Hidden for PGCAR 2022.
This cache is a camo'd lock'n'lock container with room for trade items. No need to touch the fence - it is sometimes electrified.
In May 1862, the three Rennie brothers set out from London, Ontario with partners John Helstone and John Wright. The so-called Overlanders intended to travel to Cariboo to join in the gold rush that enticed many men to make the dangerous journey. Unfortunately, three members of the party would not reach their destination, instead suffering a gruesome death on the banks of the Fraser River.
The Rennie Party left Ontario late in the season. Most Overlanders would have left a month earlier to ensure arrival before winter, however the Party met with unseasonably warm weather along the way, noting that during their stay at Tete Jaune Cache between October 4th and 15th, it was so warm that some of their meat spoiled before it could dry out. The next two weeks of their journey were characterized by a long portage, followed by continuously running rapids with their two canoes tied together for stability. Disaster struck on October 29th, when the larger canoe got caught on a rock in what is assumed to be the present day Giscome Rapids. Unable to free it, the men spent three days on the rock amidst heavy snowfall. The smaller canoe carrying Helstone, Wright, and William Rennie was cut free on the second day and immediately capsized, with Wright being carried downstream while the other two were able to make their way back to the larger canoe. After getting ashore, Wright was able to make his way back upriver to where the rest of the party was still stuck. The following morning, the men were able to pull the canoe in, joining the freezing Wright on shore.
Many of their supplies had been lost, and the party found that they were unable to continue down the river due to buildups of ice. With provisions running low and frostbite setting in, it was decided that William and Gilbert Rennie, who were in the best condition, would make the trek into Fort George. The party assumed that it would take no more than five days to reach the Fort and return with help. On November 5th, the two brothers departed with a rifle and one meal, leaving ten days worth of provisions for the remainder of the party. It took the Rennie brothers twenty-eight days to reach Fort George, in no shape to return with help. Two Indigenous men were enlisted to search for the party, but they were unable to proceed due to snow and soft ice on the river. With provisions at the Fort dwindling, William and Gilbert left for their original destination of Quesnelle and beyond at the end of January 1963.
After the Rennie brothers had departed, John Giscome (see John Robert Giscome: PGCAR 2022) learned from some Indigenous men that others they knew had come upon the Rennie Party's camp and discovered a starving Helstone and Wright devouring the remains of Thomas Rennie. The Indigenous men tried to light a fire for the survivors but were chased off when Helstone and Wright brandished weapons at them. The manager at Fort Georgen asked that Giscome visit the location should he come near it in his travels and report back with his findings. Departing from Fort George that spring, Giscome and, McDame, and their guide found the Salmon River too high to traverse, so their guide led them on an alternate route past the Rennie Party's camp. There they discovered the half-eaten remains of two men, which they buried. An Indigenous man who assisted in portaging their goods across Lhdesti (see Lhdesti: PGCAR 2022) led them to the third body, located a short distance from the camp. Despite Giscome finding no evidence of a fire having been lit at the camp, it is supposed that the men survived up to ten weeks after the two Rennie brothers left for Fort George. When Giscome reported his travels to The British Colonist, he included an account of his discoveries at the Rennie Party's camp. The newspaper erroneously reported William as the deceased Rennie, which must have caused some distress when William learned of his death.
For more information:
“A Fearful Tragedy” - https://archive.org/details/dailycolonist18631214uvic/page/n1/mode/2up?view=theater
“A Melancholy Diary” - https://archive.org/details/dailycolonist18630711uvic/page/n1/mode/2up?view=theater
https://www.hublehomestead.ca/rennieparty