The winter
The winter symbolizes something important, because the story starts with descriptions of snow, and of humans overcoming that obstacle to create community. It is a symbol for man's battle against nature for survival against steep odds. The character most closely associated with snow is Judge, because he endured the seasons to build their little community.
The shot youth
There is a "chip on the shoulder," symbol when an older member of the community wounds a young man during a hunt. The young man was not meant to be shot, and the story even mentions that Judge might not have the best aim, because he gets teased about it, but that makes the young man's wound symbolic. It represents the accidental, implicit friction between generations.
The motif of wood and trees
Much of the town is constructed of wood, and they fell old trees throughout the story for new tools and structures. Trees are a literal symbol for nature's willingness to provide resources to humans in their efforts of forming a society. Trees represent the bridge between nature and society, because they are plants growing from the earth, but people use lumber in this story to literally construct new ways of living beyond nature's normal limitations.
Mountains
The mountains serve as a symbol for reflection and self-actualization, because Elizabeth finds herself engaged in those practices as she hikes nearby hills and mountains. In the mountains, they are far from town, and when they spot a deer, they ignore the manmade laws about hunting, and they kill the animal in a kind of primal, animalistic entitlement, as if the mountain has restored them to their role in nature as predator.
Dogs as a symbol
Constantly, the cast of this story battles against dogs. Dogs are vicious, and since they form packs, they are a foil for the efforts of the humans. The dogs aren't interested in building towns or post offices. They want blood and flesh, and they will take that from a human if they get a chance. Therefore, the dogs represent death and chaos, another symbol for the stakes of this journey. Surely if the characters fail in a critical way, they could die, and the dogs would eat them.
