I’ve really been enjoying Charles Ray’s mountain man adventures involving Caleb Johnson. There’s a relaxed familiarity about them that you can immediately connect to. And the more familiar, the better, in my opinion. As in this particular adventure, which takes place in my favorite environment: The winter bound wonderland of blizzards and snow.
As the blurb highlights:
*****
In late November, Caleb goes off alone into the mountains to hunt meat for the winter, leaving Flora alone at their cabin with just Dog for company. While hunting mule deer in a box canyon, Caleb is caught in a freakish blizzard that dumps mounds of snow over the trail. As he makes his way out, fighting Mother Nature’s whimsy, he also has to deal with her hungry creatures who see him as a tasty winter meal.
Meanwhile, back in Bear Creek, when the snow starts to fall, Flora starts to worry about Caleb, and, after a few days of fretting decides to go find him, getting caught up in her own dangerous adventure.
A story of two people who are willing to sacrifice all for the other, the action is non-stop.
*****
What’s not to like? Man versus nature in the harshest of circumstances. Environment against intellect. And once again, Charles Ray delivers in a relaxed, easygoing nature that enfolds you in the weave of the story so that you end up wanting to read ‘just one more chapter’ before you put it down.
I enjoyed it very much. It has a ‘relatability’ that helps you connect to Caleb, to immerse yourself in his story and the predicaments he faces, and of course, the solutions he has to come up with in order to survive.
And as I’ve said before, what I like most is the ‘reality factor’ of these stories. Pioneers of the not so distant past faced real life obstacles like this every day. Some survived. Many didn’t. But all of them contributed to an ethos that has become the backbone of the American West and its culture. Self-reliance. Hard work. Courage and resilience.
And that’s what Charles Ray reminds us of.
Another great story you’re sure to enjoy.
