He looked back at her, returning his own unwavering stare for what seemed like an eternity. Then he slowly nudged the horse around in the opposite direction, gave it a little tap with his heels, and sauntered off.
As she stood there in disbelief, she heard footsteps running up behind her, and reeled around to see who was coming. It was Sam. From the look on his face he had seen enough of the previous scene, to have a feint understanding of what just occurred. And he didnt like it, not one bit.
I was beginning to get worried that you might have blown us off. I thought Id come and check on you, since I didnt see any bus stops along the way for you to get back. I guess I was just being a little paranoid, but I see you have already started a fan club of your own in the wild west, he said as he raised his head and peered at the cliffs above.
Well I dont know if calling it a fan club would be quite appropriate, but either way Im just fine. She answered in a far away tone. What did this man of legends think he was doing watching her the way he did anyway? Did he think he was Kokopelli reincarnated, carrying a bag of lures on his back? This whole day was turning out to be something out of a twilight zone episode, she thought.
Terry wants to get moving down the lower canyon before it starts getting dark. He sent me to find you so we could leave right away. He also said that we have yet to get through the worst of the rapids, and navigating them with limited sunlight wouldnt be the best option.
Oh, I see, Terry sent you to find me did he? Well Im here and ready to go, but Ill tell you one thing, Im not saving any of your asses if you guys should fall out of the boat. Ive been watching all of you, and you have no idea what in the hell youre doing out there. Exactly whose idea was it to try and scare me anyway? Was it yours?
Look, I admit at the time it seemed like a good idea. We were just trying to get a few laughs in on this trip to nowhere. You know how it goes, its a guy thing. Everybody stands around shooting the shit and one thing leads to another. Then you end up thinking up some Huckleberry Finn scenario, and here we are. He admitted.
Well it seems as though you not only under-estimated the little girl in the gang, but also over-estimated your own abilities. I just hope we get out of here with everyone in tact. Then she shot him a look of disgust and stormed away back towards the rest of the crowd.
Sam knew she was right, and shared her concerns. He also felt like the biggest cad in the world at that moment.
They all headed back to board the raft for the second leg of the trip. This was supposed to be the toughest part, as the rapids in the lower canyon were class fours. Terry had reminded them that they were really class fives due to the speed and water levels this year. He told them to start paddling as he headed the boat down-stream and into the lower canyon. There were six rapids in this section, the last one, Washakie Falls being the most difficult. Just the word falls in its name made everyone suck in his own breath as he said it.
They began paddling, and almost immediately, the waters took on a formidable feel. Violently rushing about the small raft, the water crashed into the huge boulders that were everywhere around them in the river. It was exhilarating and fearsome at the same time.
Except for the occasional shout of orders from Terry, the occupants of the raft were silent. Each of them was fully engrossed in doing his part by paddling and negotiating the turns and obstacles thrown their way in the river before them.
They made it through Reverend Pugh Waves, Sacajawea Straits and Chimney Rock rapids with full control. But as they hit Lone Bear, Alan had started to show his fatigue, and held his paddle across his lap momentarily. Irini saw this and immediately shouted at him. Alan, you have to paddle! Get your oar in the water and paddle hard!
Just as he realized his mistake, a swell caught the raft and sent it sailing six feet above the water before it came slamming back down catching the stern on a jagged boulder as it did. The rear of the rudder hit the unforgiving stone and scraped its way over the rock, being pushed by the force of the water. Terry lunged forward with the motion of the boat, but managed to hang on to the long oar attached the rudder, and steady himself as they came out if the rapid.
The rudder was rendered useless, as it had been virtually sheered off below the level of the water. Terry grabbed an extra oar located just below his feet, and took up a sitting position in the rear of the boat as quickly as he could. He barked orders to paddle hard as they approached Screamin Lizard, the last of the rapids before Washakie Falls. He knew that without the steering control that the rudder provided, neither of these last two rapids would do anything but beat them to a pulp without mercy.
Dig in! Dig in hard! He screamed at the top of his lungs, Irini and Sam passed the orders to Jimmy and Alan. All five of them paddled with renewed energy fueled only by totally unadulterated fear, the fear of knowing they had no rudder assemblage to help maneuver around the foreboding boulders.
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