Canoe Trip Story-All Invited

[Changing4Best]

Billie stared up at the trees happily. Trees were some of her favorite things. The newcomers were bringing some cold beverages, yay! What a wonderful time this was going to be.

 

[Farine]

Angelo put one more mighty stroke into the water with his paddle. He was in reasonable shape, but his muscles still burned from the exertion. The canoe ran aground on the sandy shore. He watched with satisfaction as Farine nimbly exited to grab the bow and then steady it for him to exit. He could stretch after a few hours of paddling. This wasn't bad .. not bad at all. The sun was still a hand's width above the horizon. They had time.. He set Farine to the task of making the fire.. Others could help when they could. In the meantime, he set up the Red TENT in the best spot.. They had the most people to shelter and they would need enough space for three to sort themselves. He could set up their tent in the dark if it came down to that.. It wouldn't be the first time they had arrived somewhere after dark and needed to get the tent up. He was more concerned about getting the evening meal going in time.

Farine heard his tone and smiled.. Being outfitters was her dream, but he had made it his own in distinctive ways.. The optimization part? Pure Angelo. And over time, she had learned to trust it.. The fire pit area had a lot of old debris from past fires.. She used a tarp piece to load it up with some of the biggest chunks.. She would put that in a pile off to the side and then later put it back when the fire was truly hot. Charcoal still had unspent fuel in it and she could get a truly hot fire going once the new fire got up to temperature. Besides they wanted flames high enough for the new people to see at a distance.. Now that the bottom of the fire pit was clear she could start to build the new ...

Angelo appreciated the housekeeping, but he wanted a FIRE NOW... He diverted himself from his original effort to work side by side with her.. "Can you hand me the flint and steel?" He wanted to strike the spark and get the task of blowing the spark into a flame going..

Farine settled back on her heels and reached into her fanny pack that held the firestarter kit... the flint and steel were a single unit set on a keychain. She placed that into his hand..
He squeezed her hand with the flint and steel within it.. It was a silent apology. He had been too terse with her. He then let her release it into his grip.. he moved slower and more deliberately.. The fire would happen.. and sure enough.. soon it was curling up through the dry wood .. some of which they had brought to ensure they had it the first night. WIth the first tent up for their guests and the fire lit... the real fun could begin.. he stood to his feet and looked around to see if anyone needed his help.

 

[Changing4Best]

Billie loved the red tent. She quickly changed into her bathing suit and took a quick dip in the water. It was so refreshing! Then she came ashore and sat by the fire to dry off and warm up a bit. The flames were so beautiful, rising and dipping. This was like a dream come true for her. College had been hard work. Now it was time to spend some time with her Mom and Dad. Just being with them was so comforting.

 

[Farine]

Farine began to pull the meal together.. Now that the fire was well established, the coals could be rearranged for the various needs she had. There needed to be a stable bed of coals for the corn on the cob. She pulled the duffle bag from the canoe that held the fresh vegetables and began to pull the husks back in order to slather the butter along the kernels.

Angelo felt that task was well suited for her... she had a good rhythm and all too soon that would be in place. But the fish tacos were more his style. He looked at her to see if she would mind his taking over the rest of that dish entirely.
She nodded with enthusiasm.. essentially saying ''Go for it'...
He flashed her his 100 watt smile. THIS was going to be great! He fetched the rest of the ingredients and set up the camp stove on the make shift work space lashed between the trees. He was going to be frying oil and he wanted complete control over the heat and the splatter of the oil. No splashes of oil into the flames, thank you! He had a platter of sorts with two plates set next to each other with paper towels to soak up the excess oil. The smell of the fish tacos was going through the air...

Once she had arranged the individual heads of corn to her liking, she placed them on the iron grate to roast. That meant she could put the salad together. THat was far easier. The original plan was for Angelo's help, but this would be better. The fish tacos were the main effort and he had that entirely in hand. She could shred lettuce, chop the tomatoes and add the hard boiled eggs. The work surface would also serve as a good buffet space. Pretty soon her part of the meal was done. Her last contribution was lemonade from mixing a powdered mix with clean, filtered water she fetched from the lake and then ran through a purifier. That was placed in a gallon container for anyone who wanted it. It was cold at least.

Angelo had the first of the fish tacos coming out of the fryer. He was ravenous. He had one just to settle his stomach. YUP. they were good! In this small organization he had to have multiple roles. Chief tastetester was only one of them. He grinned at Farine. They were doing well to get settled so early in the evening. Now he just wondered how the corn on cob was getting along..

She blinked... she hadn't checked it in awhile.. she turned..
He patted her on the bum... "WELL? " he gave her a significant look.. for all they knew it could be burning right now.
She rushed over and fished one off the grate.. with a fork, she pushed back the husk fibers... the corn was a trifle overdone but still highly edible.
Angelo laughed... spark of chaos, indeed... well. at least it was highly edible... Dinner was served. He thought the smell of their efforts alone would draw them in.

 

[Changing4Best]

Billie said Grace and they started eating. She told them how delicious all the food was, and nice and colorful to her artist's eyes. She started with the corn on the cob. It was a beautiful golden yellow with the butter shining on it. It was tasty. ( I'm getting hungry writing this!). The taco was heavenly, so she thanked Angelo for that. She was careful with the salad.

Just then her mother reminded her about the time she had dumped a whole salad over by accident. This had been at Lake Champlain when she was still in college.

 

[Farine]

Angelo liked the crest of the campsite with its sweeping panorama view to keep his eyes open for the other group. They had a little daylight left and his eyesight was good. He still wanted to visit with Bill, Adele and Billie. He made a plate with all of the things they had prepared and spent a few minutes locating the growing speck of their canoe. Not bad. They would make landfall soon and from his last reckoning, they were making strong progress. Only then, could he fully devote his focus to their guests. He used those few moments to utterly consume two fish tacos as if bodily packing into his frame for immediate use. He was hungry.

Farine, who was much more oriented on social first, eating second, was spending all of her time at the spot where Billie and her parents were. She made inquiries if the tacos tasted anything like the fish pies.. and then wondered about Lake Champlain and its particulars. She too had made a few discreet google searches on the internet before leaving civilization. What was it about that trip that had so particularly caught their attention? She made good eye contact. She really wanted to know.

And that was the moment when Angelo pulled up his reinforced, oversized camp chair meant for holding his bulk securely. "Yes.. I would very much like to know more about this place." He used the excuse of stuffing his own face with the trifle overdone, but still high edible corn on the cob to pass the floor of conversation firmly to their guests.

 

[Changing4Best]

Bill said that they'd rented camp on Lake Champlain from an old feller named Bucky. They had seen signs around town about a Lake Monster in the lake named Champ. They had inquired about this and Bucky had told them all about it. The Monster was some twenty feet long and swam in an undulating fashion. It had red eyes. It's underside was white. It was a dark brown on its head and upper body. It swam usually not seeming to notice those looking on from a distance. It stayed in the deepest parts of the lake. Bucky had filled in all the details... Billie chimed in and said she had done a drawing of it for Bucky, according to Bucky's description. She'd even put his Sail boat in the drawing. He was so pleased with it, she gave it to him.

 

[Farine]

Farine was engrossed in hearing about Champ and Billie's part of illustrating it. She had a habit of putting laser focus on what she was attending to. So if there was a house fire going on nearby, that might burn down to the ground if she was concentrating hard enough of something else. Right now, she was focused on Bill.. then Billie.

Suddenly, Angelo thought he heard something that might be the other group's arrival.. He thrust his half eaten plate abruptly into Farine's lap. Without warning, he rose more swiftly than a man of his size seemingly could and rose to his feet. ' That might be them." was the only explanation he gave for his departure.. It was a couple of minutes walk to the actual shoreline. During that time, he felt the natural serenity of the wilderness drawing him into confiding the real reason he so loved being an outfitter during the summer months. It was for a moment of stillness like this. The inner stuff which he chose to set aside during times of productivity or close contact could be soothed and quieted. He got to the shoreline and resolved to wait here until he could connect with the other group.

 

[Changing4Best]

Billie went to their Red tent to change into some warmer clothes. She was anxious to meet the newcomers. She wondered what they would be like. When she came out of the tent, she heard what she believed was an owl. She got all excited, hoping to hear it again. She thought she might be seeing it a bit in the glow of the fire. It was located in a spot where there was no smoke. She quietly inquired about it, indicating which direction in which it had perched with a nod of her head.

 

[Farine]

The smoke blew first one way... then the other.. In a moment between breezes, the smoke went straight up. That was when the owl hooted. It must be nice to have eyesight that wasn't worn down from excessive reading. Billie's fresh vision was peering into the dusk seeking it. Her best guess was noted with a nod of her head. Farine had similar interests to spotting wildlife.. And yes, about sundown was also a cue to alter one's layers to suit the changing environment. She was toying with the idea herself.. her pack was a few feet away and the long sleeved shirt might be just the thing. But then that would break the flow of conversation. That was the part that Farine so enjoyed about being an Outfitter--meeting and getting acquainted with all of the guests was her cup of tea.

So the Lake Monster figured largely in Billie's experience on Lake Champlain.. Farine had seen this massive lake on Google maps. It was the sixth largest lake in the United States.. It had a few large islands in the middle of it, worthy of the construction of a massive bridge to connect it. There were historical forts that dated to the American colonies fight for independence. While Farine waited for the next hoot of the owl to confirm Billie's positioning, she puzzled out this reference to Champ.. Was it a one time name drop, or did it have real significance to the childhood memories of her trip to this rather remarkable place.

 

[Changing4Best]

Billie said that some people on the lake had seen it, but when she went to a diner, no one wanted to talk about it, other than to mention that it was really only a tourist attraction. So she had always been curious about it ever since.

 

[Farine]

Billie said that some people on the lake had seen it, but when she went to a diner, no one wanted to talk about it, other than to mention that it was really only a tourist attraction. So she had always been curious about it ever since.

Farine smiled. The enigma always did have staying power, didn't it. And some people were mysterious in their own ways too. Her smile to Billie was kind.. "Do you like hot chocolate?" Farine felt if she wasn't going to layer up.. she was going to drink something hot to compensate for the falling temperatures.. Powdered hot chocolate really tasted good in a place like this. Reaching into her items, somehow without having to struggle for it... her covered tub of hot chocolate was at hand. Soon, all of these items would be getting stashed up in the trees for safe keeping. And mugs were pulled out of their locations... she looked over at Bill or Adele to see if they wished for some.. While she was poking around in her packs, she came across her old fashioned coffeepot. This bit of veteran gear bore the marks of many trips. She excused herself momentarily to fill it full of water to rest it on the coals of the fire. They would have hot water momentarily. And similarly in the morning there would be coffee. Life could still have its pacing even out here where nature clearly ruled.

Speaking of mysteries.. a young woman having just graduated from college was just such a mystery. WHere would she go? What would she do? What was of value? What would be set aside? Farine resisted the urge to tamper with the purity of Billie's choices. It was enough that she was listening to whatever Billie felt like relating in the moment.