These rugged men who sought the riches of Beaver Pelts became the most extensive battalion of explorers this or any other country produced in our history.  The constant labor of wading in knee deep ice cold water setting traps, skinning beaver and drying and baling the pelts was exceeded only by the endless hours on horseback looking for and trapping the perfect beaver stream.  The dangers to life in this great wilderness were accepted by them in spite of being hundreds of miles from help and with little hope of surviving any serious trauma that today might be easily fixed by a local doctor or EMT. They were on their own hook. But by the late 1840's very little remained unexplored and the fur trade which started to die as the hat fashions changed was almost completely done with.