ODDS”N”SODS — Fellowship along on the trail

The trails in mining and exploration are rugged, steep and well-marked with the footprints of a host of adventurers who have set forth with high hopes, faith and determination.

These same trails traverse many rivers, streams, valleys, mountains and diverse countries. There is seemingly no end to the trail; rather, it is a continuous track.

During the course of travel along these paths, many trials and tribulations, surprises, escapades, experiences and varied circumstances are shared with comrades and fellow travelers. Occassionally, at a bend or fork in the trail, a few will depart or stop to rest, but generally the group presses on. Their eagerness is both infectious and stimulating.

Those who are more bold than others branch off the main course to explore a new path and to pan for colors in a new stream. Oft-times, their efforts are wasted and in vain; however, in some cases the new direction leads to a rare discovery so that many others seek and follow the same route. Communications are not the best in these outlandish paths. Information is mostly exchanged around a glowing campfire, alongside a freshwater stream crossing, or at some remote camping ground.

It is a relief for explorers to be able to share their frustrations and failings with each other, and oft-times they depend on one another for guidance in hazardous or unexplored areas. Over all, the urge is there to press on, regardless of the prognosis.

As the years pass, the outline of the trail becomes less distinct and the pace becomes slower. Likewise, the breaks for resting become more frequent and prolonged. The flow of news and information is digested more studiously. The strengths and desires wane as each day’s sunset looms and descends. However, with the passage of time, there emerges a respect and cherishing of the few remaining voyagers left on the route, as they press ever onwards. There is a sense of shared honor and esteem as past ventures are recalled. Faces become names connected

to fruitful and challenging experiences. Recognition of a long-lost comrade floods the heart with rich memories. The trail has not been a journey without rewards.

And so when the summons is issued to attend a reunion of all these age-grizzled venturers who pursued the route, it is a wonder and a rare pleasure to gather, embrace and recall and witness that the hard efforts at pack, axe, pick and shovel have strengthened those backs and stiffened those worn shoulders.

The faces are still angular and colored, well-weathered by wind and sun and rain. The eyes are clear and searching and circled with the lines of the eternal quest for venture and the rewards of effort.

After a joyous greeting, the conversation becomes soft, jocular and imbued with the remembrance of a thousand shared journeys along the trail. As the fire fades in the clearing of the gathering, and the tired, relaxed adherents seek shelter and rest, there is a deep satisfaction and pride shared by all in the ascent of those steep mountain trails.

Even more thrilling is the feeling of awe at the vast host of contemporary explorers assembled in the valley below, about to embrace the same trail. — S.J. Hunter, a retired mining engineer and regular contributor, resides in Vancouver, B.C.