21 July: Days-43, Total-45; Miles-26, Total-1550
– Chuck
It was nearly 10am when a pickup truck drove to our campsite
and raced his engine to alert us of his arrival. I was in my tent getting
the journal and emails ready to send later in the day. When I stepped
out, I found Carl, a friendly guy who drove a mile up the gravel shore
to welcome us to Grayling. He had seen us set up camp after midnight.
Carl told us about what we might find in the village and about the river,
fishing, and local weather. Not long after he left, a red fox came trotting
along the shoreline, sniffing the gravel as it moved quietly along.
It must have been accustomed to humans, even though it kept its distance;
it was undeterred by our presence.
Soon another pickup with Richard, Todd and Steve arrived. They also
had news about the village and spun a few tales about encounters with
bears and 12 to 20 foot waves on the river. We asked them where we might
buy some salmon. They gave us a few ideas and told us what price to
expect for smoked salmon. It was much higher than the paltry amount
we had paid for fresh (unsmoked) salmon earlier.
When they left, we finished eating, had another visit by the red fox
and started packing. Todd drove up in yet another pickup, this one had
no windshield. He brought us some salmon; it was $25 for about 3 pounds.
About what we had been told to expect.
We floated the one mile into Grayling and were met by other locals at
the landing. There was a nice big sign saying, "Welcome To Grayling".
We did feel welcome and already knew some of the residents. We picked
up a few items of food at the community store. While I went to the Town
Office to use the pay phone, Bill went back to the canoes. Marvin is
a wellness counselor and talked with me as I sent email messages; his
office is in the same building. He does alcohol abuse work and I told
him my wife worked in the same field. He suggested that she contact
him and maybe could give him some advice.
Back at the landing, Bill had sailed off, he was checking to see what
forward progress could be made tacking into the increasing headwind.
After catching up with him, we decided that he would continue to tack
back and forth across the wide river. I would try to stay out of some
of the wind by keeping close to shore. We stayed in contact with our
VHF radios. After several hours, Bill rolled up his sail and paddled
with me. It seemed it took us forever to pass the Village of Anvik and
it is only 20 miles from Grayling. About six miles farther, Bill spotted
a good sandy campsite. We called it a day even though we had only made
26 miles beating into wind and waves. Like many of our recent campsites,
there were wolf tracks in the damp sand. Maybe we will get to see one
tonight?
Q: More about our physical condition. I had to terminate the previous
response before completed.
A: Just a couple more observations. We both seem to be getting enough
sleep, but the night paddling schedule makes it more difficult for Bill
to get to sleep. Also, he has had redness and sore toes on both feet
for several weeks. Possibly a reaction to the rubber-like booties he
was wearing when paddling. He no longer wears them.
I feel fine but know that my legs are not being exercised enough nor
is my cardio-vascular system. It will be a chore to get back in running
shape after laying off this long.
To summarize: We are in great shape, given the conditions we are in.