Paradise Found! (Look Behind You)
"If you do not know where you are going at the beginning of the journey,
you cannot be lost in the end " -dds
- § -
The Eclipse Chronicles Continues
To catch up with the story, here are the first THREE installments:
Eclipse Chronicles Part I: Prelude To A Trip
The Eclipse Chronicles Part II: Day 1.25
The Eclipse Chronicles Part III: Day 1.50
"Meanwhile"
Onward we paddled, to our final destination ( fingers still crossed). We rounded the next major bend in the river after the Island, the area right ON the coveted Line of Totality, and all whooped in unison, at our next, amazing discovery. No, nothing as marvelous as another Wilson², but one that would make the rest of the trip a whole lot more fun. ~ From: The Eclipse Chronicles -Day 1.50
It Couldn't Have Worked Out Any Better If We Hadn't Planned It
Glorioskii!! And pass the biscuits. We're HOME! No sooner had we rounded the bend from the beach-side 'aerodrome', when we hit pay-camping-dirt. Literally. There, on the left shore was a small piece of river paradise. A standard, over-cobble-y beach, that led up a steep little hill (still IN the flood zone), all covered with tall, soft grass. We were ELATED. Wilson² was beside himself with spheroidic glee. Even more amazing, it was RIGHT ON THE LINE OF TOTALITY. That coveted Eclipse viewing area I've been going on and on about for days and days and days now.
We beached our equipment barge and wandered up the hill. The area was ALL sandy soil, with a bunch of lush, brown grass tufted here, there, and basically everywhere. Just right for camping. Short trees and Poison Oak clumps dotted the area in places (BIG bushes), but there was plenty of space to work with. Thirty yards behind us, away from the river, was a rather dense forest of large Douglas fir, Poplar and other hardwood trees. "Those big trees should provide some nice shade." Paradise was found, and we staked our claim to it with gusto.
Our Trusty Craft--Beached For The Duration
Isn't This Nice...Our Eclipse Home Away From Home
Let's Get This Paaaty Started
Robinia set up her tent, and after about 47 trips, all our necessities made it up the steep hill and into 'camp'. Time to chill for awhile. Let's face it...floating, snacking, drinking, eating, fishing, laughing, snacking, and the occasional paddling...really takes its toll. Plus, it was hotter than heck. Someone had put those 'large shade trees' in the wrong place. The sun was beating down as if making up time for the moments it knew would be lost the next day, hiding behind the moon.
Sitting about in the grass, sweltering like the proverbial rutting pig, turning our skin beet red within the first thirty minutes, made it obvious we needed a shady shelter. We tried hanging out in the tent for awhile, but there were three of us, and it had to be over 195° in there by early afternoon. I like visiting a sweat lodge now and then, but this was ridiculous.
It was unanimous, "A Shelter Must Be Made". I set to work with the crude materials we had at hand. Luckily I'd brought a small, holey space blanket, and a large plastic 'tarp', that spent the first half of it's life as a rain cover over a ton of pellet stove fuel at the local Farm Store.
For some reason, Robinia packed a bunch of those black metal spring clips used around the office to hold important papers together. Not sure what documents she planned to stack into reams in the wilderness, but we were sure glad she came prepared. They came in quite handy holding things together in typical, highly shoddy fashion.
With a bit of MacGyver ingenuity, our shade shelter took shape...hauling rocks up from the river, snapping local sticks to correct length as poles, tying off parachute cord in all kinds of oddly creative ways, utilizing local bushes, trees and such as 'tie offs'...we soon concocted a pretty nifty patch of cool space. Our final shelter looked more than a bit funky. But funky is as funky does, and this funk did some much-needed shade.
Sitting On The Ground Is So 'Out'
We drug an old piece of drift railroad tie up the hill, and with my ultra cool, center-canoe chair and other scrounged flotsam and jetsam as seating and tables, we built up quite the riverside living room. We had a splendid view from our veranda, down and out onto the river flowing by below our new 'picture window'.
The True Art Of The Piecemeal Shelter
Mr. MacGyver Would Be Proud
Time To Clutter This Place Up--It's Entirely Too Neat and Clean
Wilson² Called Shotgun Right Away On My Canoe Chair
- § -
It Must Be Time To Eat--And What's Up With The Sprouts?
Few things taste as good as lunch in the outdoors (Except maybe dinner. Or breakfast). Our sandwiches and other lunching fare were soon prepared on the kitchen log. No sooner had we fully divin into our meal, when a whole FLOTILLA of Boy Scouts in canoes drifted noisily by below. We'd passed them a few miles up-river, at the only official campsite of the trip. A HUGE flat area in the large trees, with picnic tables, outhouses, fire rings, and ample tent space.
We DID consider stopping to camp in the area while passing by, but the 35 canoes pulled up on shore suggested more massive, youthful mayhem than a mellow, merit badge-earning Jamboree. Dabbling our older-person stick in the metaphorical mud, we continued floating on by the potential camp spot. I DO enjoy kids, just not oodles and oodles of them running all about in the wilderness on such a grand, one-time occasion as the Eclipse.
We had traveled on, and for some reason, a few hours later, here they all were! Paddling down the river in a large, noisy bunch. Each canoe had it's own homemade flag of some group-member meaning, waving in the breeze. Why they were leaving BEFORE the Eclipse was beyond us, as school was not yet in, and it seemed a fine way for the scouts to earn more badges for their sash. Whatever the reason, we were very happy when they failed to dry dock their boats on 'our' beach, and soon rounded the next bend and disappeared from view. And sound.
The area was peaceful and quiet once more, and we soon discovered we had only TWO other groups of people on the river. A young couple camped up-stream on our 'bar', and another group of four folks, relegated to the cobble field across the river from us. We definitely scored the best place around. We found this absolutely incredible. All the promise of 'millions of people' and certain large-scale nuttiness everywhere, and here were only nine of us, for miles and miles around. Boggles the simple mind. The day was young, and we hoped this scarcity of peoples would not change as the day moved on.
BeachFloaters In Zorries
We were lazing under our tarp, doing a whole lot of happy nothing, when large bunches of people started passing by on the river. In droves. It was AMAZING. All sorts of watercraft floated by in the next few hours, covered with varying layers of people, all merrily waving to us as they passed our camp. It was downright comical. They just kept coming. Inner tubes, inflatable kayaks, a wooden dory, motorboats, odd, air-filled inflatables I'd not seen before, even a guy on a solitary air mattress.
This was a Sunday, so not UN-common to see floaters on the river. But this was pre-eclipse Sunday. And there were so MANY. Our hearts collectively sank as we envisioned them all landing on 'our beach' by the thousands. But it soon became apparent they were continuing on their way downriver. Only ONE of them appeared to have any gear that suggested staying for the Eclipse on Monday. Just like the riverine bug-cloud of Boy Scouts headed downstream earlier in the day, it made no sense to us.
A Small Gallery Of BeachFloaters In Zorries
I did not capture many of them. We were busy at times when they went by...
A Family Flotilla
Mother-Daughter Boat Train---With Possible (?) Camping Intentions
Farmer-tan Leisure Man On Air Mattress
"It's HO-OT!"
All this river-borne splashing by others finally got to Robinia and HH, enticing them to cool down by dunking in the river. I stayed onshore to photograph and watch the action, guard the snack supply, and keep a keen eye out for local RiverSharks. Their stay in the water was short and sweet...a real cold blast, messing about in the shallow current and dunking their heads below the continuously passing waves. These mountain-fed rivers can be a bit chill.
Mr. Pike Minnow watched all this human floundering from his captured fish position, stringer-tied to the canoe. No doubt wondering if he was still invited for dinner. I was hoping not, for his sake, but this appeared to be his eventual fate. I thought about quietly setting him free ("....maybe he bit through the chain."), but getting between a fisher person and their catch is NOT a healthy place to be. I suppose I should be happy I've learned SOMETHING in my time on the planet. Such knowledge can save you a good thumping now and then.
One Of Them-Cooling Down In the Drink
Not sure which, they look a lot alike while submerged, and both wear glasses...
It's Four O'clock...Time For Some Plum Dum!
We headed back up to our little tent and shade shelter, just in time to realize the sun had moved again. More than usual. We were running out of shade once more. Continually dragging our furniture across the landscape under the little square of artificial shade as the sun dropped and moved across our camping area had become a real pain in the south end. "Time to move, again. YAARG! " Something MUST be done. I dug out my olive drab army-surplus mosquito tent, and fashioned a westward wall onto our shelter with more Joe Office clips.
In no time we had a new, official shade wall on our shelter to block the waning sun, and thus we all settled in to the science at hand. Reading Eclipse pamphlets, checking and practicing with our cool cardboard viewing glasses, and discussing the next day's plan of action.
Soon, the clock struck four, and you know what THAT means. Happy Hour! All this intense camping, swimming, deep learning and stuff called for a stiff little drink or two. And luckily we brought along some good old fashioned 'shoulder medicine'. An official forester term for the bug juice that sets the things of the world back to normal, after a grueling hike, or in this case, following a long day of heavy paddling and wonky shelter building. Ah, the wonders of gin. Just what the Good Doctor ordered.
We dove right into the cooler, and spread our mixology out onto the kitchen log. It was shaping up to be a grand start to the evening, and we were prepping for it as best we could. With a small aperitif or three. No sooner had we cracked our first can of Mountain Dew Spiked Raspberry Lemonade mixer, when a loud noise from above split the air over the river, out in front of our living room. We thought this was finally a quiet place to set-to. Maybe we'd thought too hard, too soon. What WAS all that racket out yonder? Only one thing to do, before investigating... "Pass me the gin and a frozen plum, Robinia. My shoulder hurts."
Stay tuned for the next installment of The Eclipse Chronicles
~ NOT Finto ~
~ To Be Continued ~
*BeachFloaters In Zorries- When I worked along the Salmon River in Idaho, we called all the people that floated by the ranger station BeachFloaters. And the Zorrie part came from my wonderfully wacky work buddy, Judy. (Zorrie: Another name for Flip Flops). For some reason, we thought this was incredibly funny. Who am I to argue...
Thanks for stopping in and viewing Day 1.75 of The Eclipse Chronicles. If you have any thoughts about a river sojourn for Eclipse viewing, creative shelter building from found river materials, the best cocktails for wilderness play, or anything else this post reminds you of, please feel free to comment away in the spaces below. I'd love to hear from you.
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Posted: 09/16/2018 @ 11:54
Excerpts From Late-Night Conversations With A Mechanical Cat
Fact Number 93