dangerous, but likely not as aggressive this time of year as they would become during the rut.

One animal would be enough; just getting a carcass down the hill was a big task for two men. Lee could have the first shot, and Matt would try to put an arrow into the same animal if it didn't drop immediately.

The small herd of bulls was noisy, making small cracking noises as antlers brushed a branch and snorting from time to time. There was also a faint musky smell, not unpleasant, indicating the animals were close ahead. Matt tensed and eased a step closer to Lee, both men now paused, taking a slow step, then hesitating before resuming their slow advance. Up ahead the noise suddenly stopped.

Matt felt a sudden uneasiness. "Lee! Tree!"

Following his own advice, he swarmed up the tree he'd selected. Finally stopping some twelve feet up, he looked to the tree Lee had climbed. Just as Matt had done, Lee now braced his feet on large branches and leaned slightly back against the trunk, waiting for a shot.

Below them the branches stirred and a huge bull stag-moose prowled into the space they'd just abandoned, head down to sniff, antlers ready to lift and kill. Others followed closely behind the massive lead animal. Matt slowly lifted his hand to get Lee's attention, then shook his head at Lee; let the big one pass, take one of the trailing animals.

Lee nodded his understanding. Below the two men the bulls sniffed the ground. Fortunately for Lee and Matt, they had little to fear from predators in the trees so paid no attention to the branches where the two stood, feet braced.

Lee finally picked the animal he wanted and slowly drew back his bowstring.

Matt followed the direction the arrow pointed and selected a point of aim on the same animal. He waited for Lee's shot, concentrating only on the stag-moose. The animal was some thirty yards away from Lee and probably at least forty yards from Matt. The footing in the tree wasn't ideal, but Matt shot as soon as he heard Lee's bowstring twang.

The young bull staggered, then plunged ahead. The rest of the herd bolted as soon as they smelled the fresh blood. Matt listened to their antlers cracking against brush as the remaining animals fled; the sounds soon died away in the forest.

Below them the animal kicked and died. Matt waited. Lee watched and waited too, although he was less patient than Matt. The bull wasn't going anywhere.

Matt scanned the area, looking for threats. Finding nothing near, he looked farther out. The elevation gave him a good view of the short-grass plains off to the west. Grasses here were different, not the chest-high plants that had been so dangerous before. The local varieties were more bunch-grass than the tall grasses of the east, rarely rising more than knee high here. Not tall enough to hide a large predator while still providing plenty of forage for grazers; Matt much preferred this western type of grassy plain.

The dark colors of the horses might have escaped his attention had they been grazing, but they were trotting northwest and his eyes immediately picked up the movement. Curious, he looked behind to see what had alarmed them.

"Lee...look over there, way out. See those horses?"

Lee looked where Matt was pointing. It took only moments before he called back, "I see them, Matt. But we've already got plenty of meat."

"Not thinking of hunting, Lee. Look behind them, maybe a quarter mile or so."

Lee scanned the area behind the trotting horses before finally spotting what Matt had seen. "Matt, that looks like Tex."

"That's what I think. But he's never going to catch those horses. I wonder what he's up to?"

"No idea. Are you ready to climb down and dress out that bull?"

"It should be safe enough. Let's do it."

Matt was thoughtful and looked off to the west where they'd seen Tex. Maybe he wasn't looking for horsemeat after all.

#

Sal and Colin had found a huge tree only a few hundred yards northeast of the camp. A small creek flowed past the tree before joining the river a few hundred yards downstream. Beavers had constructed a dam and built their lodges in the shallow pool behind the obstruction. The large tree had been killed by the gnawing rodents but for some unknown reason they hadn't finished the task. The dead tree still stood, girdled but with the trunk still intact. There was no sign of the beavers and no recent tracks on the bank. Perhaps a predator had interrupted the construction job.

In any case, the tree was ideal, even if felling it might prove dangerous.

"What do you think, Sal?" The two men looked at the tree and considered how they could bring it down in the most convenient position for working later.