King of the Wilderness

Chapter 11: Chapter 11: North American Jerusalem Artichoke

The first rays of dawn at Chilco Lake, carrying a slight chill, seeped through the makeshift shelter’s crude cracks and woke Lin Yu’an from his slumber.

He opened his eyes, feeling the warmth brought by the thick sleeping bag beneath him, and the cold air outside the sleeping bag.

Luckily, no large predators visited last night, just some subtle rustling sounds, likely curious little critters.

”Good morning, folks.” Lin Yu’an said to the camera lens, showing a slightly fatigued yet gentle smile.

”This is Lin Yu’an on the second day at Chilco Lake. Slept fairly well last night; though the shelter is simple, it at least blocks the wind.”

”Today’s main task is to thoroughly survey the surroundings, find a stable source of food, and start selecting a site for building a permanent shelter.”

He crawled out of the sleeping bag, quickly donned his coat and pants, stretched his somewhat stiff limbs, then rekindled the leftover firewood from last night, and boiled a pot of hot water using a stainless steel pot.

The boiling hot water dispelled the morning chill, fully waking him up. He didn’t rush to eat.

Instead, he first carefully checked the few small security mechanisms he had set around the shelter last night—some tightly-strung small branches linked to bells.

If anything comes close, it will make a slight sound. The mechanisms were intact, which gave him a bit of relief. He continued to hide the bells and resumed today’s exploration tasks.

Lin Yu’an spoke to the camera again, now in a slightly relaxed tone, ”Folks, we’re heading out to see what kind of surprise breakfast this land can offer us.”

He hung a multi-functional knife on his waist, strapped on a canteen, carried a camera, and also slung the American Hunting Bow and quiver on his back, although he might not use them today, they provided an extra sense of security.

He decided to start exploring upstream along the small creek he discovered yesterday.

As he walked, he explained his reasoning to the camera: ”Usually, the areas near the source of a stream have a richer ecosystem, and more traces of animal activity.”

”Moreover, I need to find a more ideal location to build the permanent shelter, preferably a place with higher ground that is dryer, and not too far from a water source and firewood resources.”

The primal forest in the morning was invigoratingly fresh.

But it was also full of unknown dangers, and Lin Yu’an took every step with great caution, his sharp eyes scanning the surroundings, ears alert for any subtle sounds.

He found that although the creek eventually flowed into the lake, there were few suitable fishing spots around the lake, requiring more walking to find a good fishing location.

He frowned slightly at the camera: ”It seems that directly fishing is harder than I imagined.”

”However, I found some fresh animal droppings along the creek, looking like they belong to a deer or some kind of small antelope. This at least indicates there are traces of their activity around here.”

He carefully parted the dense ferns, observing the ground meticulously. Soon, he discovered a series of clear plum-shaped footprints on a relatively gentle muddy creekbank.

”Look here!”

He directed the camera, speaking in a low voice: ”These are white-tailed deer tracks, and from the size and depth of the footprints, it seems to be an adult doe, possibly with a fawn. They probably came here for water last night or this morning.”

This discovery energized Lin Yu’an, knowing that white-tailed deer provided a high-quality protein source. If he could hunt one, it would provide sufficient food supply for a long time.

But he didn’t immediately start tracking them, understanding that with his current equipment and familiarity with the area, rashly tracking large prey would be risky and have a low chance of success.

He shook his head and continued, ”But not right now. I need to first get familiar with this area, understand their general activity range and habits, and then formulate a detailed hunting plan.”

”Today’s target remains focused on small prey and edible plants, while searching for a suitable location for permanent campsite construction.”

He continued upstream along the creek, cautiously observing the surrounding vegetation. He found some familiar berries, like brightly colored North American blueberries and saskatoons, natural foods rich in vitamins.

Lin Yu’an ate berries in front of the camera, showing a happy expression, ”Folks, it seems today’s surprise breakfast is these berries!”

Additionally, he found some plants that looked like Jerusalem artichokes. After digging them out, they indeed had tubers.

But he didn’t immediately harvest them, instead using the knife sheath to carefully dig out a small piece, verified it closely, and tasted a sample with his tongue before marking the location on a homemade bark map with charcoal.

”These tubers are indeed Jerusalem artichokes, rich in starch, crispy and slightly sweet, providing nice sugar content. Let them grow for a while, then harvest after the shelter is built; they can be baked or cooked into soup.”

”Moreover, there is an obvious patch of mature Jerusalem artichokes here. I estimated that consuming two pounds per day, sparingly, could last me over ten days!”

After the creek turned a bend, a relatively open forest clearing appeared before Lin Yu’an.

This clearing was flat, with a backdrop of a hillside covered in tall fir trees, and sparse birch woods to the south where sunlight was abundant.

Most importantly, the area was suitably distanced from the creek, making water fetching convenient, and had abundant dry branches and dead trees for firewood resources.

”This place... is simply perfect!”

Lin Yu’an’s eyes lit up, quickly walking to the center of the clearing, carefully surveying with the camera.

”The terrain is flat and dry, surrounded by trees to block most cold winds, near the water source, with a relatively open view, making it easy to observe surroundings. Barring any surprises, the permanent shelter will be here!”

He excitedly announced his decision to the camera!

After confirming the location of the permanent campsite, Lin Yu’an started addressing the immediate food issue; he didn’t rush to pursue those elusive deer, instead focusing on acquiring smaller prey that was easier to catch.

He recalled several simple, efficient trap-making methods taught by Old John.

Finding several flexible slender branches, he used the multi-functional knife to sharpen them, then cleverly set up a few elastic wire snare traps in bushes and paths that seemed frequently traversed by rabbits or squirrels.

As he set up the traps, he explained each step to the camera in detail.

”The key to these traps is the disguise and trigger sensitivity.”

”The snares need to be covered with fine grass and mud, leaving only a loop just big enough for small animals to pass through, and the trigger branch needs to have just the right elasticity.”

”It should ensure rapid snap and tighten the snare when the prey touches it, but not be too sensitive to avoid accidental triggers from the wind.”

He also found some flat stones and sturdy branches to make several simple stone slab deadfall traps for capturing ground-dwelling rodents or smaller birds.

However, like most Chinese people, Lin Yu’an was reluctant to eat mice.

But in wilderness survival, mice are a good protein source.

After setting the traps, it was getting late, and Lin Yu’an didn’t venture further for exploration but returned to the makeshift shelter.

He didn’t gain much today, just some berries and a few mature Jerusalem artichokes, prepared to be used for dinner after being steamed and boiled.

Nightfall came again.

The temperature was a bit lower than last night. Lin Yu’an stoked the fire higher and then crawled into the sleeping bag.

He closed his eyes, yet his mind continued drafting designs for the permanent shelter. He envisioned building a sturdy semi-underground stone house and a small smoking chamber.

He also hoped for trap yields but knew that patience was required in trap hunting, potentially yielding nothing at all; luck and skill were equally important in wilderness survival.

Just as he was about to enter the dreamland, a faint sound, differing from the wind, suddenly came from not far outside the shelter, from the bushes!

Lin Yu’an’s eyes popped open, becoming instantly alert!

He held his breath, listened intently.

The sound was intermittent, clearly a struggling noise accompanied by swaying branches! However, it didn’t sound like it was caused by large animals.

Could it be... has the trap yielded something?

Lin Yu’an’s heart leapt; he quickly strapped on the bear spray and stealthily proceeded with the camera and logging axe to investigate.