Vintage Ski-Doos, family and forgotten treasures fill Henry Rice's life in Listuguj

The sky is grey and the earth is covered with a thin layer of ice and snow. The air is damp, and a faint wind blows. In the mountains of the Mi'kmaq community of Listuguj, it's not supposed to be like this.

"Normally around this time of year, the snow is deep and the sleds are running on top of the snow," a concerned Henry Rice tells me in early January, as we stand in the forest he loves in the northeastern Appalachian Mountains.

In Rice's world, a sled is a vintage Ski-Doo, like the many that he owns and repairs. But for now, his attention turns to the weather.

Rice, 56, is originally from the Kanien'keh:ka community of Kahnaw:ke, on the South Shore of Montreal. Twenty-eight years ago, he met his partner Tanya Wysote and found his new home in her community of Listuguj.

"I had friends here that I knew before I met my Tanya," Rice says. "When Tanya finally said she wanted to move back home, I already knew what life was going to be."

He knew life would be one adventure after another, and that's just how he likes it.

Rice is the second youngest in a family of six siblings. Growing up in the '70s, he entertained himself with some imagination and whatever his hands could build. For Rice, that meant fixing up motorcycles and Ski-Doos.

He would crank up the Van Halen, Led Zeppelin and Ted Nugent as he worked on the machines.

After graduating from high school, Rice took a job working in downtown Montreal.

"I worked in an office for five years because I had to. But for me, working and being outdoors seemed more exciting," he says.

It was around that time that Rice met the woman who would become his life partner.

They started dating right away, and quickly fell in love.

When Wysote became pregnant with their daughter, the two and Wsysote's son moved to her home community of Listuguj.

From there, Rice carved out a life for his new family, working every job that he could.

"He's a hard worker and has always provided for his family," says Wysote, who is currently relearning her Mi'kmaq language. Once she completes the program, she'll return to her job as a teacher at the Alaqsite'w Gitpu School in Listuguj.

For more than a decade, Rice has been cutting trails in the mountains, making it easier for environmental groups to traverse the land and to create recreation trails for the community.

Wysote says he has a photographic memory when it comes to the deep woods.

"Henry knows what medicines are in the bush, too. Where to pick it, when to pick it, all from listening to our elders," Wysote proudly says.

It seemed like Rice found his calling in the deep woods. He liked working with trees outdoors, where he found peace and quiet.

But that's not all he found there.

"I started finding old glassware. Like pop bottles, medicine bottles, bottles that held bleach. All old glassware, completely intact," he says.

These were areas where people from the community lived, dating back to the 1930s.

Rice started bringing the glassware down to his job site. Then he'd post images of what he found on social media, and give his finds away to those who wanted them.

"None of this stuff belongs to me. It belongs to the community for them to enjoy," he says.

He continues to hand out most of the forgotten treasures he finds to the community.

"There is so much in those mountains. And even though I brought some down for the community to see, I know the community for the most part wants things untouched by everyone," he says.

"It almost seems like it's a tomb. And you have to respect that."

Rice spends the little down time he has in his small garage. There, he works on seasonal machinery throughout the year, like lawn mowers, chain saws and snow blowers.

Various vintage Ski-Doo engines are neatly organized on a shelf. Old Van Halen CDs lay in the shop, ready to be played.

"One of the Ski-Doos that I have belonged to a priest who used to go up the mountain to give service," he says. "I try to keep the Ski-Doos the way they were when they were running hot back in the day."

Hanging on the wall are photographs of Rice's other passion: amateur racing in and around Listuguj on his vintage Ski-Doos. Every race means something to him.

"I love speed!" he laughs. "There is a cool factor, too, [for] things that are older."

Weeks after our walk in the mountains, a good amount of snow has fallen in Listuguj. Rice is clearing a driveway for one of his local contracts. He's a quiet man, who likes what he likes, loves what he loves and most often keeps to himself.

The new blanket of snowallows Rice to break out one of his Ski-Doos and finally soar across the many trails and race tracks he's ridden in years passed.

"Nothing beats being on a Ski-Doo with friends or with my wife and going fast." He chuckles as he says "that's the only speed I feel like going."

This story is part ofCBC's community bureau in Listuguj.