Trapping

When I landed in East Liverpool, Ohio, there didn't seem to be any dominant sport by the men in the church. However, eventually a friendship blossomed between John and Denise Repella (Heidi, Hayley and Holly) and Debbie and me (Travis, Troy and Tracie).  John is an avid trapper and it didn't take long for him to invite me to accompany him on his trap-line.

Needless to say, it was a new experience for me.

The first time I went, we parked his truck off-the-road and hiked across a long field to a stream-bed.  As we looked down the bank, we saw three raccoon in separate traps within fifty feet of one another.  John hopped into the stream-bed and sloshed across the creek to the first coon.  He put his foot on its neck and quickly used his pistol to shoot the first coon.

When he glanced up at me I must have had a shocked look on my face.  John simply said:  "Kinda cruel, huh?"  In reality, it was very humane, but I just wasn't used to seeing animals being killed.

I went with John on his trap-line quite a few times.  I eventually figured out that he took me along to help haul his furs back to the truck!

On one occasion, we walked down into a wide, flooded valley where he had set a number of beaver traps. It was a bitter, cold day!  We came to his first trap which was set under the water - which was now frozen! John used a hatchet to break the ice.  Then, he laid down on the ice and plunged his arm up-to-his-shoulder, into the ice-cold water.  Seconds later, he pulled a huge beaver out of the hole in the ice.  After re-setting the trap, we moved on to find four more beaver - all large!  Hauling them out of that valley and back to the truck was exhausting;  as I recall, the average weight was about 60 pounds!

I learned so much from John about trapping and other things and we became the best of friends during our thirteen years in East Liverpool.  I discovered that this relatively quiet and private guy had lots of stories. They were all very personal.  He told me about a night when he saw a UFO.  He spoke of another night when God warned him not to go up a creek!  He talked about his years in the coal mines.

During summers, John also let me tag-along on a couple of fishing jaunts. Friendship is formed by the sharing of intimate thoughts and stories. That bond is not easily broken.

One time the engine went bad in a 1984 Renault Encore I was driving.  John suggested that we buy a used engine and install it.  Ahhh...the height of masculine engagement!  John had just put an engine in one of his trucks and seemed eager to help me change out my engine as well.  We plunged in.  In two days, we had the Encore running again and I drove it for several more years!  It was another rite of passage!

John also gave Troy and me our first experience with frogging.  He took us out very late one night and led us up the middle of a creek.  It was creepy!  He would scan the sides of the creek for small sets of eyes that would focus on his head-lamp.  Then, he would lower his gig in front of them and moments later their legs were in his pouch!

While we were traversing the creek that night in the pitch dark, John stopped suddenly and handed me his gig.  Troy and I watched as he focused his light on the water and peered into the creek.  After moments of scrutinizing something he plunged his arm into the creek and pulled a huge snapping turtle out of the water! It's shell was probably eighteen inches in diameter as he held it up by-the-tail for us to see.  We were incredulous at the site of this big turtle trying desperately to take a chop out of John's leg.  We were even less comfortable when he turned around and released it back into the creek!

I went frogging with John several times that year and we ended the summer with a big frog-leg/chicken-wing barbecue! Delicious!

Our families also became friends.  We shared many cook-outs and family nights.  Travis and Holly became the best of friends!  Heidi and Hayley became Troy and Tracie's baby-sitters.  We played lots of games of Euchre.  We still share ten days every summer at the Tri-State Family Camp in East Liverpool.  Friendships like this are rare and precious!