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Monday, September 3, 2018

Mountain Men Season 7


Mountain Men Season 7
Dale Matson

My original discussion of Mountain Men Is Here: https://midsierramusing.blogspot.com/2013/10/mountain-men_3.html

I believe we have the best cast and episodes yet. The program gets better and better.
Marty Meierotto In Alaska is back at an old trapline and doing well despite bear damage to his cabin and a Wolverine that threatens his traps. He had his biggest trapping day with Martens ever. I Kind of hold my breath for him since he seems to take the biggest risks of any of the mountain men. His trap line and his days are quite long. He is quite comfortable at the end of the day in front of a fire with a huge meal to replace the day’s expended calories.
         Eustace Conway in North Carolina always seems to be working a deal to barter work and make lumber in trade for goods. Now he is trying to get enough cash together to buy land next to his property that has come up for sale. He also seems to have taken in Preston’s son as his new right-hand man following the death of Preston. I miss Preston and think Eustace depended on him a lot.
         Tom Oar continues to hang in there despite being older. He has a helper who is learning all of his trapping and hunting skills plus his craftsmanship making knives, furs and bows and leather goods. Fires were a very real danger for Tom this year in Montana and in general for all of the Mountain Men.
         Jake Herak in Wyoming replaced Rich Lewis (and his Jeep truck) pushing mountain lions out of range of the local cattle herds. Jake is much more mobile than Rich and I suspect Rich opted out of another season. Keeping up with the dogs is quite a task and Jake is young and fit! Jake takes risks in the back country and getting injured is always a possibility. He is a good man with dogs and a skilled outdoorsman.
         Mike Horstman was introduced this year and is the genuine article as a man who lives an isolated life in a cabin that can only be reached by boat or plane. He is a long time Kodiak Alaska resident. His primary work is as a hunting guide for Grizzly Bear. No doubt about the fact that this is a no-nonsense man. Can you imagine the stories he could spin?
         Morgan Beasley and his Companion Margaret Stern (She arrived in a later season of Mountain Men) are homesteading in the Alaska Range. I must admit that my fingers were crossed as I watched Morgan crossing the snow-covered wilderness in search of his homestead. He carried on his back all he started with. As each season has progressed, he has really carved out a life and I appreciate his resourcefulness and skills. He faces daily living challenges like getting water from a frozen stream at -20 degrees. Spending an entire day to build a wooden frame and install it in an ice hole to keep it from freezing showed how nature dictates the necessity and the pace of work. His decision to fish for Salmon in a bear infested area was a bit of a stretch! Margaret is a plucky lass and a good match.
         Finally, we have Jason and Mary Hawk living in the Ozarks with their daughter. They have very little but once again, I admire Jason for his skills and resourcefulness. (None of these folks let setbacks discourage them). Jason built a nice structure for his wife to deliver their second child and has managed to re-purpose a log splitter as a press for his knife making business.
         May all of these folks remain safe and continue to live simple and honest lives. In each case, they are people of the land much more connected to life than most.
         I think the Mountain Man series has continued to improve and is less “staged” than it appeared to be initially. It is more like the “Last Alaskans” series which is still number one in my mind. I continue to hope that it will return later this year but no date is currently available.

Season 9 is here: https://midsierramusing.blogspot.com/2020/06/mountain-men-season-9.html        
          

        

3 comments:

  1. As I watch this series, I am impressed not just with the work ethic of these men but their incredible stamina. For example, Mike Horst climbing for hours to get his goat and then pack it out. Another example is Jake Herak climbing up snowy, steep and slippery rocks to get to his dogs when they have a mountain lion in a tree. Marty working for hours in the cold with a large "Husky" chainsaw.

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  2. I record these episodes and have not viewed the most recent episode. Maybe some of this is staged for dramatic effect but it seems like all of these men continually push the limits. Mike Horstman had an overloaded pontoon boat pulled by an underpowered outboard. Eustace is always finding old abandoned equipment in some farm field that he resurrects for some purpose. Drive belts break, hoses leak, brakes fail etc. His logging is risky using draft horses and a wooden skid. Morgan and Margaret now have pilots' licenses and a used airplane. The Alaska Range is a difficult place to navigate and has tricky winds for a small plane. Where does the money come from for these items? Tom sometimes finds himself on "thin ice" literally and also when canoeing down a swollen stream. I continue to be amazed at his knowledge of Native American hand crafting and his skills. Jason Hawk is also good at 'repurposing' things like a log splitter and using steel from an airplane that crashed years before on his property.Marty is always pushing his 10 year old snowmobile to the max far from his cabin. I am a bit puzzled about his snow mobile since it seems like he replaced his old one with a brand new one in the last couple of years. I hope Jake makes a decent living chasing lions around with his dogs. It seems like so many episodes have him scrambling up steep and slippery rocky snow covered surfaces trying to keep up with his dogs. I continue to respect these young men who manage to live this lifestyle . Eustace and Tom continue with the assistance of young men who are learning their skills. All seem to approach life with optimism and persistence.

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  3. My article about Season 8 that started June 6th is here: https://midsierramusing.blogspot.com/2019/06/mountain-men-season-8.html

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