The Icelandic Canadian - 01.08.2002, Side 20

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THE ICELANDIC CANADIAN
Vol. 57 #1
the Red Deer River, known as the “Big
Red,” there were a few new houses along
the Little Red Deer River, which runs from
the south west into the Big Red. It became
known as the “Little Red Deer Settlement”
and is now heavily populated.
The first pioneers there came from the
eastern provinces with money, and are now
well off. Though they had overcome a lot
of obstacles on their journey, the largest
was still before them and would for many
years cause the newcomers a lot of trouble
and damage. That was the mighty Red
Deer River, which for the next decade
would defy people with its turbulent
waters when in flood. To the north and
northwest, across the river lay the
promised land that their Joshua had led
them to.
There was one house on the north
bank and in it lived a bachelor named L.
Sage. The outlook was dark. If they found
a way to cross the river they would be iso-
lated for who knew how long. It was the
hope and dreams of a prosperous future
more than anything else that gave them the
spiritual and bodily strength to go on.
They hoped that a railroad would run
through or near their settlement and were
encouraged to find a short distance to the
west of their campsite a section of railroad
grade under construction. They also found
machinery for a saw mill. It was all new and
owned by the Athabaska Company. Two
log houses had been built, a house for liv-
ing and a store room. The watchman said
that the company would build a saw mill
and start to work soon.
The Icelanders saw it as an opportuni-
ty to get work and lumber for their houses.
The mill was built but unfortunately only
operated for a short while and did not help
the newcomers. They were determined to
get across the river but how to get the peo-
ple and cattle across was the puzzle. There
were two small one-man boats which the
Icelanders used frequently to cross the
river. One day Sage told Bjornson that he
had cut some logs the winter before on the
tongue of land between the Medicine and
Red Deer Rivers and if the Icelanders
would help him raft them down to his place
he would ferry them and their belongings
across the river. He talked big and indicat-
ed it would not be much of a job. So it came
about that Bjornson accepted his offer and
asked for volunteers for the project. The
ones who volunteered were Benedikt
Bardal, Gudmundur Thorlakson, Jon
Gudmundson and Jon Einarson. They
were willing to go and thought by doing so
they had solved the problem of crossing the
river. Sage had a team of black mares, the
best in Alberta, at the time. It was said that
Sage had hauled a load of 5000 pounds
from Calgary, but I do not know the truth
of that story. I know that he thought a lot
of that team and that they could do almost
anything. Sage had to cross the Medicine
River to get his logs. The Red Deer was in
flood. Sage thought he could ford the river
with his black mares. He started into the
river with the Icelanders but as soon as
they got into the river everything was
under water. One of the mares got tangled
in her harness and fell but the other mare
swam, with everything, back to the same
shore. The Icelanders were standing in the
wagonbox up to their armpits in water.
When the upright mare got footing on the
river bank the men jumped out and cut the
fallen mare loose. Where they stood the
men could just touch bottom. It was said
that Sage changed his mind and that the
Icelanders never said a grumbling word.
The men and horses finally got safely up
the river bank and nothing more was ever
said about rafting across the river. All the
Icelanders got out of that adventure was to
risk their lives and get wet, nothing else.
As nothing had been gained by the
adventure with Sage, the men started to fig-
ure out some other way to get across the
river. The rains continued and it looked as
though it would be a long time before the
river could be forded to get the people and
luggage across. Some of the men had
brought lumber with them from Calgary so
it was decided to build a flat boat to use as
a ferry. Olafur Olafson, Benedikt Bardal,
and Gisli Dalman had some experience
building boats on Lake Winnipeg. They
took on the job of building the boat while
the group waited.
It was on the 27th of July that it was
decided to cross. The people, luggage and