It was still snowing in the morning, but I did a little poking around outside. I found more wood stacked and dry, some tools, and oddly a ball. It was a big ball and rather heavy as it wasn't filled with air, rather sand and some sort of shell that was encased on the outside by several layers of leather. I could only guess as to the ball's purpose. I found several traps. Large traps at that, the kind used to catch tigers. Perhaps the miner had been part poacher too.
It snowed heavy for two more days, which saw us consume most of the rest of our food. Worse than that Deshavi was sick with a cold and would likely only get worse, if we re-exposed her to the cold extremes of the outside wilderness again. It didn't look good either staying or going.
The snow broke on the third morning and I went out looking for food. There were a lot of small critters about in the dip and despite the snow I was able to take out two rabbits and a squirrel with a homemade slingshot. I'd taken the lead bullet tips of the useless pistol ammunition and smash them down to rough balls with the use of the miner's tools. It had paid out and at least we would eat for another day.
I was headed back to the dugout, when I came across a heavy path through the snow. It was a bear's track. A sizable one by the looks of it. The bear must not have decided it was done foraging for the year and ready for hibernation yet. Whatever the case was for its appearance I had to kill it, as it represented a golden chance for all three of our continued survivals.
Chances like this just didn't come twice in Siberia. It wasn't far to the dugout and I ran my way there kicking my way through the heavy snow. Trent had his rifle at the ready, but I waived him aside and told him what I needed. He got me one of the old tiger traps and I passed off the two snowhairs to him, but I kept the squirrel for bait. I left the dugout in a hurry, as a clogged up sounding Deshavi, called out for me to be careful.
I let myself sink back into my younger years, when I had been an avid hunter. Plotting a course I headed off, in what I hoped would be an intersecting route, with the bear's foraging pathway. I was sweating and breathing heavily by the time I reached a likely spot. I skinned the squirrel out and baited the iron jawed trap with him, then I quickly retreated to a vantage point higher up on the slope downwind to wait and watch for the bear.