{"id":20677,"date":"2022-03-21T21:04:58","date_gmt":"2022-03-22T01:04:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/?p=20677"},"modified":"2022-03-21T21:19:24","modified_gmt":"2022-03-22T01:19:24","slug":"episode-558-part-67-set-7-to-sept-10-1958-to-1958-worst-job-i-ever-had","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/?p=20677","title":{"rendered":"EPISODE 558 PART 67 Set. 7 to sept 10, 1958 TO 1958 WORST JOB I EVER HAD"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Note:  This is the last part (7) of the WORST JOB I EVER HAD.  Sounds rather<\/div>\n
juvenile at times\u2026I was just a kid entering a grown up world.   This would have<\/div>\n
been a better story if I had only interviewed Walter Helstein more.  His accident <\/div>\n
was the endow the adventure\u2026a sad ending.<\/div>\n

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EPISODE 558   PART 7   SEPTEMBER 7 TO SEPT  10, 1958.        WORST JOB I EVER HAD<\/div>\n

 
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September 7, 1958<\/div>\n

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I suppose a bad ending was predictable for poor Walter Helstein.  In early July. When he crawled out of<\/div>\n
the float plane and beheld his new home, he may have considered  quitting.   His new home<\/div>\n
was an untouched virgin patch of boreal forest on a small precipice overhanging a huge river<\/div>\n
whose waters were rolling north to James Bay..the Hudson\u2019s Bay\u2026then the Arctic.<\/div>\n
Walter said nothing.  He just smiled in his disarming way.  A grin.  And then he got to work<\/div>\n
cutting the clearing and raising the tents.<\/div>\n

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Walter was older than all of us.  Three times older.  Perhaps in his 60\u2019s.  He was out of shape<\/div>\n
from lolling around South Porcupine getting bit jobs now and then.  He had no idea he would<\/div>\n
spend the next months sleeping rough\u2026on a wire cot or pine bough bed \u2014 both.  He had no<\/div>\n
idea that food would be wormy and in short supply.  He had no idea that he would be expected<\/div>\n
to use a blazing axe to mark over 200 miles of nearly invisible trails through a green wilderness<\/div>\n
of twisted spruce and cedar forest .   He had no idea that much of the summer would be spent<\/div>\n
in a swamp with water percolating through larger and larger holes in his high cut leather boots.<\/div>\n
He had no idea that his trial  would have a tragic ending. <\/div>\n

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 He was careful<\/div>\n
most of the time but also tired of stretching his legs of moss covered windfalls.  He was careful<\/div>\n
to avoid the sharpened spikes of tag alders cleared for compass bearings.  <\/div>\n

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Walter Helstein nearly made it.  He nearly survived.<\/div>\n


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WALTER HELSTEIIN TRAGEDY<\/div>\n

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DEAR DIARY<\/div>\n

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Tragedy struck today when  we came upon Walter Helstein unconscious  on the trail with an alder spike driven through his hand.   We think he was<\/div>\n
lying there for an hour or two with this very serious wound.  He was much older than the rest of us so followed distantly behind sometimesl<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n

so his absence was not a problem.  Walt always caught up never failed to do his part of the job.  We were a good team I felt.  To see him lying there<\/p><\/div>\n

on the trail was frightening.  Was he dead\u2026heart attack?  No.  He fainted it seemed.
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We revived him and helped him get back to our campsite where the wound was<\/div>\n
washed and bandaged.  Walter took some  sulpha pills to numb the pain.  Not sure if that works.  Pain is severe.  We were afraid this  would happen.<\/div>\n
 Walter had  a habit of stepping on moss covered windfalls rather than stepping over them.  Slippery rotten windfalls are dangerous. <\/div>\n

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Walter has  been with us for the whole summer which surprised us all for he seemed  too old and too out of shape for the kind of work we were<\/div>\n
doing.  But Walt persisted and turned out to be a joy to work with.   He is 40 years older than me yet we worked as a team blazing trails that<\/div>\n
criss crossed some very nasty parts  of this wilderness.  <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n


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Walter must get to a hospital before infection sears  ub,. We radioed  an SOS to Austen Airways in South Porcupine.  Contact failed.  Weather is bad with<\/div>\n
heavy cloud cover.  Doubtful if the Beaver could find Kapik Lake so fogged in right nowt\u2026so small\u2026especially when he ceiling is so low.   Nothing we could do as nightfall arrived.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n

  We made Walter as comfortable as possible and fired up the tinware stove.
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A terrible picture but maybe that makes it more authentic. Walter was badly  hurt.  Sorry about  the picture. My camera was finished\u2026so I include <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n

a better picture of Walter Helstein.   He was a good man who \u2018was just getting by\u2019 in a hard world.



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We were helpless.  Hoping that Walter would be rescued. Made radio contact but plane was grounded in fog<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n

and rain.   
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We  left Walter in the tent for the day  and set out  to find our last underground conductor.  We failed to find it.<\/div>\n

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Distance covered   34,000 feet<\/div>\n

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September 8, 1958<\/div>\n

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Walt was in severe pain all night. Moaning. By morning his hand was swollen and red fingers of  infection were apparent.  Walter\u2019s natural good humour  ended.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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September  8, 1958<\/div>\n

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:\u201dTHE JOB IS OVER!”
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Everything came to such s brief ending.  \u201c Al, you fly out with Walter \u2014 get an ambulance or a taxi to the Timmins hospital. \u201c<\/p><\/div>\n

The drone of the engine was heard then the Beaver popped out of the low ceiling, circled once and set down.<\/div>\n

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  Walt was stretched out in the back.   Both of us were finished.  As soon as we landed at South Porcupine Walter was taxied to the Timmins hospital.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n
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Sad.  I would never see Walter again. Never tell him how much I had enjoyed working with him.  There was not time for farewell..<\/div>\n
The taxi was waiting as soon as  we got tied  to the dock.  I  could see the pain in  Walter\u2019s face as he waved good bye.<\/div>\n

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There are some people that are unforgettable.  Walter Helstein is one such person.  <\/div>\n
  Look Closely  Walter is standing in water\u2026over his boot tops.  His blazing axe in his hand and  his tea cup  tied to his braces with the stub of  a cigarette in his mouth.   Much of our summer was<\/div>\n
spent in such conditions.   After his tragic accident I never saw him again but heard  that he spent 8 months in the hospital. <\/div>\n

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Although this picture  does  not look like I was enjoying myself.  And  much of the time i was not.  But actually I was quite proud  of myself.<\/div>\n
I had survived  just threw two temper tantrums when the job got unbearable.  Walter never threw a tantrum but<\/div>\n
instead  laughed  at me along with Floyd  and Bob.  Actually I came to love the job\u2026to love the battle with nature\u2026too find I could  survive<\/div>\n
in the worst of conditions.   My success in this job led to another six years working for Hunting Technical and Exploration Services.<\/div>\n
In  retrospect the jobs were a great privilege\u2026something that few human beings will ever experience.  <\/div>\n

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By the end of the summer Walter and I had  walked and blazed 206.3 miles on our own<\/div>\n
trails through the bush.   That is almost the distance  from Toronto to North Bay.  Hard  to<\/div>\n
believe?  <\/div>\n

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The clerk in the Airport Hotel hesitated  when I  asked for a room for the day only.  Little wonder\u2026two months growth of hair and beard, pants <\/div>\n
patched with Canvas, Gum rubbers with my socks poking through holes and a  packsack that looked like  I had been living rough for a long time (which\u2019<\/div>\n
is true come to think of it.)  He relented.  I Had my first real bath of he summer and then called  Timmins airport to reserve a flight this evening. <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n

What was Ito do with the skull and antlers of that bull moose we found earlier in the summer.  Unlikely to be loaded on an Air Canada flight.
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.  I asked CN Express  to ship the skull along with my baggage back  to Toronto.  Tricky kind of baggage.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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  Phoned  home\u2026mom and dad surprised.  \u201cBe home tonight.\u201d<\/div>\n
Then got a shave, haircut and  a big ice cream sundae.<\/div>\n

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Bob and  Mack arrived shortly after 12 and we loaded our equipment in the Land  Rover. which had  been stripped of all easily detached<\/div>\n
equipment\u2026hub caps and spare tire.   Bob  drove me to Timmins Airport where I got my first restaurant meal since July. <\/div>\n

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I boarded the Viscount just as the sun was  beginning to set on the western horizon. \u201cWould you like a Peak  Freen biscuit and glass<\/div>\n
of lemonade, sir?\u201d  Wow!  This was  going to be a great flight.  I nursed the lemonade for a long time and just nibbled  at the shortbread\u2026loving<\/div>\n
them both. <\/div>\n

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We landed at Sudbury, then North Bay and  finally Toronto about mid night.  What a greeting.  Russ Vanstone, Red Stevenson, Jim Romaniuk and<\/div>\n
my brother Eric  along with mom and  dad.  Eric  had a huge hand printed  sign saying \u201cGo back, Al.\u201d  Jim Romaniuk asked about the<\/div>\n
lonely hearts letters.  \u201cLet me have them Al, Might find a girl friend  there.\u201d  \u201cTry the girl from Florida with the pencilled note\u2026she\u2019s ready to<\/div>\n
move up here if you send her the fare.\u201d   Russ drove us all home to our place where mom and  dad <\/div>\n
had prepared  all  kinds  of food.  After that I fell asleep in a real bed.<\/div>\n
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September 9, 2019<\/div>\n

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Dr Paterson phoned early in the morning.  \u201cCan you come to the office, Alan, maybe help with the results\u2026there are things we need to know urgently.\u201d<\/div>\n
So everyone was gathered around the aerial photos hoping I could remember where the top anomalies were located.  I am not sure how much<\/div>\n
help I could provide.  \u201cMcIntyre Mines  want to know right away.\u201d  That comment reminded me that our summer living rough was really a big secret.<\/div>\n
I really could not spot all the anomalies where we got high readings but did the best I could.   Dr. Paterson was very serious and professional\u2026a bit<\/div>\n
intimidating.  I am not sure that he knew my job had been swinging a blazing axe most of the summer.  I certainly did not say that.  I did put a word<\/div>\n
in for Walter Helstein hoping that the company would help  out or totally pay his medical bills.  Not sure what happened to Walter but heard by<\/div>\n
the grapevine that he never fully recovered.  Floyd told me later that Walter spent 8 months in the hospital.  Some danger he would lose his arm.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n

 That may have been hearsay though since our company had wound up the Groundhog River job  Miners are nomads.  When a mine is closed they<\/p><\/div>\n

take off;
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 There was one<\/div>\n
nice outcome of that last meeting.  Dr. Paterson looked  me in the eye and said, \u201cHow would you like a job next summers an operator-Technician on<\/div>\n
a job we have lined up in Alaska?\u201d  Wow!  Alaska!   \u201c<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n
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my answer was short and simple.  \u201cCount me in.”<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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THE BUSHMAN\u2019S THONG
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What about the BUSHMAN\u2019S THONG?  Good question, .   I am  very proud of my Bushman\u2019s thong.  IT still hangs on my Boy Scout shirt<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n

in the cellar at the farm.  Reminds me of that summer of 1958 every time I see the shirt and Thong.  I know this diary sounds rather juvenile.<\/p><\/div>\n

True!  I was just a kid back then.  A Rover Scout.  Fucking Al!
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ALAN  SKEOCH<\/div>\n
MARCH 2019<\/div>\n

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<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Note:  This is the last part (7) of the WORST JOB I EVER HAD.  Sounds rather juvenile at times\u2026I was just a kid entering a grown up world.   This would have been a better story if I had only interviewed Walter Helstein more.  His accident  was the endow the adventure\u2026a sad ending. EPISODE 558 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-20677","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20677","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=20677"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/20677\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=20677"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=20677"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=20677"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}