Shoepack Pie

In "The River Calls" you'll find many references to the great foods once served in the logging camps. A good camp cook was essential to keeping a full logging crew. Many tales were told of how a bad meal cooked by a drunk cook could empty a camp over night. Good cooks were paid well, but some had tempers that were legendary.

As camp supplies started to run low a good cook became somewhat more creative. At the evening meal, there was a "sweet" of one kind or other. One was Shoepack pie. It was lemon flavored and not very high but the taste was fantastic lemon. The thing that made it so memorable was the name. A lumberjack started each day with a chunk or two of cardboard in his boots for warmth. At night he'd hang his boots by the woodstove and when morning came, he just added more. When it came time to replace the soggy mess, it had the look of the pie they all loved.

I hope you'll keep checking in at "therivercalls" blog. We'll try to make it worth the trip.