After thinking I'd make a fleshing beam from maple, I changed my mind and decided on a 2x6 piece of pine

October 5, 2012 – Friday

37 degrees

Pentoga Road

The wind is howling outside this morning and it seems colder than the 37 degrees registering on the thermometer. The fire is crackling in the stove and I’m about as snug and cozy as any one man can get.

Thursday was a beautiful day, supposedly our last for a while. I busied myself in the barn by fashioning a fleshing beam for the upcoming trapping season.

What is a fleshing beam? It’s a piece of rounded wood, up to four feet long, upon which a raw animal hide is placed so it can be scraped free of all fat and residue. 

It's always something. Before I could cut a piece of maple, I needed to sharpen the chain on the saw.

At first, I thought I’d make one from hardwood, maple growing here on Pentoga. I found a dead tree with a trunk the right size and cut it down (it is going to be firewood regardless) but after looking and sizing it up, decided to use a 2x6 and fashion one from softer lumber. I talked with Luke, my second son (and a much better trapper than I am) for quite sometime and he assured me soft wood should suffice.

I spent the rest of the day making the beam. I’m grateful for what wood working implements I have. The band saw is especially helpful as is the belt sander. The beam is shaped and I hope to finish the stand today.

It sure grows tiresome working with heavy magnifiers when I’m using the power equipment, but using the strong lenses is better than cutting off a thumb, something I almost did when my sight was perfect.

The late afternoon was warm and windy. I changed into shorts and walked my five-mile circuit. About a third the way through I started noticing the temperatures dropping and arrived home to a thermometer that was registering twelve degrees colder than ninety minutes previous. The temperatures are still dropping although the barometer is up slightly.

Sargie’s off early today and we’re planning to go to meet Mark and Sheri at one of the local establishments for a fish fry tonight. Sargie has off this entire weekend, a rare occurrence.

The coffee cup is empty and another log needs to be thrown on the fire.

And so are the tales from Pentoga Road…