History
of Snake Rapids Hunt Camp
Our ancestors came to this area by way of the old Addington Road and,
each fall, they seemed to be drawn back to it to hunt deer. The O’Briens, Dwyers, Ryans, Sullivans, and, of course, the Madigans
have hunted this region which is, today, part of Ontario’s WMU 58, since before
the turn of the century, in 1900. Early
access was only by means of what remained of the Addington and those initial trails
or logging roads that branched off of it.
Boats and canoes on the river provided the less arduous way in, so some
of the first hunt camps, Ambrose O’Brien, Thomas Ryan... were built along the
shores of Snake Rapids. From there, the
men hunted the swamps and hills northward to what is now labelled, on modern
topographical maps, as the “Icy Hills”.
In the mid to late 1940’s John T Drohan acquired the timber rights in
the area. A lumber camp was built on the
present site of the hunt camp and included a wood shed, blacksmith shop, horse
stables, cookery, a sleep camp and an office. In the bush, during the winter
months, the men would room and board at the sawmill camp during the week and a
truck with a closed-in box, called the caboose, was used to transport them
daily to and from the work sites, and out to their families on the weekends. During
those years Henry Fleguel worked for John T Drohan as
a foreman and jobber.
Read more about the John T Drohan lumber
camp.
After Drohan, the Sawyer-Stoll Company continued operations at the
present site for a few more years. But,
times were changing. Piece workers began
harvesting the forests for the lumber companies providing sawmills with enough
logs for the spring, summer, and fall sawing season. Improved roads into the bush and better
vehicles made lumber camps passé.
However, one can imagine how the operations of these lumber companies
opened up many new roads and trails for hunters to access the area.
In the mid 1950’s, the old lumber camp was being dismantled so James P, Johnny
& Jerome Sullivan arranged through the regional Department of Lands &
Forests in Tweed to leave the Office for use as a Hunt Camp. The Office was left standing, as well as the
woodshed and one of the horse stables.
In 1956 James was issued the first licence to lease an acre of land on a
year-by-year basis for the purpose of a Hunt Camp.
In the early 1960’s, the Ministry built a new forest access road from
Quadeville to Griffith along what is now known as the Addington and Highland
Creek Road. From the top of the Ramp to
the Birches (the Stables), it ran fairly parallel and a few hundred metres
north of to the old road. Because it was
in much better condition – although it was still just a gravelled road - it
became known as “The Highway”.
From the mid-fifties to the late 1970’s, the original Office space
served as the Camp. The dining table, a
wood cook stove, and two sets of double bunk-like beds made for a crowded but
cozy overnight stay. The family was growing; grandchildren wanted to join James
P’s sons, the sons were gradually bringing more friends to enjoy the fall deer
hunt and it was becoming more and more evident that an addition was
needed. That, of course, would again
require Ministry approval. By the fall
of 1978 a new sleeper was added to the Office structure.
However, shortly after the hunting season in November 1982, someone
purposely set fire to the north end of the ‘new’ sleeper. Fortunately, a MNR truck and crew was driving
by shortly thereafter, saw the fire and happened to have a powered water pump
with them. They were able to save the
original Office structure but we had to get Danny O’Malley down with his
backhoe and dump truck to clean up what was left of the burned sleeper. The Toronto brothers, all well into a policing
career, much of it investigative in nature, put their detective skills to work
and, although were able to ascertain, with reasonable certainty, the identity
of the culprit(s), charges were not pursued.
The offenders wisely decided to never return to hunt between Snake
Rapids and the Icy Hills.
The nature of the ‘Camp’ is difficult to put into words. It’s family, friendship, community, music –
lots of music - , great meals, jokes, card games, and stories galore. One fellow says he enjoys “the shooting in
the camp” more than the shooting in the bush.
New fathers can hardly wait for the day their young sons are old enough
to join them for the experience. With
apologies to the author of the words for “Song For the
Mira”, the song has been adapted –same melody – to capture the essence. A couple of the verses are shared below.
Down
at the Hunt Camp on cold autumn nights
The
old woodstove pours into a diamond-skied night
They
stand ‘round the fire singing songs with their friends
Oh,
I wish I was with them again.
Can
you imagine a place in the universe more fit for princes and kings?
I’ll
trade you ten of your cities for one rocky ridge and the pleasure it brings.
And
around the old table the stories are told
Each
one is home here, their real selves unfold
And
if you come broken, they’ll see that you mend,
Oh,
I wish I was with them again.