Survival Stories
"He's trying to portage the kayak by himself!" Herb exclaims. Before either of us can run forward to help him, Charlie stumbles. The earth beneath him gives way, and he and his boat tumble down in a small landslide. They hit the water above the falls with a splash.
"Rescue rope!" I scream.
I felt light and free, like an escaped prisoner. Tonight, for the first time ever, I would sleep up here on my own. Just me and the wilderness. I wanted to bellow out in triumph, like a big old bull elk. But I had almost reached my cabin, so I loped along on silent feet. Like a creature of the wild, I approached my lair in silence. I slowed down, advanced cautiously, stayed on high alert to keep my territory safe from predators.
I raised my head, sniffed the air and knew something was wrong. Mixed with the musty odor of damp earth and the Christmas-tree scent of firs, was a trace of wood smoke. A chill spread up the back of my neck. Here in the forest, smoke could come from only one place. My cabin.
The wind was a shrieking monster behind us and Jeopardy was barely in control, surfing down steep waves with an eerie roar as the water rushed under her hull. Every so often, a wave came at us beam on—sideways—rolling us dangerously to one side. I'd been out in all kinds of weather, but I'd never seen waves as steep as these. "It's nuts," I said flatly. I raised my voice so that she'd be able to hear me over the screaming wind and the crashing water. "And it's only going to get worse..."
"All of these additions, like the carved benches, the trails, the firepits," Maggie said, "were made by other Explore classes."
"You'll leave a lasting impression too," said Rick.
Chris stretched and let out a massive yawn.
"Are we keeping you up, Chris?" Maggie said.
He leaned back, arms crossed. "When does this get fun? So far this whole crock is nothing to get excited about.
Twenty Granola faces spun around and stared at Chris. It's just not worth it to lip off in Explore. I had a feeling Chris didn't care.
"Come on Sausage!"Kaylee whistled, and patted her leg again. "Come ON Sausage!" she cried. "We've got to go NOW!"
Sausage took one step forward, then backed up, whining.
Kaylee heard a reverberating CRACK, and turned, startled. A tall, blazing tree splintered across the lane. Before Kaylee could react, the flames roared across Jack’s property, licking up and over the frame of his house.
Jake woke in the middle of the night with his heart pounding. Something had startled him out of a dream. What was it?
He strained his eyes to see in the dark. A beam of moonlight shone through the skylight, allowing him to to see the outline of the other bunk bed. His younger sister Sierra's breathing was the only sound in the bunkhouse. Had he heard his parents moving around in the main cabin? He didn't think so.
Then he heard the noise again. Howling.
"A hunter knows he is never alone." She had heard Father say that once.
Aneze looked into the trees. She spoke out loud to the bush. "There's always you, Chickadee," she said to the small birds skittering above. "And if I stare long enough at the sky, I'll see you, Eagle, circling with your wife. You will show me where Rabbit and Vole are hiding. And nearby in the stream, you are swimming, Jackfish. And you, Beaver, you are working on your house."
"You see," Aneze told the woods. "I'm not alone at all."
