Into the High Country

by T J Reeder

  We put on sweat pants and shirts after drying off and sat by the fire and it felt very good. Maybe the water was colder than I thought! We fixed some dinner and by dark were in the tent with Walker on guard duty. With morning we could see a storm working its way so with haste we broke camp and headed back to the old ranch house. The barn was closed also and we hadn’t looked in it so we headed right for it. Inside was very nice, hay that was put up just before the event was stacked in the loft. We brought the stock in and waited to see what the storm was gonna do and it did plenty, with high winds and pouring rain. So we unloaded the stock and put them in stalls with hay and we moved to the loft with our bed roll and changed back to sweats and crawled into the big bed resting on hay. The rain pounding on the tin roof put us right to sleep for a couple of hours then we laid there talking quietly all warm and snug. It rained all day and into the night. We cleared a place on the dirt floor of the barn and made a small fire out of some old lumber pieces in an old hubcap where we could make coffee and fix some Mountain House add hot water and eat. The hot coffee laced with brandy was very welcome, as was the heat from the fire. The weather had turned cold for sure. But we couldn’t have asked for a better place to wait it out.

  I took our shovel and went into the last stall and dug a deep cat hole and put a roll of TP in there and was hugged and kissed on the spot. Both girls it seemed were in need. Do your business and put some dirt over it. NEXT! We spent the rest of the day feeding small bits of wood to the fire and just chatting about our trip. Sandy asked why we couldn’t toss down a couple of bales of hay and break them open for a mattress and sleep down here near the animals since they were happier with us nearby what with the storm and all. We agreed so I tossed the hay down and they broke it open and spread the bed roll over it after I tossed it down.

  I was glad Sandy had the idea because it was easy to see the stock was much more at ease with us there and Walker wasn’t separated from his buddies. We kept the coffee pot full and the day turned into night. We slept sound except when a mouse would run across the bed. Walker never made a sound all night and come morning it was still raining but seemed to be easing up. But riding anyplace after such a storm was silly because every bush or tree limb was a shower waiting. Besides we weren’t on a time clock.

  The day went a bit faster because we had a couple of game boards and some good books and we spent the day lounging in sweats and sipping coffee. The girls were still pouring the dead weed down my throat every morning and night and I had to admit my knees weren’t hurting like usual. In fact I had to admit I was feeling much better than I had in years.

  I hoped there was enough to last through the trip. I was pretty sure it was the same stuff the guy told me about in the Mojave, Grease Wood leaves. But there wasn’t any around where we were going.

  I had finished the thought when Sandy asked if I was aware that Charley had given the girls several bags of the crushed leaves. I said “Stop it!!” She said “Stop what?” But couldn’t hide the smile so I grabbed her and started tickling her and she was screaming and kicking and Walker hit me like a Mack truck!

  He didn’t bite but he rolled me off Sandy and stood looking at me like “OH Shit! What did I do?” Sandy pulled my hand and I sat up while she told Walker he done bad and put her head against his and whispered to him.

  Well pretty soon he eased over to me and laid down and licked my hand and kind of whined. So I scratched his ears and told him I understood then he knocked me down and started licking my face and of course nobody dragged him off. I hate all of them. They said “Do not”

  After another quiet night with no rain we took a short walk around the barn yard and everything was soaked. I could not believe how lucky we were to have stumbled over this place.

  From the looks of the sky it might be a while before we could leave so we walked to the house and went through it looking for things that might make our stay better. Sandy found some oil lamps full and ready to work. May found a door off the mud room and opened it to a dark basement but I being the former Boy Scout had my Surefire light and said so. Both of them pulled theirs out and said BFD! Fine. The basement was dry and cool with another door at one end so of course we had to open it and found it full of home canned food of all kinds. There was holes in the spacing so I figured the old folks took what they could and left. Sandy and May both agreed that the lids were sealed and it was good so we took several quarts marked Beef, potatoes and carrots. Upstairs we could see the date on the lids and it was canned right before the event.

  On a whim I tried the old kitchen range and lit it with a match! Propane: the never aging never spoiling fuel! We decided we would fix dinner here in the kitchen and take it to the barn to eat. The girls found a old flat bottom Dutch oven and since the lid was on it the inside was clean so they opened one each of the jars and soon had it bubbling, May got bowls and spoons out and we headed for the barn and not a moment too soon, as the door was closing when the sky light up and it started again. But soon our fire was going and a couple of lamps lit and it was home sweet home. After dinner I took time to shovel out the stalls of the presents from the gang. I tossed dirt over the wet spots and it smelled much better. The girls sat on the bed and watched me while making little comments. I would have jumped them but was a bit worried about Walker.

  Another night and two more followed but no rain and it appeared to be done. When the last day broke clear and sunny and things had dried out we debated on what to do, none of us wanted to spend the night on soggy ground so we decided to stay until it was better, after all the place was pretty pleasant. The food was great and we could let the critters out into the corral which they seemed to enjoy what with the sun and all.

  The beauty of our lifestyle was we had to be no place, no time, we could go or not or turn around and go back to the canyons. It was a good life for sure. After a few more days of sunny weather and warm days we loaded up and headed out, but not before we cleaned up the barn and washed the empty jars and put them back in the fruit cellar on the shelf with other empty jars.

  We left a note on the table with the old folks note and I left a $20.00 gold piece just in case they ever retuned and I hoped they did. It was too nice of an old place to be without the sounds of happy people. Once again we were a bit sad to be leaving a place but there were mountains and rivers to cross, people to meet and hopefully not have to shoot.

  We were all ready to be moving even though the break did us all good, and the road called. We set out still on a north and a bit west course. Using topography maps we could pretty well avoid getting into places where we would need to back track plus we wanted to avoid real steep country to save the livestock. I set the course more or less in line with the town of Roosevelt Utah more as a point to aim for than a destination. There were plenty of small towns showing on the map and most would likely be open for business because this was Mormon country and from everything I had seen they kept things pretty much inline and safe to a point.

  Once again the days rolled into a week, then another. There were some things we needed supply wise so after looking the map over and having a reasonable idea where we were on the map, it was starting to look like the nearest place was called East Carbon. This was fine for us because it kept us out of the worst of the rough country. The best way to travel thru this kind of country was by using the old US Forest Service roads that seemed to go everywhere, but a good map was a must because most of them ended on a mountain top requiring some back peddling.

  But we were pretty low and could make better time. It seemed to me I spent more time cutting fences than riding but that was part of it. In years past if I had to cut a fence I would have spliced it but no more, it just wasn’t needed.

  We saw all kinds of human activity from the sounds of a chain saw far off to smoke from a fire of some kind. We avoided contact but one day we rode right into a ranch road not a quarter mile from the house. People were working outside and we were spotted right away but other than some picking up a rif
le there was no sign of hostility. With nothing for it we rode up to the gate and sat waiting until a pair of men walked up to us. I said howdy and they answered, one asked if we were lost, I smiled and said no we wander around in circles all the time which got a smile in return. I introduced myself and the girls, and they said they were brothers named Sam and Robert Wilson.

  They invited us in for lunch and we accepted. At the house after we dismounted two boys about fourteen or fifteen years old came at a call from one of the brothers and said to take the stock to the water tank and then bring them back to the hitch rack by the barn. Both said “Yes sir” in a happy way and did so.

  We were led into the big old ranch house built of big logs and large stones, it was well done and not lately for sure. Sam noticed our looks and said the place was built in the 1800’s by their great grandfather and added onto as years and family size demanded it.

  They never blinked when I introduced “my wives” as a test and showed things were well in Utah. There were so many people moving around I had no idea who was with who until the meal was on the table then when everybody was present they both had two wives so we fit right in. The girls sat together so they could visit while we men did the same. The younger kids had their own table out on the screened in porch and could have their fun while not bothering anybody. The older kids in their teens sat at the table with us.

  One of the boys that took care of the livestock mentioned one of the mules was favoring a hoof and he checked it and found a cut that was real fresh so he washed it out and put some wound sealer on it.

  I asked if it was a black salve and he smiled and said yep the real stinky stuff. I had to laugh because he was so right, I never could remember the name of that crap but while it did wonders on a wound it stunk to high heaven. I always wondered how it would work on a human wound and said so. Both the boys admitted to putting it on cuts and scrapes which drew immediate attention from both mothers. I kind of whispered that there was some things to never admit to moms, and both of my girls glared at me and I know they couldn’t have heard me. The dads looked at them then me and the boys nodded understanding.

  After a meal that would kill me if I ate like that every day we headed outside to the shade of a big cottonwood tree where we sat in some homemade Appalachian chairs. I love them but getting out is almost too much work. We told them about our journey and mine and Sandy’s trip south, leaving out the rougher stuff.

  I mentioned the old ranch we had sat out the storm at and how nobody had been there since the event due to its isolation. The same storm system had rolled from the North right through this area and they said it was kind of the norm for the time of the year but it was a lot bigger front than usual, and that we were very lucky to have a good place to layover.

  We sure knew that. I mentioned we were heading towards East Carbon to stock up on supplies. They said that wasn’t necessary, that there was a town not more than ten miles from where we sat. I pulled out my map but they said it wasn’t on the map it was just a crossroads village that had grown as folks move together for protection. I said we would head there.

  But they offered to drive us there in their older Ford crew cab truck that had been parked in their barn and never had any problems from the EMP. We accepted their offer but I saw their wives both get worried looks so I asked right out what the trouble was. The brothers tried to blow it off but one of the wives said there was a rough element that had moved into the area and they were causing trouble. I couldn’t understand that because I knew the Mormons had never shied away from trouble.

  Robert said the problem was these folks belonged to an offshoot of the LDS church and were very militant against non-Mormons and had caused a lot of problems and had divided an otherwise peaceful community. I told them all that we would just go get our supplies without involving them but they weren’t going for that.

  Sandy asked why nobody had stood up against them and one of the women said it was both a church matter and the fact that everybody just wanted to live in peace so they just didn’t make waves. I saw the look come into Sandy’s eyes and thought “Oh shit, Wyatt and Doc to the rescue”, but actually it was more that nobody was going to prevent them from getting the supplies we needed.

  I sat a moment and finally asked if we went in with them, would they stay out of any problems and in fact just stay in their truck while we shopped? Both brothers I could tell didn’t like that but their wives all said please and that in fact they were all going too in their van that was still running. It was a diesel cargo style van with several rows of seats, and I could see the brothers had lost any argument before it could start, so we excused ourselves to go to the pack mules for some extra insurance.

  The girls both had large over the shoulder bags that would hold their full auto weapons with the stocks collapsed. I just stuck with my 1911 plus the BBQ gun in a cross draw on the left side and of course my Officers model in the ankle holster that I put on for the trip since I don’t ride with it.

  I did take one of the short barreled Car-16s since I noticed the Brothers were both armed with AR-15s. The girls and I rode in the crew cab with the brothers while two of the women and the older boys rode in the van. I asked the brothers what exactly these people had done and Sam said mostly they had tried to drive out the non-LDS people who had lived there all their lives and that there had been some bad trouble and all of this was just in the last few weeks. He said the ring leaders were the main problem because they were trying to push ideas that were never part of the LDS faith.

  Sam added that they had taken over the small sheriff’s department after somebody murdered the sheriff one night. Now, this was starting to take on some very familiar points and it sure reminded me of Fred back in Texas, and the trouble we had with the supposed preacher. Mostly I just wanted to get in and buy what we needed and get out. But I had a feeling down deep that if trouble didn’t come banging on the door that Wyatt and Doc were gonna find some and I was just along to make sure they didn’t get their cute butts killed.

  The town was small and clean, hitch racks had sprung up all over the main street in front of businesses. It looked to be a very nice town except it sure didn’t sound like it. Robert drove right to the General Store and parked. I reminded him of his promise to his wife which was funny because both women were walking up the side walk to the store. Sam said they needed stuff too but the women were afraid for them to come in for fear the brothers would get into it with the newcomers.

  In my checkered past in Montana I had met folks from an offshoot of the LDS and I liked them and found nothing wrong with them or their beliefs, so I was a bit confused as to just what these folks were into. The brothers said it was mostly like they were trying to segregate Utah and all LDS from any outside influences. But the main issue was these people were not only willing to use violence to further their cause they seemed to look for any opportunity to do so.

  Hell, I knew that simply wasn’t gonna work. First and foremost the LDS I knew, and it was quite a few, were patriotic through and through and were 100% America first. And they were among the first to join the military when they became of age and to hell with drafts.

  Sure sounded like the rats nest back in Texas. What’s wrong with us as a people is that we have men who think of women as property to be bought and sold like cattle. People who think they can do anything they want because they have a gun and people who believed everybody had to believe in and worship god as they do.

  I know that while we in this country have always had freedom of religion, we also have the right of freedom from religion. And a lot of blood has been shed by one bunch trying to force the other to believe their way. So I believed the local problem wasn’t a religion based problem but more of an ego problem. I didn’t care, we were gonna get what we needed and be on our way so screw em. Of course it wasn’t gonna be that way.

  We walked into a nice clean store that had supplies, maybe not in huge quantities but they had a good selection. Sandy and May had their
list and got to it while I wandered over to the gun and ammo section just to look, since the last thing I needed was another gun. But, under the glass was a pair of used Walther PPKs in 380.

  I’ve always liked those small pistols simply because they fit the hand nicely and they were small enough to carry in a pocket. And while the 380 slug sure wasn’t a .45 acp it was damn close to a 9mm, and with +p loads was a good stopper. Also, I knew back home we had a pile of 380 ammo simply because it was there when we found other stuff locked away.

  I asked to look at the pistols and again loved the way they felt. I asked the price and if he had ammo for them. The gent behind the counter said he had 500 rounds of FMJ and 100 rounds of +p hollow point. I said I’ll take them, his jaw dropped and he said “both of them?” “Yes” says I. “Plus all the ammo.” Well he got to piling stuff on the counter real quick, maybe business was slow.

  When he was done there was 4 mags for each gun and two very nice inside the waist band holsters with IWB mag holders and of all things two ankle holsters. He said that he took the whole mess in trade for a more suitable weapon. He added up the price and I stacked five $20.00 gold pieces on the glass.

  He smiled real big and so did I. I asked if he minded if I loaded them right there, he said go right ahead so I did. I called the girls over to the counter and showed them their new toys, and I swear they would have shook their heads at a huge diamond but both squealed like little girls and hugged me. They had never seen a Walther so both spent several minutes getting used to the feel and the way they worked. The safeties were backwards to their 1911s, but they would get it. I loaded both and chambered a round then added one to each magazine. They put them in their jacket pockets and stood with them in their right hands, I could see they were very pleased. I loaded the rest of the stuff into my over the shoulder bag so it hung on my left side.