by Jean Fischer
Alexis got down on the floor, too, and stretched out on her stomach trying to get a better look.
“I can’t see anything either,” she said. “I think we should go to Tompkins’ and chat with the girls. We need to make a plan.”
“I agree,” said Sydney, standing up. “We need to come back here and find out what’s behind this door.”
Suddenly, Fang perked up his ears. He cocked his head. Then he raced toward the cave’s entrance.
“Oh no,” Sydney said. “Trouble. I think the mountain man is back.”
“We’re trapped!” Alexis gasped, standing up. “Oh Syd! What are we going to do?”
Think positive, Alexis, she said to herself. Remember Isaiah 43:5: “Fear not, for I am with you.” Everything is fine. It’s all good. Besides, on all the TV shows and movies, the heroines always get out of the situations just fine.
“The only way out is through the front door,” said Sydney. “Let’s go. No, wait!” She took several quick pictures of the door and its mysterious opening. “Now let’s go.”
They ran toward the cave’s entrance. Sydney was prepared to fight the mountain man if she had to. But as they came nearer to the door, they heard Fang barking in the distance. Baw-wha-wha! Baw-wha-wha!
“It sounds like he’s found something,” said Alexis.
“Or someone,” Sydney suggested.
The girls hurried out of the cave and into the fresh, woodland air. They were relieved that no one was in the campground. But then they heard it—the whistling. The mountain man was back, and he was walking through the forest heading into camp.
Sydney reached into her waist pack and took out the GPS locator. “That way to the resort,” she said, pointing north. “Run! We have to get out of here before Fang gives us away.”
The girls ran through the forest, back to the resort as fast as their legs could carry them.
The Plan
More visitors had arrived for the weekend, and all of the cabins at Miller’s Resort were occupied. Little children splashed in the water near the narrow beach. Moms sat in lawn chairs reading novels, while dads fished in motorboats. Each cabin’s dock had at least one young boy fishing. When the girls came running out of the woods, they noticed Duncan fishing on theirs.
“Don’t yell at me, okay?” he said when he saw them. “You guys were off somewhere playing, and I didn’t think you’d mind if I used your dock.”
Sydney debated whether to tell Duncan about the mountain man. She thought he might know something and maybe provide some clues.
“We weren’t playing,” she said. “We were spying on a guy in the forest.”
Duncan looked at her suspiciously.
“There’s a guy living in a cave in the forest,” said Sydney. “He looks like a raggedy, old mountain man, and he has a gigantic dog. Standing up on its hind legs, it’s more than six feet tall. A purple glow comes from the cave, and we discovered a secret room inside, and there are noises—buzzing and whooshing and someone whispering in the trees.”
“Ah-ha!” Duncan laughed out loud. “You guys can’t fake me out. There’s nothing in that forest but a bunch of wild animals.”
“No, she’s telling you the truth,” said Alexis.
“Yeah, right,” Duncan replied. “You’re not going to scare me off this dock with a ghost story. You just want me to believe you so I’ll go look. Then, while I’m gone, you’ll fish in my spot. No way!”
Sydney looked at Alexis and shrugged. “Well, we tried,” she said. “And by the way, Duncan, this isn’t your spot. Who’s winning the dockside contest, so far?”
“I am,” he said. “Thirty-five and a half inches. My fish is on ice at Tompkins’. “
“Well, enjoy the lead while you can,” Sydney told him. “We have an errand to run, and then we’ll be back here to catch the biggest muskie in North Twin Lake.”
Duncan laughed. “Whatever,” he said. As the girls walked away, they heard him mutter, “Purple glow. It’s nothing but the Northern Lights. Dumb girls.”
Sydney and Alexis went to Tompkins’ Ice Cream Shop. Just inside the front door, they saw Duncan’s fish on display in a freezer case.
“You’ve got to admit his fish is really big,” said Alexis. “Do you think we can catch an even bigger one?”
“We’re going to try,” said Sydney. “Take a look at that monster fish that someone caught from a boat.”
A forty-two inch muskie lay next to Duncan’s. The tag on it read FRED LUMLEY.
“Well, it looks like both of the Lumleys are in the lead,” said Alexis.
“Great,” Sydney said sarcastically. “And if they win, Duncan will think for sure that girls can’t fish.”
“I thought we were going to be nice to Duncan,” said Alexis.
“We can be nice and still win the contest. I was reading my Bible last night, and I memorized a verse. Do you want to hear it?”
“Sure,” Alexis answered.
“ ‘You know that many runners enter a race, and only one of them wins the prize. So run to win!’ That’s what it says in 1 Corinthians 9:24.”
“But I don’t think the Bible means a fishing contest,” said Alexis.
“Well, I think the verse means that God wants us to always try to do our best,” said Sydney. “So that’s what I’m going to do. I’m going to be nice to Duncan and fish to win.”
They went to the back of the shop, booted up the computer, and logged on to the Camp Club Girls Web site. Once they got to the chat room, they found the other girls trying to make sense of the pictures Sydney had snapped with the mini-microcam.
Sydney: We’re back at the ice-cream shop.
Elizabeth: Thank goodness! We’ve been praying for your safety.
Alexis: We’re fine. Got out of the camp just as the mountain man was returning.
Kate: I researched Jacques Chouteau. He did exist and disappeared one day. I found tons of legends about him. He’s almost as famous in the Northwoods as Paul Bunyan.
Sydney: We think the mountain man found the cave where Jacques Chouteau died. That old knapsack inside has Jacques’ initials on it. We think Jacques was trapped in the cave, and marked off the days by scratching lines on the wall.
Bailey: So that’s what those marks are.
Alexis: That’s what we think. Fang brought us a bone when we were in the cave.
Elizabeth: Fang?
Sydney: That’s what the mountain man calls his dog. Mac says the dog is a bernadane, part Great Dane and Saint Bernard.
Elizabeth: I can’t believe that picture. He looks huge.
Sydney: He is, but he’s friendly. When he chased us, he just wanted to play. We wondered if the bone was one of Jacques’.
Bailey: Eewwwwww.
Sydney: Someone was digging in the forest. We wondered if the mountain man was burying Jacques’ bones there.
Bailey: Eewwwwww!
McKenzie: Why’d you take pictures of mushrooms?
Alexis: We found a bunch in the forest. This morning we found a mushroom on the dock and more of them floating in the water. We also found a Field Guide to Mushrooms book near the picnic table.
McKenzie: What’s up with that?
Alexis: We don’t know, but it seems like more than a coincidence.
Sydney: Maybe something evil is happening in that cave. We found a hole in the ground with a locked fence around it. Purple light shines up through the hole. We heard a sound like a helicopter. A cold wind blows, and the trees whisper “go back.” And there’s a secret room in the cave. We think that’s where Jacques kept his treasure.
Elizabeth: Syd, trees don’t whisper. There has to be a logical explanation. Remember how the land of Canaan was a mystery to Moses and his people? It could have been anything. So Moses sent his guys to check it out, and they discovered something good. I believe behind that secret door, you’ll find a logical explanation, and hopefully, a good one.
Sydney: I hope you’re right, Beth. But how do we get into the room?
The door is locked. It has a trapdoor at the bottom that’s way too small for Alex or me to get through.
Bailey: Can you stick the camera through the trapdoor and take pictures?
Sydney: I didn’t think of that.
Kate: I have a better idea, but first you have to promise me that if you use my idea, the mountain man and his big dog won’t be anywhere around.
Sydney: We promise.
Kate: Okay. Send Biscuit into the secret room with the mini-microcamera strapped to his collar. He’s small enough to fit through the trapdoor. You can watch the monitor and see what’s inside. But take very good care of him!
Sydney: You know we will. That’s a great idea, Kate!
Bailey: What kind of mushrooms are they?
Sydney: I don’t know. Why?
Bailey: I’m just curious. You usually know stuff like that.
Alexis: I’ll see if I can find them in the field guide. We’ll go back in the woods tomorrow and wait for the mountain man to leave. If he does, I’ll babysit Fang while Sydney takes Biscuit into the cave.
McKenzie: Sounds like a plan.
Kate gave instructions for programming the minimicrocamera to send live video to the Camp Club Girls Web site, and Sydney wrote the instructions down. The girls promised to keep in touch.
“Tune in tomorrow,” said Alexis. “We’ll be broadcasting live from the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest.”
When they went back to the cabin, Sydney got their poles ready for fishing. In the meantime, Alexis looked through the Field Guide to Mushrooms.
“There are tons of pictures in this thing,” she said. “I don’t know where to look. Wait. I found a list in the back of the book that tells which mushrooms grow in which states. That should be helpful. Let’s see … Washington, West Virginia … Wisconsin! Here it is.”
Alexis thumbed through the pages while Sydney got dough balls out of the refrigerator.
“I think I found it,” she said. “You’re going to love this, Syd. It has the scientific name and everything. The mushrooms that we saw are called Strobilomyces floccopus. It means, ‘a wooly mushroom that looks like a pinecone.’ The common name is the Old Man of the Woods. Strobilomyces floccopus only grow in the eastern half of North America, and it says here that you can eat them, but they taste bad.”
Sydney checked the minnows swimming in the pail near the kitchen door. “If they taste bad, then why would anyone be digging them up in the forest?”
“That’s what I was just wondering,” Alexis said. “But I still think that someone was digging up clumps of them where we saw the shovel.”
The girls got their fishing gear and headed for the dock. Duncan was still there fishing. He pretended not to see them.
“Duncan, it’s time for you to move to your own dock,” said Sydney.
Duncan didn’t answer.
“Duncan?” Sydney stood there waiting.
“Aw, come on,” he said. “Can’t we all fish from here?”
Alexis and Sydney sat down on the dock and got their poles ready.
“Why do you have to fish from this dock?” Alexis asked. “What’s wrong with Dock Two?”
Duncan turned around with a serious look on his face. “Because right out there,” he said, pointing, “is the best fishing hole on North Twin Lake. Some of the biggest fish have been caught right there—straight out from this dock. I’m doing some serious fishing here, not just playing around like you girls are. So this is where I should fish.” He turned back and sat facing the lake with his legs indent off the end of the dock. Again, Sydney felt like shoving him in.
Forgive me, God, she prayed silently. Help me to be nice to him.
“Duncan,” she said. Her voice sounded overly sweet. “You’ve been fishing here all day. Now, it’s our turn. That’s only fair, don’t you think?”
Duncan sighed deeply. “I guess so,” he said. “I’ll move.” He took his time reeling in his line and packing up his gear. Then he walked to the dock by Cabin Two.
“Maybe we should try spoon lures on our lines,” said Alexis. “The fish book says muskies like them. Maybe we can find out where the big ones are swimming.”
Sydney caught her breath. “Alex, you just gave me an idea.”
“Huh?”
“When you said, ‘Maybe we can find out where the big ones are swimming,’ it gave me an idea. Why don’t we use the mini-microcam? It’s waterproof, and if we attach it to the end of one of our lines, we can see where the big fish are. What do you think?”
“I think your idea is brilliant,” said Alexis, casting her line into the water. “Will you go back to the cabin and get it? And let Biscuit come sit with us. He’s been cooped up on the porch all day.”
“Will do,” said Sydney.
In a little while, she returned with Biscuit trotting at her heels. “Okay, here’s what we’ll do,” she said. “We’ll put the camera on the end of your line without any bait or anything. Then you’ll cast and slowly reel it in. In the meantime, I’ll watch the hand-held monitor here. If we see a big fish, you stop reeling. I’ll cast my line as close to yours as I can get it. Then we’ll wait for the big one to bite.”
“Sounds like a plan,” said Alexis. She reeled in her line. “I’m ready.” Carefully, Sydney tied the mini-microcam to Alex’s line using a Palomar knot.
“I’m glad I took that knot-tying class at camp,” she said. “Your fishing line will loop right through this little thingy on the side of the camera and the knot will hold it tight. It’s a super strong knot.”
With the knot tied and the camera attached, Alexis stood up and cast her line as far into the lake as she could. “Don’t look now,” she said. “But you-know-who is looking at us.” Duncan was on Dock Two watching every move the girls made. He reeled in his line and then cast it near Alexis’s.
“Stay clear of my line!” Alexis shouted. “I don’t want to get tangled up with you again.”
Duncan pretended not to hear.
Sydney loaded a dough ball onto her line. She made sure that it was firmly attached to the hook and double-checked it. The last thing she wanted was for it to fall off if a big fish came along. She turned on the monitor for the mini-microcam. It showed nothing under the water but some green algae.
“Start reeling in your line,” she told Alexis. “But go really slow.”
Alexis turned the crank on the reel while Sydney watched the monitor. Some small fish swam by—blue gills, sunfish, and perch.
“Nothing but little guys,” Sydney said.
Alexis reeled her line closer to the dock. “Do you want me to cast it out again?” she asked.
“Yeah,” Sydney answered. “See how far you can throw it.”
Alexis stood and took a couple of steps backward.
“Move, Biscuit,” she said. “I don’t want you in the way.”
Biscuit sniffed the wet mini-microcam indent on the end of the fishing line. Then he sat down and watched Alexis cast the line with all of her might. It arched toward the sky and landed far into the lake.
“All right! Way to go, Alex!” Sydney exclaimed. “That was a great cast!”
She looked at the screen on the monitor in her hand. “Oh my goodness. Look.”
She held it in front of Alexis. The camera had landed in the fishing hole—the one where the big ones swam. Several muskies were circling it, probably wondering if it held some food.
“Okay,” said Sydney. “Now, I have to cast my line close to yours before they eat the minicam.”
She stood and checked the dough ball one last time. It was stuck hard to the hook.
“Wish me luck, ‘cause here I go.” She stood back, trying to avoid Biscuit. Then with all her strength, she cast her line. It flew through the air and landed with a splash just a few yards from Alexis’s line.
“All right!” she yelled. “Bull’s-eye!”
Duncan watched more avidly than ever.
“Now I guess we just have to wait,” said Alexis.
She had barely said the words when the end of Sydney’s pole bent sharply toward the water. Then the reel started spinning uncontrollably, unraveling yards of line. Sydney grabbed the pole and held the reel crank to stop it from spinning.
“I’ve got a big one,” she gasped.
Biscuit barked wildly, Ruff! Ruff! Ar-roof! Ruff! Ruff! Ar-roof!
That got Duncan’s attention. “Need any help over there?” he yelled.
“We’re fine!” Sydney shouted.
By now, the other boys on the other docks were watching, too.
For fifteen minutes Sydney fought with the fish. She let it take some line, and then she reeled it in. She kept doing that until the fish was tired out. Then finally, she reeled it up to the dock.
“It’s huge!” Alexis cried. She leaned over the edge of the dock and scooped the muskie into the net. It took every ounce of her strength to help Sydney haul it onto the dock.
Biscuit ran to the fish and sniffed it as it lay there flopping.
“Careful, boy. It has sharp teeth,” Alexis warned. The little dog backed away and whined.
Sydney took out the tape measure and measured her catch.
“Thirty-nine inches!” She yelled over to Duncan. “We’re heading over to Tompkins’ to put it on ice.”
Fungus Among Us
The next morning, the girls quietly prepared for another adventure in the forest. They both knew returning to the mountain man’s cave was risky.
“I think we should leave Biscuit here,” said Sydney.
“We can’t,” Alexis argued. “He’s the only one who will fit through the trap door.”
“I know,” Sydney said, as she stuffed their sleuthing equipment into her waist pack. “But if Biscuit barks, he’ll give us away. We should go to the campsite alone. Then, when the mountain man leaves, one of us can come back here and get him.”
Alexis slipped the Wonder Watch over her wrist. “And what do we do about Fang? If he senses we’re nearby, he might run to us or bark or something.”
“That’s a chance we’ll have to take,” Sydney said. “We need to be super quiet when we’re at the campsite.”