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The following specifics will not be easy for some, as many of us have become seriously accustomed to the conveniences "Modem Primitive Gear" provides. Your will have to use your ingenuity, and to think like the original trappers did. Think portability by horse and mule-back, not by wagon-load.
For those wishing to participate with Barren River Party activities as prospective members, these guidelines will be of assistance.
Camp Gear to avoid:
I Enamelware cooking utensils, cups etc: Enamelware was not even available in the years of the Civil War, and is simply not authentic to the era of the rendezvous. Use tin-ware, copper or brass kettles and sheet iron fry pans. Keep the use of cast iron to a minimum, as it was relatively rare in trapper use.
2 Camp furniture, such as folding tables, chairs and the like: Yes, many types of camp furniture saw use in the period, but not in the place. Although such items were often carried by officers of armies, with baggage wagons, we are not portraying officers of armies with baggage wagons. There is no evidence that such items were even remotely used by trappers, even by the traders that attended rendezvous. Use alternatives.
3 Fire irons: The use of metal fire iron sets by trappers has never been documented- but wooden-stick tripods have.
4 Baker tents, Whelen Tents, Pyramid tents, Marquis tents, 'lean-pi" and other modern hybrid tents etc: The most common form of tent used in the west, in the period was the A or wedge tent. Consider simple make shift lean-tos, or weather permitting, no tent (which was probably the most common condition for most trappers, most of the time).
5 Large chests or boxes: Trappers traveled on mule or horseback. Trucks and large boxes are impractical and difficult to load onto pack animals. Small pinewood crates used as shipment containers for goods may have seen some camp use at rendezvous. Consider alternatives to chests, large boxes.
6 Candle lanterns: Nowhere will you fmd a reference to trappers carrying or using candle lanterns.
7 Ceramic jugs: Pottery or ceramic jugs were for eastern flatlanders. There is no evidence of their use by trappers or at the original rendezvous.
8 Pack baskets: These are popular today, by most styles used these days date only as far back as the 1880s or 1890s.
9 Wash Stands, Camp Kitchens, Fire Boxes or portable fire-places: Seriously, think about it. Would they have carried such things?
Recommended Reading: Book of Buckskinning VIll- Gear of the Rocky Mountain Trappers.
