The Coureurs de Bois were adventurers who, like Captain Kirk of Star Trek fame, ventured where no man (at least no white man) had gone before. Coureurs de Bois means, literally, Runners of the Woods, and from the late 17th to early 18th century, that's what these men did. They traveled into the New World wilderness, seeking out Indians who had furs to trade.
When the Europeans first came to Canada, they set up trading posts and the First Nations people would bring in their furs, trading them for goods including muskets, knives, blankets, beads, pots and whiskey. Some of the men decided this was too slow and decided to take the trade to the Natives. These men were the start of the Coureurs du Bois. They had no governmental permission to do this, and were actually breaking the law, but they did increase the fur trade.
The life of the Coureurs du Bois wasn't an easy one. The Natives taught them how to survive in the wilderness. They learned how to build birch bark canoes, how to hunt and fish and how to make and use snowshoes. They dressed in furs and skins as the Natives did and ate the same food, including pemmican, deer meat and dried corn and berries. They often had to hunt and fish or they would have starved.
They traveled long distances, sometimes 2000 kilometers (about 1200 miles) in search of furs. It was a dangerous voyage, and they often traveled in groups. Dangers included hostile Natives, treacherous rapids and wild animals. It was often necessary to make long portages around rapids where using a canoe was impossible. Portage means the carrying of boats and supplies overland between two waterways or around an obstacle to navigation.
Another source of irritation was the attack by numerous insects - mosquitoes, black flies, etc. Again the Natives offered help and taught the Coureurs du Bois how to use plants including bloodroot and bay leaf or bear grease and fish oil as insect repellents.
Winters in the wilderness were long and cold. Often these adventurers had to dig holes in the snow and line them with branches to survive the freezing temperatures.
Many of these men married Native women, and thus the first Métis people were born.
In 1696, a decree by the French monarchy ended the activators of Coureurs du Bois. However, in 1716, the activities of the Coureurs du Bois were again legalized and a second generation of Coureurs du Bois or voyageurs had emerged.
Florence Cardinal - Florence Cardinal was born on the Alberta Prairies in 1935, and has spent her life there. Her articles, fiction and poetry have been ...
