- Undisputed Proof of Uncle Edward’s Ten O’clock Tea Site
In the olden ‘on-the-country times’ trappers, hunters, prospectors or People just cruising on a walk-about had predetermined places to stop for a spell, have a boil-up or on longer trips into the country a place to stop for the night. One very common name used by the Mi’Kmaq People in the Bay St. George area for the first stop on a country journey was Ten O’clock Tea. Since there were literally hundreds of different country paths leading out of or into the country from Bay St. George there was an equal number of Ten O’clock Tea sites. In the Helch Gulch area of Flat Bay Brook country there are over twenty different Ten O’clock Tea sites known to the local People. This story is about one of these famous stopping grounds; sites that are now known to just a few of us who still travel into the country on foot rather than on those “go-devils’ as my father often use to called ATVs and snowmobiles.
Elder Eagle Catcher, his brother Pikto'l Sa'ke'j Muise with the Christian name initials V.J.M., and Eagle Catcher’s only son Hawk Eyes arrived late in the evening to Sa'ke'j small cabin situated in Helch Gulch valley. The cabin was located on the North side of Flat Bay Brook. This location has been used by Muise family members for well over a hundred years and was for several decades their Winter house site because Helch Gulch was a short distance from the migrating caribou herds and there was a ready supply of firewood to say nothing about the beautiful surrounding mountains that sub-consciously grows on you over time and can be readily recalled in your mind’s eye during times of meditation or periods of deep mental retrospect. In addition there was plenty of salmon, eels, trout, and lots of fur animals for winter trapping within a ten mile radius of Helch Gulch. In other words this sacred place was and still is a natural paradise on earth for the Bay St. George Muise family.
As young boys Eagle Catcher, Sa'ke'j and other family members spent many a long day exploring the country around this heaven on earth. Even today we spent time with the younger ones showing them the country and our traditional ways of life that is quietly dying off since Confederation and the invention of TV and the computer.
This trip was planned by Sa'ke'j to show Eagle Catcher and his young son several near lost trapping trails just Northeast of Helch Gulch that Sa'ke'j knew about because he and his Uncle Edward had a fifteen mile rabbit line that jiz-zagged throughout that section of the Country. As was the normal routine when reaching any camp late in the evening all hands were assigned specific tasks that was necessary to make your stay comfortable during the approaching darkness of night. While Eagle Catcher prepared some rough grub for a hearty supper the other two carried in some fresh mountain water from Helch Gulch Brook, dried pine splits for the morning fire, and completed a number of quick fix-up jobs that entailed temporary repairs to Sa'ke'j camp. In no time at all the three boys were sitting down to a feed of supplant bottled rabbit, golden brown freshly cooked white bread with dark molasses, and for desert some homemade squash-berry pie.
The rest of that evening was spent talking about the next day’s walk-about and the telling of old tales by Eagle Catcher and Sa'ke'j. Eagle Catcher told about his father’s near death while still a young boy on a trapping trip with his father, our Daddy John; Sa'ke'j told about the time Uncles Edward and Hughie had to bury a freshly killed moose when game wardens first started to use helicopters. Although still a young teenager, Hawk Eyes told a story about a large black animal that he had ran into while checking his rabbit line several years earlier. Many tales were spoken that night and all hands reluctantly went to bed but a five o’clock rise comes early the next Day!
The smell of frying bacon and the early morning rumbling of an anxious ‘to get on the trail’ Sa'ke'j greeted Elder Eagle Catcher and Hawk Eyes very early the next morning. The sun was just peeking over the mountainous horizon by the time all hands were finished with breakfast. With packsacks strapped to their backs and unemployment boots on, everyone was ready to start the day’s adventure.
Sa'ke'j was the lead guide today because it was his memory trip; he had walked this area many times with Uncle Edward as a young teenager. They use to walk from St. Georges into Uncle Edward’s cabin on the first day of checking their rabbit snares. Then the next day they would walk the fifteen mile rabbit trap line often having to make a partial second trip to carry out the rest of their rabbits when rabbits were plentiful. The next day they would walk back out to St. Georges. This cycle was completed several times until enough rabbits were caught for that fall and early winter. Uncle Edward had a different rabbit line for winter trapping of rabbits.
Sa'ke'j was right into his glee for the most part of the morning walk; he eagerly pointed out popular landmarks along our walk-about cruise. He pointed out famous country landmarks like Skipper Jim’s Level, Kippersnack Pond, Bishop Mines Bluff, and several different Ten O’clock Teas sites. In fact we stopped at the well traveled Helch Gulch Pond Ten O’clock Tea site for our first lunch which consisted of smoked salmon and molasses bread. Throughout the day both adults pointed out to young Hawk Eyes how to identify important medicine plants found in that area. Eagle Catcher also showed his son how to recognize edible plants that would help a person survive if ever stranded up on the Country without store-bought food.
By early afternoon we were almost ready to start our circle back to Sa'ke'j camp because most people tend to slow down late in the day and a wise guide allocates a bit more return time for the trip back to camp. Suddenly a dark cloud passed over our heads and we realized that an unexpected summer rain squall was quickly approaching and we were all going to get a dousing. Sa'ke'j stopped for a second and suddenly recalled a nearby Ten O’clock Tea site that he and Uncle Edward had occasion to use several times when caught up in the country many years previous. We quickly made a dash for this island of woods just due west of Daimyo’s Flats. Eagle Catcher had his doubts about Sa'ke'j even been to this wooded island but it was close by and offered the only bit of hope for cover against the fast approaching rain storm.
The wooded island was like a manmade shelter with scrubby spruces knitted so close together that it acted just like a huge umbrella. As the raging rainfall quickly dampened everything in its path we three were tucked away in this relatively rain free, spruce hide-a-way. Eagle Catcher quickly had a small fire going while Sa'ke'j prepared for our unexpected lunch stop. All three sat on a small moss-covered ledge several feet from the comforting fire. Suddenly, as we all sat back sipping on our hot blackish tea, Sage said that it had been thirty-five years since he and Uncle Edward had lunch on this exact spot. He went on about the last time he was here having put his initials, V.J.M., on a tree right around this exact spot.
Now as all good story tellers realize the telling of a tall-tale involves perfect timing and a subtle chance that the story could be actually true. Eagle Catcher spoke up instantly stating that Sa'ke'j was stretching the truth here and that proximity of the wooded island as we realized that the rain storm was quickly approaching was the real reason we were sitting here; Eagle Catcher argued that Sa'ke'j did not actually know this spot but had conveniently made up this story about been at this Ten O’clock Tea site all those years ago because there was a possibility it was true. But how would you prove such a statement.
Young Hawk Eyes was taking in all this friendly banter between brothers and realized that this was a challenge to the truthfulness of Sa'ke'j story about this site. The young gamma [a Bay St. George name for young children] asked his ego-injured Uncle Sa'ke'j what type of tree he had put those initials V.J.M. on all those years ago. All three of us were suddenly caught up into the sport of trying to find some remnants of those initials or other signs that someone had used this island of knitted spruce trees as a Ten O’clock Tea site years ago. Sa'ke'j was a bit ticked off at Eagle Catcher for doubting his story and soon sat back on the ledge sipping his tea. He then stated that now that he remembers he and Uncle Edward had spent the night here once after getting caught in a similar type quick fall storm.
Suddenly Young Hawk Eyes shouted out “You'e right ,Uncle, here iare your initials”.
Both older men rushed over to the tree that the young boy was standing under. Way up into the trunk of the tree, about twenty-five feet up the tree trunk, was the near invisible initials V.J.M. Eagle Catcher quickly apologized to his brother and all three countrymen had a good laugh about the finding of undisputed proof to verify the location of Uncle Edward’s Ten O’clock Tea site.
Old Sa'ke'j was vindicated and his brother Eagle Catcher is still to this day getting friendly reminders about the time he challenged one of Sa'ke'j tall-tales. But both men realize the truth behind the old Bay St. George saying about "tea-tales" .
Written:For Sa'ke'j, by Eagle Catcher , 2009
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