In the last episode, Caribou Joe and Bert Conway are ambushed and hit by gunfire while taking a break from distilling whiskey.
Earlier that same day Caribou Joe had saddled up at the Ram Pasture near Tte Jaune Cache. The time had come for another haul down to Thompson Crossing. Joe picked up his pack boxes and other gear necessary for the two-day journey.
Also, Joe met up with Constable Bigumpound, once again. Joe recognized the policeman right away.
Bigumpound was riding a borrowed horse and called out to Joe as they met at a railway crossing, "Leaving town so soon, Mr. Caribou?"
"Sorry," answered Joe. "You must be confusing me with another person. My name is Carter. Ed Carter, packer and trapper in these here parts, at your service. And who might you be?" Joe knew perfectly well that he was addressing one of the B.C. Police officers, stationed at the new Tte Jaune police barracks.
Constable Bigumpound was pretty sure this was the same man that slipped through his fingers earlier that month. He turned in his saddle and said, "The name's Bigumpound. Have you been here in town long?" The constable had interviewed dozens of men that month and was getting to know the local workers.
Joe stopped his horse and answered, "Just long enough to get my supplies for the next trip...I mean for the trap line. You should see the marten and coyotes up near Mount Robertson."
"Don't you mean Mount Robson, young man?" quizzed the policeman.
"Yes, indeed," replied Joe. "Mount Robson: first climbed by Reverend George Kinney and Curly Phillips in 1909. A great man, Mr. Kinney, and a splendid promoter of travel on the Grand Trunk Pacific mainline."
Joe had never actually seen Mount Robson and had only heard about the mountain-climbers and Reverend Kinney from the Wall brothers. However, he was sure his story sounded good.
He added, "I'm going to be out on my trap-line most of the winter." Joe was convincing, and having the packhorse helped. If Bigumpound only knew that the pack boxes Joe carried were loaded with empty whiskey bottles, packed in rags.
The policeman tipped his hat and said goodbye, still not quite sure of himself.
Joe rode off in the direction of Starvation Flats and right into the first big snow storm of the season. He stopped for an hour to rest the horses at the Bartlett's cabin, and just past Cranberry Lake, where the Canoe River turns south, he followed the north arm of the Thompson River downstream.
The darkness of night forced Joe to bivouac in the snow off the main trail. He tethered his horses under tall cedar trees and laid out his bedroll under an abandoned freight wagon.
His journey to Thompson Crossing and his destination, Moonbeam Creek, would have to wait until the morning.
In the next episode, Joe travels south to collect another shipment of moonshine. For Joe, will this really be The Last Whiskey Run?
