its
beauty. Even in the waning light, its magnificence was
undeniable.
“We can stop here for the night. You need to
look for a clearing to set up camp. You should look for something
close to the water so that fire containment won’t be such an issue.
Then you need to go and look for some dry wood to make a fire."
I looked at him like he had grown a second
head. Just what in the hay was he going to be doing while I was
busting my bottom?
“Okay." I drew the word out so that my
irritation was evident.
Well, at least it was evident to me. I
looked around and found a level piece of ground that was nestled
against the rocky shore of the river. I headed in that direction,
checking the clearing for critters that might crawl out of a hole
and eat me while I slept. Satisfied with my choice, I set my bag
down and headed out in search of firewood.
Finding dry wood on the Olympic Peninsula
turned out to be more daunting than I had anticipated. With some
work, I was able to find four passable pieces of wood. I carried
them back to the site and noticed that Kennan was out in the water
with his shirt off. That water must be freezing. But seeing as
Kennan was now being a stupid head, I did not care if he got
hypothermia. On second thought, I would be stuck in the wilderness
alone for the rest of my short days if he died on me.
“Kennan, you are going to catch your death.
What are you doing out there?" I asked as dispassionately as I
could. He would not catch me caring, no siree Bob. Two could play
this game.
“Catching dinner," was all he replied before
reaching into the river and pulling out a fish. So, he was part
bear as well. That was good to know. Maybe they didn’t have fishing
poles back when he was born. I snickered to myself, imagining the
first dude that invented a fishing pole and Kennan being all, "Nah
I got this."
I stacked the wood and dug through my pack
looking for something to light the fire with. I found a lighter
buried underneath several sets of clothing. Pulling from all of the
survival shows I had watched, I lit a small ball of tinder. I
prayed the wood was not too damp to catch. With a little luck, and
a light head from blowing on the embers, the wood finally caught. I
looked up to see Kennan heading my way with several fish. He pulled
a grate out of his pack on his way to the fire. After getting the
fish situated, he headed back to his pack and pulled on a
hoodie.
I headed over to my pack and decided to
figure out what I was going to sleep on before the light faded. I
saw a mat that resembled my yoga mat from back home rolled up
underneath. I took the straps off and unfurled it, thankful that it
was not as thin as my mat back home. I shuffled through the giant
pack in search of a sleeping bag. I pulled it out of its small
pouch, surprised that something so large could collapse to be so
compact. Kennan spared no expense on his kidnapping supplies it
would seem.
I lay it all out between the river and the
fire. My logic being that no big bad critters would want to cross
the fire to eat me. Well, that was my hope at any rate. I wondered
if Bigfoot was afraid of fires. I dug around in my pack in search
of something warmer to put on. I found a fleece jacket and pulled
it on and followed it up with a fleece hat. I refused to die of a
little thing like exposure. It may have only been forty something
degrees, I was still cold.
I walked back toward the fire, the aroma of
fish drawing me in. I suddenly realized I was famished. Kennan was
dishing up the food as I arrived. I sat down as he handed me a
plate, the silence unnerving me. I dug in, the food gone entirely
too quickly. I looked at Kennan as he rifled through his pack. He
tossed something my way. I looked down in my hands and saw that he
had given me a Power Bar. Nothing to top a dinner off like a fine
sundae, I mean protein bar. Alas, beggars cannot be choosers. The
strawberry cake of the previous evening conjured itself in my
memories like a traitorous
beauty. Even in the waning light, its magnificence was
undeniable.
“We can stop here for the night. You need to
look for a clearing to set up camp. You should look for something
close to the water so that fire containment won’t be such an issue.
Then you need to go and look for some dry wood to make a fire."
I looked at him like he had grown a second
head. Just what in the hay was he going to be doing while I was
busting my bottom?
“Okay." I drew the word out so that my
irritation was evident.
Well, at least it was evident to me. I
looked around and found a level piece of ground that was nestled
against the rocky shore of the river. I headed in that direction,
checking the clearing for critters that might crawl out of a hole
and eat me while I slept. Satisfied with my choice, I set my bag
down and headed out in search of firewood.
Finding dry wood on the Olympic Peninsula
turned out to be more daunting than I had anticipated. With some
work, I was able to find four passable pieces of wood. I carried
them back to the site and noticed that Kennan was out in the water
with his shirt off. That water must be freezing. But seeing as
Kennan was now being a stupid head, I did not care if he got
hypothermia. On second thought, I would be stuck in the wilderness
alone for the rest of my short days if he died on me.
“Kennan, you are going to catch your death.
What are you doing out there?" I asked as dispassionately as I
could. He would not catch me caring, no siree Bob. Two could play
this game.
“Catching dinner," was all he replied before
reaching into the river and pulling out a fish. So, he was part
bear as well. That was good to know. Maybe they didn’t have fishing
poles back when he was born. I snickered to myself, imagining the
first dude that invented a fishing pole and Kennan being all, "Nah
I got this."
I stacked the wood and dug through my pack
looking for something to light the fire with. I found a lighter
buried underneath several sets of clothing. Pulling from all of the
survival shows I had watched, I lit a small ball of tinder. I
prayed the wood was not too damp to catch. With a little luck, and
a light head from blowing on the embers, the wood finally caught. I
looked up to see Kennan heading my way with several fish. He pulled
a grate out of his pack on his way to the fire. After getting the
fish situated, he headed back to his pack and pulled on a
hoodie.
I headed over to my pack and decided to
figure out what I was going to sleep on before the light faded. I
saw a mat that resembled my yoga mat from back home rolled up
underneath. I took the straps off and unfurled it, thankful that it
was not as thin as my mat back home. I shuffled through the giant
pack in search of a sleeping bag. I pulled it out of its small
pouch, surprised that something so large could collapse to be so
compact. Kennan spared no expense on his kidnapping supplies it
would seem.
I lay it all out between the river and the
fire. My logic being that no big bad critters would want to cross
the fire to eat me. Well, that was my hope at any rate. I wondered
if Bigfoot was afraid of fires. I dug around in my pack in search
of something warmer to put on. I found a fleece jacket and pulled
it on and followed it up with a fleece hat. I refused to die of a
little thing like exposure. It may have only been forty something
degrees, I was still cold.
I walked back toward the fire, the aroma of
fish drawing me in. I suddenly realized I was famished. Kennan was
dishing up the food as I arrived. I sat down as he handed me a
plate, the silence unnerving me. I dug in, the food gone entirely
too quickly. I looked at Kennan as he rifled through his pack. He
tossed something my way. I looked down in my hands and saw that he
had given me a Power Bar. Nothing to top a dinner off like a fine
sundae, I mean protein bar. Alas, beggars cannot be choosers. The
strawberry cake of the previous evening conjured itself in my
memories like a traitorous
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