The winter cover of snow was sometimes a friend to the early frontiersmen and at other times a deadly enemy. It brought him the abundance of furs from which he made a living and gave him the quiet beauty he so longed for in the wilderness. At its deadliest the frozen whiteness could show his enemy where he his and could bring a slow bitter death if he didn’t respect its power and beauty. This particular mountain man is getting out while the getting is good, before the cold and snow kills him.