Chapter 40: Chapter 40: Exploring the Area Around the Fishing Platform
The next morning, the weather remained clear, and the wind and waves were calm.
Lin Yu’an secured the logging axe at his waist, strapped on the American Hunting Bow and quiver, and paddled the Pioneer canoe through the tranquil lake waters.
Skillfully using two homemade long wooden paddles, he first arrived at the river bend where he’d set up the stinging net the night before.
He carefully observed the state of the floats from the canoe; the water was calm, with no signs of fish hitting the net.
"Looks like today my luck isn’t great," he muttered, without stopping, continuing towards the wooden fishing platform he visited yesterday.
After about half an hour of paddling, the canoe smoothly rested against the lakeshore where the fishing platform was located.
Lin Yu’an pulled the boat onto the shore, tied it to a tree using parachute cord, and began exploring the surrounding area.
Rather than hastily entering the dense forest, he first walked along the lakeshore, carefully observing any potential traces.
Soon, some unusual sights caught his attention at the edge of a patch of forest not far from the platform.
Some tree stumps had abnormally neat cuts, clearly caused by tools, and judging by the weathering, it hadn’t been too long.
"Hmm? These are..."
Lin Yu’an crouched down, using his fingers to touch a tree stump with a diameter of about thirty centimeters. The surface was smooth, carrying mechanical cutting marks.
"This cut was clearly made by a chainsaw or power saw. Could someone be living nearby?"
He looked toward the forest following these felling marks, finding similar traces leading deeper into the forest.
"Such a large number of tree stumps,... it seems that the platform was likely left by workers conducting logging operations here before."
He decided to track down these logging marks, keeping an eye on the surroundings as he walked.
Occasionally, he found some discarded cigarette butts or fragments of chewing gum wrappers on the ground, further confirming his suspicions.
"The logging industry in British Columbia Province is a major economic pillar, with large quantities of timber harvested from these untouched forests every year."
"It’s common for small teams of three to five experienced loggers to venture into the forests for selective logging."
"They usually build temporary camps, and after the logging is complete, they transport the logs downstream to distribution centers."
"Hopefully, I’ll find something at their temporary camp."
After passing through a relatively dense spruce Forest, a small meadow appeared before him.
In the center of the clearing was a circular fire pit built with stones, with some completely cooled charcoal ashes inside.
"This must be the loggers’ temporary camp!" Lin Yu’an’s eyes glimmered with excitement!
"Judging by the traces of the campfire, it hasn’t been fully washed away by rain, indicating there might have been activity here just a few days ago!"
On one side of the clearing was a makeshift wooden hut constructed from logs as thick as a bowl.
The roof was now open, likely previously covered with large pieces of waterproof tarpaulin.
The inside of the hut was empty, but a faint scent of diesel and oil lingered in the air.
Lin Yu’an entered the hut, seeing wood chips scattered on the ground and some small patches of dark oil stains.
"This is probably where they stored chainsaws and diesel; the saws and tools are likely kept here at night, with the workers returning to the boats docked on the lake to sleep."
He noticed several rows of large iron nails nailed to the hut’s inner wall, evidently used for hanging tools and clothes.
Most of the nails were vacant, but near the innermost nail hung a small piece glimmering with metallic shine.
Lin Yu’an approached and couldn’t help but smile—it was a broken chainsaw chain!
The chain looked relatively new, jet-black with a glossy shine, its teeth still sharp, with no visible signs of wear or rust.
Only one section of the chain had a noticeable fracture.
Lin Yu’an happily took the chain off the nail, weighing it in his hand.
"Such luck! The loggers may have hung it here casually, forgetting to take it upon leaving or deeming it unworthy to bring along."
He carefully checked the chain’s material and the sharpness of its teeth.
"This is a great find! Even though it’s broken, if I can find a way to fasten it to a curved wooden frame, it could become a highly efficient hand saw!"
"It fills the gap of not having a saw, greatly improving my capabilities in subsequent logging and timber processing!"
Without hesitation, he tucked the chainsaw chain into his pouch.
He then used the blade’s back of the logging axe to pry each large iron nail from the wooden wall.
"These iron nails are valuable metal resources, useful for crafting other tools or for unforeseen purposes."
Lin Yu’an wasn’t satisfied yet, continuing to thoroughly search the small logger camp in hopes of further discoveries.
He noticed a trail near the camp, seemingly etched by treads, snaking towards the lake.
"It seems they dragged the felled logs down this path to the lake, then assembled them into rafts to transport downstream."
Lin Yu’an followed the trail to the lakeside, which led to a slightly sloped riverbank heading directly to the water.
The soft soil at the shore retained deep grooves where large timber had been dragged, along with scattered wood chips, evidently serving as a dock for pushing logs into the water.
Near the somewhat chaotic riverbank, his attention was drawn to some things scattered in the crevices of rocks and along the shore.
Approaching, a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes! They were segments of differently colored nylon ropes!
The lengths of these nylon ropes were mostly between one to two meters, varying in thickness, some as thick as his parachute cord, others thinner.
They weren’t concentrated in one spot, but scattered around an approximately ten-meter area along the riverbank.
Lin Yu’an crouched down, picking up a one and a half-meter long blue nylon rope, its surface covered in sand yet its structure intact.
"These are probably the offcuts from binding and dragging logs, left behind by the loggers."
"These scattered ropes have little value to them, so they simply abandoned them here."
Lin Yu’an patiently collected the scattered nylon ropes, roughly counting around ten segments! Although each was short, their total length was considerably significant.
"Even though I have parachute cord, ropes are never too abundant in the wilderness. These nylon ropes will surely be useful!"
To well-supplied logging teams, these scattered short ropes might indeed be considered dispensable waste.
However, to Lin Yu’an, who must meticulously manage resources in the wild, this undoubtedly was an unexpected treasure.
"Look here, mates, at today’s delightful surprise!"
Lin Yu’an picked up the broken but still gleaming chainsaw chain, flashing it toward the camera.
"Even though it’s broken, to me, it’s practically a magical tool! I’ve already figured out how to utilize it!"
With ample gains, Lin Yu’an paddled the canoe again, eagerly anticipating returning to his shelter to embark on his new tool-making plan!
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