One of the snowshoes described in the book was very much like Fred’s barrel-hoop snow shoe in appearance.  According to the description, it was a type used by the Ainus, a peculiar people living in the cold northern islands of Japan.  As the shoe seemed quite simple and rather unique, we thought we would make one like it.  Two hickory strips each 4 feet long were bent to a V-shape and lashed together, forming an oval about 2 feet 6 inches long by 18 inches wide.  The frame was held to oval shape by tying the sides together.  Then the filling was woven in, running the strands diagonally, as shown in Fig. 32.

We had excellent weather for snow shoes after that snowstorm.  A thaw followed by a cold spell caused a thick crust to form on the snow which would nearly hold us up without the aid of our snowshoes.  We were rather awkward with those shoes for a while, trying to keep them clear of each other, and we found it particularly hard to turn sharply without causing one shoe to run foul of the other.  But with a little practice we soon felt quite at home on them.  In order to prevent cutting the web with our heels, we found it necessary to wear rubbers.

Our vacation came to an end before we were prepared for the expedition to Willow Clump Island.  But before leaving the subject on snow shoes, two more shoes remain to be described, namely the Swiss snow shoe and the Norwegian ski.  The Swiss shoe was made during the summer and the ski during the following winter.

The Norwegian Ski.

[Illustration:  Fig. 33.  The Norwegian Ski.]

[Illustration:  Fig. 34.  Bending the Ski.]

The Norwegian ski was made of close-grained wood, 1 inch thick, 3-1/2 inches wide and 6 feet long.  About 18 inches from the forward end the wood was planed down to a thickness of 1/4 of an inch.  This end was placed in the dish-pan of boiling water, and in a short time it was pliable enough to permit of bending.  It was secured in the proper bent position by slipping the toe end of the shoe between the banisters on the back porch and nailing a cleat back of the heel end.  When the ski was perfectly dry the toe strap was nailed on just back of the balancing point, and also another strap, to be secured about the ankle.  Then a cleat was nailed onto the ski to fit against the heel of the shoe.  In use we found it best to cut a groove in the bottom of the ski, so as to give us a better grip on the snow in climbing up hills.  With the skis we had to use short poles or “ski sticks” to assist in starting, stopping and steering when coasting.  The ski stick was a bean pole provided with a wooden block near the lower end, to prevent it from being forced too far through the snow.

The Swiss Snow Shoe or Swamp Shoe.

The Swiss shoe was made primarily to assist us in exploring some boggy land a short distance up the river from our island.  The original swamp shoes were made from the bottoms of two old baskets, and they worked so admirably that it was decided to equip the whole society with them.  Uncle Ed, when told about them, informed us that that was the kind of snow shoe used in Switzerland.  Of course, we could not afford to destroy a pair of baskets for each member of the club, and so we had to weave the shoes from the willows which grew on the island.