Ryan is in grade four at G. W. Carlson School. He was born on January 5th, 1988 and is ten years old. He lives with his grandfather and grandmother. His favourite thing to do is to go trapping with his Uncle Larry. Together they skidoo up the Nelson River (about an hour) until they get to Snake River. Most of the time his cousin, Matthew comes too! In this photograph is this the cabin you use when you go trapping? Yes, it is not our cabin though. We had permission from the owner to use it.         Photograph provided by Larry Burke   Photograph provided by Larry Burke.         What’s it like to stay there? It is really nice. The mattress is really soft and comfortable. It is a lot better than home. My Uncle has to sleep on the skinning table because I took over the bed. In this photograph you see my cousin, Matthew. How long do you stay each time you go trapping? Depending on my Grandparents and school I stay on weekends and a few times I have stayed for seven days. It was fun, I really enjoy these days. What do you usually do when you get to the cabin? When we get to the cabin the first thing we do is make a fire in the cabin so we can warm up. Skidooing at - 20C or -30C can get pretty cold. It is usually late when we arrive and we light the gas lamps and bring in the grub box. The first time we go to the cabin we usually spend a lot of time cleaning and fixing up. What kind of animals do you trap? The type of animals we trap are lynx, marten, wolverine, fisher, beaver, wolves and mink. In this photograph you can see my grandmother and her girls holding up some pelts ready to be sold. This picture was taken before I was born.     Photograph provided by Larry Burke Photograph provided by Larry Burke.     What do you like about trapping? Trapping is such a break from everything I usually have to do. When you are out on the trap line you have a lot of freedom and a lot more time to think. You are able to make your own decisions. I learn a lot from my Uncle by just watching and listening. In this photograph we have stopped on the river. What are you doing in this photograph? Matthew and I are eating. My Uncle wanted some tea so he built a huge fire. We eat close to the fire to keep warm, especially our toes.     Photograph provided by Larry Burke Photograph provided by Larry Burke.     How does it feel to be out in the bush? If I had to choose to stay out in the bush, or home in town, I would choose the bush. It is so peaceful and quiet. There is nothing to be afraid of. The only time I feel frightened is when my Uncle leaves me behind when checking our traps. My skidoo could get caught on a tree or a log which would slow me down. I really like it in the bush, especially with my Uncle Larry. He is so much fun to be with. He has lots of stories to tell and lots to teach me. He never gets mad, he has a lot of patience. I am so lucky to have him.   Describe a typical day of trapping. When we go trapping it’s a serious job. As you can see from what Matthew is wearing, you have to dress properly so you will be warm. Once you start setting traps or snares it has to be checked every second day. The most exciting day for us was when we caught three lynx and one beaver.     Photograph provided by Larry Burke Photograph provided by Larry Burke.     Our day starts off at five in the morning. I make the fire. Larry puts up water for tea. Matthew and I are helping ourselves to some tea in this photograph. Larry cooks breakfast while I get myself organised for our ten hour trip checking the traps and snares. Larry also prepares our lunch for the day.   After breakfast we make sure we have extra socks and we are off on skidoos at six. Larry leads, I follow. It is cold out, it must be -35 C or so, we predict. We checked about ten traps which were destroyed by wolves. My Uncle is not happy. He says if we get anything we’re lucky, because there are so many wolves on our trail that they’re eating everything we catch.       Photograph provided by Larry Burke After checking 23 traps we finally get a lynx, and in next there is another. This one climbed the tree because of wolves. We checked all of our traps and snares we had set up on our trail. We catch three lynx and one beaver. We brought lunch but we didn’t stop to eat. When Larry or I got hungry we nibbled on a wiener or crackers Larry brought. I stayed warm by moving all the time and just my feet are cold. We turn around for home. It is eleven we should be back at the cabin at four o’clock. We skidoo back without stopping. Back at the cabin we are so cold and hungry. Larry gets the gas lamp going, makes fire and puts water up for tea and decides to fry up some frozen steaks and boil some rice. It is really dark now. We might check a trap behind the cabin with a flashlight. We have eaten and in bed. We both have a place to sleep. Larry tells stories until late. He tells me we have to go to sleep because we have to check our traps again tomorrow. The next day is about the same. Photograph provided by Larry Burke.     In this photograph Larry is really tired. Matthew and I are keeping him up to late. When we don’t go to bed early the next day its hard to get up.       Photograph provided by Larry Burke What do you do with the animals that you trap? How do you prepare them to be sold? Who do you sell them to? We skin them at the cabin and bring home the fur raw and frozen. Larry puts the fur on stretchers and lets them dry. We sell them to George Behn who lives on the Reserve. Photograph provided by Larry Burke.     In this picture we are checking our beaver snares. I got a marten which my Grandpa helped me skin and put on a stretcher. I sold it to Mr. Behn for $40.00. I bought myself an axe to use out in the bush.

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