Our End Of The Lake: Surviving After The 2012 Solar Storm (Prepper Trilogy) (39 page)

“Jack we to need to cut some fence post size trees to finish railing that fence, it wouldn’t hurt to cut a few more than we need because I got some other projects to use them on” I said surveying our garden plots.

“Ok, but lets take a little break first” Jack said mopping the sweat off his face.

“You think Donnie knows how to swing an axe? I want to build a Turkey cabin trap and it would go much quicker with an extra set of hands.” I asked Jack while formulating a plan to get us more self sufficient.

“I doubt Donnie ever used one before seriously but yonder he comes, you can ask him yourself” Jack said pointing at Donnie riding his bicycle down our road.

“Donnie we were just talking about you. You any good at handling an ax?’ I said and watching Donnie turn suspicious.

“I used one in the Boy scouts some, what is it you have in mind? He said looking over our gardening efforts.

“If you want Turkey for dinner this week, I was going to get you to help me build a trap” I said and beginning to think about the best place to put it. I had seen turkeys on the main road after Donnie’s place and a few deer too when I was driving up to the Lake with Sherry a year ago and I thought I might as well make the hike over that way to figure out my trap line before I really needed one. I don’t like trapping in the summer, meat spoils too quick if you don’t get to a dead animal quick enough and live trapping works but it’s more difficult and can end up with a dead animal in this heat pretty easy as they fight a snare. I only had a couple of the live cage traps for possums and such and I was not going to go after that kind of varmint just yet.

“I thought you had to use turkey calls and dress all in camo to get a gobbler” Donnie said trying to figure out what I was up to.

“No I am going to build a turkey cabin. That is a little log structure about the size of a small corn crib. We don’t need to notch the poles or anything, just stack them up; the weight of the flat roof will keep it together. Its very simple just takes a bit of time to get your posts together. What you do before you start building it is dig you a trench about 10 ft or so long that gradually slopes up to the center of where you are going to have your cabin floor. Then you build your cabin around that and add your poles for your roof spaces between them and weight the roof down with rocks or logs so the turkeys trying to fly up against it can’t knock your posts off.” I explained to my fellow would be trappers.

“That sounds simple enough, but how do you get the turkey to go in it?” Donnie said looking real interested in my plan.

“Think plural, turkeys. James Audubon used one of these same traps but larger and caught 16 in one day. See what you do is sprinkle some grain like corn in the trench and the turkeys get in the trench and follow the counter up into the trap. They are too stupid to either backup in the trench if the turkey they are following gets in trouble and once inside the trap if they can see daylight, they will keep looking up at it and not go back into the trench to escape. Its very simple an effective.

“Sure, I will help you build one. I got to see that thing work. It sounds almost too easy. What are we going to do if we catch a bunch of turkeys, we don’t have any freezers?” Donnie said trying to imagine what to do with a wealth of turkey dinners.

“I got two 50lb bags of corn that I could feed them for a while as fresh meat on the hoof as the saying goes, but I have other plans for a surplus if we get real lucky. We can barter any extra turkeys for can goods or whatever across the lake.

“How are you planning to cook them if we catch some?”Jack said eying the fire pit and tripod I had rigged.

”We clean up those metal garbage cans and gather up all the charcoal we can find, unless we do the bonfire thing and have to shovel coals. Here I will explain it to you” I said and proceeded to tell them how it was done. I had done it before when we had a turkey that was defrosting in the freezer because the power was out from a hurricane and it needed cooking before it went bad. If you do this right, the turkey will be fall off the bone delicious.

Equipment
:

• 1 - 20 Gallon trash can

• 1 - Dutch Oven

• 1 - Turkey Stand (the kind you use in a fryer to get the turkey to "stand up" work well - I found mine at Bass Pro)

• 30 Pounds of Charcoal

• 1 - 15-20 pound Turkey

• 1 - Roll of Aluminum foil

• 1 - Pair of thermal gloves (like you use in a fire place)

• 1 - Small shovel for ash.

Instructions
:

1. Prepare the turkey - clean and season

2. Lay aluminum foil down on the ground (I make mine about twice the size of the can). It works better if you have a layer of sand on the ground (under the aluminum foil) so the rim of the trash can make an impression in the sand for a better seal.

3. Set the Dutch oven upside down on the aluminum foil (without a lid) - this is a spacer to keep the turkey away from the ground. You can also use 4 tent stakes and a round wire rack.

4. Set the turkey stand on the Dutch oven (or center of the wire rack).

5. Place the turkey on the stand.

6. Turn the trash can upside down over the turkey (try to center the turkey inside the can).

7. Put as much charcoal as you can on TOP of the trash can.

8. Put the remainder of the 30 pounds around the trash can.

9. Let cook for 1:15 - 1:30 (either will work, I usually go for the extra 15 minutes)

10. Use the ash shovel to remove the coals off the top of the can and push them back from the bottom of the can.

11. Use the gloves to pick up the trash can.

12. Use the trash can lid as the serving plate - simply push the turkey over on to it.

You're done!!!

Let me add an extra little trick that it works real well to also put a small aluminum foil boat between the Dutch oven and the side of the trash can filled with a full bottle of Liquid Smoke - it increases the humidity in side the can and it adds a smoked flavor to the turkey.

Try to get the coals so that they are touching the side of the can.

“Now that sounds like a regular Thanksgiving dinner” Jack said looking like he could taste one already, sort of like Pavlov’s dogs in anticipation rung by the mental dinner bell.

“Let’s see we can do the first Thanksgiving thing at the lake like the pilgrims did when they arrived at Plymouth Rock and if we get knee deep in turkeys here; we can see if the other side of the inlet wants to have a little party.” I told them.

“As long as we do it on their side, I think that would be fun. So knowing you David you got some kind of business arrangement attached to this little party you are dreaming up. What is it?” my old buddy Jack asked.

“Well I say we start a barter system with them after the party. This will be like a free sample and introduction to the possibilities of what we can provide. I think I will take some of that smoked beef for a little side business at the party though. I wonder if anyone has any silver for trade. I said grinning.

“What smoked beef? I got a few pieces of silver I might want to trade” Donnie said.

“Ah hell, you said the wrong thing now Donnie, don’t say a word I going to get him a taste David.” Said Jack rising to go on his mission and helping me land my new silver possibility. I like silver a lot, I am like a magpie with a shiny object it fascinates me and I need it for my collection.

“Come on to the house Donnie and we can have a drink to discuss things a bit more comfortably” I said pushing my quarry along.

“Now what kind of silver might you have? I don’t do the numismatic thing if you got something special; I am only interested in melt value so I hope you have something that you value that way” I said escorting him into my house and to the room that was referred to formerly as Murray’s bar because of the former tenet.

“What’s your choice of drinks? I got most everything, AND I have a surprise for you… I got ICE and Cold Beer.” I told him and grinning like a Cheshire cat and shaking my ice chest to make that wonderful sloshing noise most people hadn’t heard since the EMP struck and would not likely be hearing for sometime to come.

“How in the hell did you get ICE “Donnie said looking down in amazement at the pure clean frosty cubes.

“I just started making it, but that is another story. I see Jack bringing you a treat. How about a Jack Daniels and Coke? Have the same as me?” I asked him gesturing with a crystal High Ball glass.

“Yes, that would be great” He said watching me mix it and using a small pair of real silver Ice tongs to elaborately fill his glass.”

“Order up” Jack said and slid a big heaping smoked beef sandwich in front of him courtesy of my mother’s use of a bread maker and Roland’s butchering and preserving arts.

Donnie eyed the sandwich like he thought it would go poof and disappear as a mirage. He couldn’t make up his mind if he wanted that icy cold drink first or the sandwich and stood perplexed for a minute with a drink in one hand and the plate holding the sandwich in the other. He quickly put the plate down, took a deep pull off the drink and went for the sandwich and I swear he probably had a bite out of it before that whisky even hit his belly. He took two more bites in rapid succession with a dreamy look on his face and paused long enough to say it was damn good as Jack and I nodded to each other knowingly...

“That is the best sandwich bar none that I ever had. I am amazed David, you are over here creating miracles. I was already hungry enough when you started talking about your Trash Can Turkey barbecue, but that was spectacular.” Donnie said addressing his now empty plate.

“Yeah, Roland really knows his stuff when he prepares meat. That was Sugar Cured, I got some regular and something he calls his secret dry rub that is great tasting but a bit peppery for my taste buds. You ready for another drink and doing some haggling? I said leaning on the bottle a bit as I poured him a stiff one before he could answer.

“How much Beef you got? I was coming over to see if you would teach me to trap or hunt. There is a shortage of any kind of meat around here except the bits of chicken in soups or the odd corned beef hash can and I am already sick of fish” Donnie said willing to let the bartering begin.

“That is like me asking you how much silver you got, kind of starts one or both of us off at a disadvantage. Times have changed now, its how much I am willing to sell and what you want to pay. I got Family to provide for also Donnie, what form of silver are we talking about? US Coins, silver rounds. Eagles maybe?” I advised him and tried not to show my excitement. I knew it was going to be harder on Donnie because he had already partaken of the finest meal he had had in weeks and he didn’t look like he had any intent of walking away from this negotiation table without access to another.

“I got some of all of the above” He said carefully and was watchful of my reaction.

“I can set you a fair price, once we decide what is fair these days. Now hear me out, I am not going to set a high price on what is rare or not rare these days compared to silver. We are going back in time just like this EMP situation has done to us. Now something has to be said about not being able to eat gold or silver, just like they did in the mining town days but if we pick a price for locals say from the era when the Government set the price of gold at $35 an ounce and silver equaled 10 to 1 exchange rate, I would be willing to price accordingly.