The Journey Home (19 page)

When boiled in water, arrowleaf balsamroot can help boost the immune system. Native Americans also used the roots and shoots for cooking, and even the young stems make for a quick, nutritious snack.

Some parasol mushrooms are edible, but get the wrong one, and it can prove deadly. NEVER EAT it if it has green gills or a green spore print. They are very poisonous and can even result in death. Always triple-check when dealing with the parasol.

Ingredients:

4 cups of mixed berries (blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, strawberries)

juice from 1 lemon

¹
/
₄
cup of water

2 cups of flour

1 tbsp. of baking powder

a pinch of salt

1
¹
/
₂
cups of milk

1 stick of butter

1 tbsp. cinnamon

2/3 cup of sugar

Directions:

Wash and drain mixed berries.

In a large bowl mix the berries with sugar, lemon juice, and a splash of water.

In another bowl, mix flour, baking powder, and salt. Add milk and mix until batter is smooth.

Place the Dutch oven over the heat. Melt the butter.

Pour the batter over the melted butter, without stirring. Add spoonfuls of the berry mixture on top of the batter and sprinkle with cinnamon.

Put the lid on the oven and cook for 45–60 minutes, until the top is golden brown.

1. Find or build a mound of hardened, compact snow.

2. Take sticks and lay across the snow pile. These will be the rafters of the cave's ceiling.

3. Dig down into the side of the snow mound to create an entrance to the snow cave.

4. Then dig upward to create a sleeping area. The coldest air will fall down toward the door, creating a heat trap in the raised sleeping area.

5. Make sure to poke ventilation holes up through the snow roof.

6. Pack the entrance with snow, leaving a hole for ventilation.

Snowshoes let people walk across deep snow without their feet sinking right through it. The shoes work by distributing weight evenly, so that you can move quickly across otherwise impassable terrain. They've been in use for thousands of years; it is believed that the very first snowshoes were used in Central Asia in about 4000 BC!

There are hundreds of different ways to make snowshoes.

Here is one way to make a wooden snowshoe.

1. The wood is split by hand, to get the smoothest and straightest grain.

2. The long, thin strip of wood is steamed to make it flexible.

3. Once the wood is pliable, it is shaped into a teardrop shape (kind of like a big tennis racket) and left to dry in a kiln or a warm room.

4. Holes are drilled for the laces and the wooden slats that go across the middle.

5. The laces are tightly woven in an intricate pattern.

6. A binding is placed on top to hold the foot to the snowshoe.

White-Tailed Deer

Mule Deer

Rabbit

SEE HOW THE JOURNEY BEGAN

Wilder Boys

This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and events are products of the author's imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or places or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.