Into the Rockies
Chapter 2
Jacob Silver had lived up high in the Rocky Mountains for so long that he almost had forgotten his own name. He had left home at the young age of 18 after a lifetime of trailer park living that left much to be desired. The open mountains that he explored behind the trailer park as a kid were much more appealing to him than anything the town of Rocky Foot had to offer.
After dropping out of school and working his tail off as part of a groundskeeping crew, he took several farming, gardening, and survival classes to learn how to handle everything in the wilderness. Such classes were plentiful at the local community center. In a small mountain town like Rocky Foot, there wasn’t much else to do.
By the time he left home he was ready to go into the Rockies and never came back. He took his savings, bought a few dozen acres of mountain land with an old hunting cabin on it, and spent years converting it into his own self sufficient homestead. Now he was truly a free man who hadn’t needed to return to town in over ten years.
He hunted, fished, smoked his meats to preserve them, raised a few animals for food, leather, and fur, planted herbs and vegetables for nutrients, and collected rainwater for drinking. There wasn’t a single need that he hadn’t covered; all except one - companionship.
He managed to keep loneliness at bay with a strong love for his animals who he named and talked to daily. Caring for them like children often took his mind off of his need for human interaction. After a while he simply didn’t need humans anymore. Despite this, every so often he wondered how the town far below him was doing. As he got older, his urge to stop by just for a chat continued to grow.
He shook his head as he brushed his teeth and spit, standing naked atop his favorite nearby stump in the cool morning air.
“Who needs em!” He said to himself. “I’ve got you!” He said, turning and gazing at the massive mountain behind him. He nodded as if the mountain agreed.
He grabbed the rag soaking in a coffee can that hung by a wire over a tiny fire. It steamed from the hot water before being rubbed all over Jacob’s body for a nice hot bath. He scrubbed every crevice before placing the rag back into the can for a good rinse. He rang it out and used the remaining water to douse the fire. He then grabbed his clothes that were hanging on the line and put them on; long johns, overalls, socks, then into his old boots sitting by the cabin door.
Everything was hand made from leather he had collected over the years. He tanned the material in the summer and crafted it in the winter. He used sinew for thread and bone for hard protection on areas that needed it, such as the bottom of his boots or the buttons on his overalls.
For softer material like his long johns he used cotton from the cottonwood trees and a simple drop spinner to make yarn which he then knitted and crocheted into socks, underwear, hats, and other such garments. He did this all winter long to ensure he had plenty of clothes all year round.
He did his usual round of stretches, his daily regiment that he needed to stay limber and fit. He then proceeded to check on his animals.
First up: Four chickens and one rooster. Sally, Molly, Fran, Betty, and Roger. They all lived happily in a small coop surrounded by a sturdy fence that kept our even the toughest of predators. Jacob tossed in some seed mix for them while saying hello to each bird. He collected their eggs and set them in a hand-woven basket for his breakfast.
Next was Sugar and Duke, two KuneKune pigs that provided what Jacob called “brown gold”. Their manure was incredibly rich in nutrients and helped boost crop soil year after year. They would occasionally breed and Jacob would keep a male and female to replace the parents, while eating the others. He fed them their rations of dry grass and scratched their heads lovingly. Their home was a short, insulated shed and a sturdy pen.
Lastly was the rabbit pen, Jacob’s main source of meat and fur. They were a hardy breed of Mountain Cottontails that reproduced quickly and were an incredibly important staple in their survival. They lived in a well protected pen that had a small, insulated hutch on the back corner where the rabbits could sleep peacefully.
The life and death cycles of his animals was the closest thing he had to a religion. He was very grateful for the sacrifices that each of them made to prolong his survival, and he treated them like family for it.
“Who needs humans when I’ve got you guys?” He said to himself as he gently pet a baby bunny with his index finger. The creature sat peacefully as it enjoyed the sun on the cool spring day. Suddenly its ears perked up, and all the rabbits sat up with their ears pivoting in the wind. They had heard something nearby.
The fluffies had awoke under the shed and the mother desperately tried to keep her babies quiet by tucking them into her belly fluff while curling inward with her tail hiding the little fluffpile. They were too young to understand the danger that their excited peeps, chirps, and squeals put them in.
Meanwhile the stallion father guarded the entrance hole, peering outward from the inside to make sure that the coast was clear. He swallowed the nervous lump in his throat as he dared to peek outside to see if anyone had heard the babies’ noises.
For a brief moment he was able to peek out just in time to see a large man clad in animal hides come around the corner. The stallion quickly backed away from the hole in terror and back up against the mare, shielding her with his body.
The creature moved too fast for Jacob to get a proper look.
“Ah hell.” He muttered to himself. “The possums must be back. Better clear em out.”
Jacob didn’t like the idea of killing innocent creatures, but possums were known for eating chickens and their eggs. He couldn’t take the chance of them hurting his livestock.
He stepped into his cabin for a moment before emerging with his Ruger 10/22 varmint rifle. He loaded the gun, the extra ammo jingling in his pocket, and slowly approached the back of the shed.