Later that night, as they lounged in the comfort of their room at the Fairbanks Hotel, Lynette recounted a trip she and her mother took to Cape Girardeau, Missouri, to conduct genealogical research. It is the town where her father was born and many members of that side of the family resided during the early years of their lives. About eleven miles north of that small town is The Trail of Tears State Park and Monument and they made a side trip to the site. This park is located on the spot where nine of thirteen groups of Cherokee Indians forded the Mississippi River during the forced relocation from their native lands to Oklahoma Territory. They were camped there, on the west side of the Mississippi River, in the brutal winter of 1838-39 with sparse provisions and no shelter. The Park commemorates the death of hundreds of Cherokee who were forced to remain at that location, while waiting for the river pack-ice to break up,
Once the ice broke, the others stranded on the Illinois side of the river, could rejoin the forward, waiting group. Lynette told how she got violently sick, nauseated to the point of vomiting, as they drove the winding road into the park. At the visitor’s center she’d fled to the bathroom, where she wretched until there was nothing else to come up from her stomach. With Blaze listening and watching her describe her condition, she explained that she could actually feel screams on her back – she could actually hear moans coming from somewhere and nowhere. And she had a sensation of sharp objects stabbing her scalp. Though she wanted desperately to visit the monument dedicated to Princess Otahki, (Nancy Bushyhead Hildebrand, sister of Cherokee Chief Jesse Hildebrand), who died there (and it is spoken that she gave up her only blanket to a mother with a dying child, and consequently froze to death herself), she could not stay another moment in the park. She grabbed her mother’s hand and hastily led her out of the visitor’s center, and she drove like a mad woman out of the park. Within minutes of leaving the boundary of the park, her nausea and vertigo subsided. She was fine as though nothing had happened. But, she was shaken for days afterward by the experience, and thereafter, had the recurring dream of dying on the Trail of Tears.
“Do you know if in another life, you were there?” Blaze asked solemnly.
Lynette was surprised by his question, but she answered honestly.
“I think I was…I’m not sure, but there have been other things in my life that have happened that make me wonder…” her voice trailed off, and she was momentarily lost in visions of her own. Visions she could not put to words. Blaze pulled her close to him, and laid his head atop hers. Was this a part of the answer why he was so immediately drawn to her? Had he lived before? Did he know her before? He did not ask the question, he just held her in his arms.
“Such horrors human beings visit upon others,” she said finally, and for a long time she was sad.
Their accommodations outside of Denali National Park were exceptional. It was a newly built, three story, log lodge with the most comfortable bed they’d slept in for over a week. They scrounged around together, enjoying the luxury of the fine bed linens. They playfully squabbled over which one would get the fifth, fat, fluffy, bed pillow. So as a compromise, Blaze tucked it up under Lynette’s bottom, and they both enjoyed that pillow.
With so many people around during the day, they really looked forward to the evenings together in their rooms. Where possible, they ordered room service and munched in their warm, terry robes. Sometimes they ate in the hotel restaurants, but they were talked-out by the end of the day, and just wanted to be alone. Lynette, steamed in her bath, and Blaze relaxed, searching TV channels for something good to watch. It soon became clear that they could do without TV. Their brains were on visual overload from the incredible scenery bestowed on them every minute of every day. The continuous Alaskan beauty became a challenge to describe. They wrote post cards, but couldn’t find enough superlatives to describe what they were blessed to see.
Mount McKinley is the highest peak on the North American continent. Named by the Native Alaskans, it is more commonly called Denali, meaning The Great One. That name is used interchangeably with Mount McKinley. At over 20,000 feet, Denali creates its own weather system. On the day that Blaze and Lynette were there, Denali was busy at work sucking clouds all around her peaks and shrouding herself from view. The peak is only seen about ten percent of the time, the ranger said.
There are over 780,000 people in the city of Austin, Texas, where Lynette had lived until now. Their guide explained that there are only about 660,000 residents in the whole of Alaska, which is sparsely populated due more than anything to its unforgiving winters and lack of access to back country areas. The permafrost causes existing roads to buckle and either turn into a roller coaster ride on the ground, or tear wide open and become impassible with the spring and summer thaws. Yet, many hearty souls do make their homes in the wilderness. As Blaze and Lynette rode the Alaska Railroad south between Denali and Anchorage, about a four hour trip, they could count the few homes they saw along the way. Most were not a part of a village setting. In some ways it was like the sparsely settled areas of New Mexico only this was lush, grassy and green, not red-earth brown.
CHAPTER 28
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The Bear
“Well, I didn’t know they let you red skins off the reservation in the lower 48,” a loud, hoarse voice shouted across the metal airport hanger in Anaktuvuk. Blaze was bent over in his seat rearranging things in his carry-on tote which sat on the floor in front of him. He never looked up. He just chuckled. Lynette glared menacingly at the person who was walking toward them, turning in her seat to get the measure of this ignoramous.
“You heard me boy,” the huge white man said. Blaze zipped up his tote as though no one was addressing him and slowly stood to his full six foot height. When the man got within three feet of him, Blaze lunged forward grabbing him around his waist, then twisted him into a headlock.
“And we red skins can still whip you ass with one hand tied behind our backs,” Blaze replied, laughing like Lynette had come to expect when he was full of fun.
“What the hell are you doing up here at the end of the earth,” the man asked as he and Blaze hugged each other in the familial way men do when they have a history together.
“I’m on my honeymoon,” Blaze replied.
The tall, robust white guy stopped, looked Blaze square in the face.
“What did you do with that bitch you were married to before?”
“I divorced her,” was his reply.
“’bout the best thing you probably ever did in your mangy life,” the man said, stepping back to look first at Blaze then Lynette.
“M’am, I’m sorry if I offended you. Me and this boy go way back, way back. No harm meant by what I said, he knows that,” the man explained. Lynette could see that he was a rugged sort with a well-tended beard, ice blue eyes and an infectious laugh.
“Kenny, let me introduce you to the finest woman in the world. This is Lynette, my bride,” he said, helping her to her feet.
Lynette looked at him with a sly smirk. “If Blaze wasn’t going to deck you for your first comment, I was going to slap the tar out of you,” she said, extending her tiny hand into his enormous palm.
“The last name’s Underworth, M’am,” he replied, removing his green cap in a gentlemanly manner.
“Kenny and I were in the navy together,” Blaze explained.
“I’m gonna ask you again Little Brother, what the hell are you doing all the way up here?” Kenny asked again.
“I need to ask the same of you,” was Blaze’s return question.
Kenny lifted is cap and showed the US Fish and Wildlife Service emblem on its front.
“Well, damn, when did you do this?” Blaze asked.
“Been with ‘em about eight years now. Went on back to school after I retired and got a Ph.d. Love it, man. Love it up here, but cold as shit. Damn its good to see you,” Kenny exploded in laughter again grabbing Blaze in a bear hug.
“You all want something hot to drink?” he asked. “You st
ill drinking that coffee so strong that you can paint a barn with it?” he asked Blaze.
“Not quite,” Blaze replied.
“Lynn, want a cup of tea?” Blaze asked her, motioning toward the tiny coffee shop in the hanger.
“Sure,” was her reply, smiling and feeling the love between these two guys.
They sat at a formica-topped table sipping on hot beverages, catching up on old times, using coded words that Lynette was not supposed to understand. It was talk, man talk, Seal talk. Blaze explained that Lynette had planned the honeymoon, and had added a side trip across the Brooks Range to this remote village and one more stop up to Barrow so they could look out onto end of the earth, the Arctic Ocean. She wanted the certificate that said they had crossed the Arctic Circle – a token given to those privileged to do it. It had been a dream of hers. She noticed the look Kenny and Blaze gave to one another, but they said nothing. This was the second time that she felt possibly he had spent time in Alaska, but Blaze never talked much about his job in the navy.
“So are you stationed up here,” Blaze asked Kenny.
“No, I’m headquartered out of Anchorage, but I go where I’m needed. Shit, you wouldn’t believe how big this damned state is. There was a pause, “Were’ll you all headed from Barrow?”
“Ask the travel lady here,” Blaze said, pinching Lynette’s chin.
“We’ve left the tour. We’re out on our own now– heading through Anchorage down to the Kenai. I figured Blaze would like to get in some real fishing. I’m sure the travel agent who helped me pull all this together at the last minute has quit her job,” she gave a wicked chuckle, “but she found us a quaint little B&B down near the Homer spit. Not big or luxurious but it had a 5 out of 5 traveler’s rating. You know how hard it can be to find suitable accommodations during the high season. I was so excited to get the reservation, I almost told him, but I wanted it to be a surprise.”
“Are the walls insolated,” Blaze asked, insinuating that might be an issue.
“When did you all get married,” Kenny asked, knowing the answer would be recent from the looks of them.
“Been married a couple of weeks. We actually only met six weeks before we walked down the aisle,” Blaze responded. The look on his face showed the confidence he felt that it was meant to be.
“Six weeks. You all only knew each other six weeks when you tied the knot,” Kenny spoke in amazement.
“Yep. I think I knew she would be mine the first night we met, if you want the truth,” Blaze said glancing at his wife with that loving, dewy eyed look.
“Well, Mrs. Snowdown, I hope you know what a special man you married. They don’t come any finer. I’ve trusted my life to him at times…” then Kenny stopped talking. He looked over at Lynette and said, “He picked a beauty this time, too, if you don’t mind me saying it.”
“More, more! Keep it up. I love it,” Lynette joked back. “At some point, we’re scheduled to make it over to Dutch Harbor.” There was another of those knowing glances between the men.
“I’ve been enthralled by the series Deadliest Catch for the past four seasons, and I thought we’d go there – get away from some of the crowd, and maybe stumble up on a few of the crew members while they’re in port,” Lynette said. “I know half of them by name at this point. I felt like I’d lost a family member when Captain Phil died a couple of seasons ago. She was quiet for awhile. “Ok, I’ll tell you the rest,” she said looking over at Blaze. “From there it’ll be on to Katmai, to watch the bears at Brooks River Falls. They have a lodge there…”
“I know it well,” Kenny interjected.
“Let me ask you a question. Instead of Katmai, would you all consider flying over to Kodiak,” Kenny asked figuring out logistics all the while he was talking.
“You have to be kidding!” Lynette said, mouth agape. “Kodiak! Where the big grizzlies live! Blaze, do you think we dare?” Lynette asked, her face lit like a woman having a hot flash.
Before Blaze could answer, Kenny said, “There’s a couple of grizzlies we’ve been tracking – we just call them brown bears up here – one’s a mama with cubs. She’s got a tracking collar on her. We need to take a look at her condition, and we want to determine from her cubs who their father is. We need to get a DNA sample from at least one of them. The old girl’s a sweetie and she’s given us several cubs over the years. But her cubs are different. They turn out to be huge. We need to know why. You said you’ve worked with the forest service down where you live, right?” he asked Blaze.
“Yeah, but I don’t think we need to take Lynn into that kind of country,” Blaze said frowning with concern.
“Oh, we know where the mama is. She’s been staying up near the lake in that area for the past week. She’s evidentally found a good feeding spot…”
Blaze interrupted. “Now how are you going to get through all the red tape to get us over there?”
“You’re wildlife certified aren’t you? I can probably get you a temporary pass. We do have fax machines up in this wilderness,” Kenny quipped.
“But what about Lynn?”
“Do you have any special skills,” Kenny directed his question to Lynette.
Blaze busted out in laughter.
“Shit man, I know you’re on your honeymoon, but be a gentleman, be a gentleman. I’m not dumb.”
Lynette thought for awhile.
“I’m good with a camera and I’ve had a good deal of training with videography. In fact, I’ve made several of my own video presentations – editing, captioning, etc.
“Good. Good,” Kenny remarked.
“I can save some of the budget by not having to pull a staff member off their job to go with me and capture the work. We try to tape everything we do with the bears for review later.”
“Let me just say this,” Blaze offered. “As a guest biologist and his team, that’s Lynette, I’ll pay our way and reimburse the department for the entire trip so there won’t be any crap about abuse of government funds. Anyway, we’re having some bear issues in New Mexico. I’m sure I can consider this observation and training and I can take whatever I learn back home for use,” Blaze added.
“Let me work on it while you all are in Homer,” and I’ll get back with you in a day or so. We really need to get to this old girl before she moves back up into the forest.”
From the Whooping Crane B&B, Blaze got to do the fishing Lynette knew he would enjoy. The charter boat captain was delighted to have the last minute pair on his boat. That was just extra money in his pocket. With the two other couples already on board, the captain drove the boat to a place he swore would guarantee flounders for dinner. The captain made good on his promise. Blaze’s first catch was over forty pounds, and he had to work hard to bring that monster into the boat. Lynette clicked away with her digital camera, capturing every aspect of the trip.
If she was lucky, she could download the photos into the computer at the hotel. The family and friends would have the pictures almost instantaneously – even before the fish was eaten.
Part of the excitement of this experience was dining at the B&B on the very fish caught just hours before. The chef at the facility, actually the owner, filleted the flounder, covered it with local herbs and broiled it to perfection. Dinner doesn’t get any fresher than that. Blaze was indebted to his bride for bringing him here. It was everything she promised and more.
Blaze’s cell phone rang.
“Can you both be ready by five in the morning?” Kenny asked.
“Sure. Anything special we need to have?” Blaze asked.
“Just really sturdy, comfortable shoes, those ski coats, you know, all the warm stuff you all had on the other day. You might want to pick up some rain gear. You know how the weather is up here,” Kenny added.
Lynette was scared shitless when Blaze told her they’d be taking a helicopter over to the island. The reason she’d never made it to Katmai before was her fear of flying in tiny conveyances. The smallest thing she ever wanted to fly i
n was a Southwest Airlines 737. But she’d be dipped in horse manure and dragged over ground glass through the streets of the 5 ward in Houston before she’d admit it. This was a once in a life time opportunity. No, once in ten lifetimes, she thought. She’d pull up her big girl panties, pretend to be calm, and go for the full experience. She was sure this was a gift from God. She would spoil nothing for Blaze.
Much of Kodiak Island had been designated a National Wildlife Refuge by President Roosevelt around 1941 because what it was, and what roamed there, was rare on the face of the earth. There are no roads into or out of Kodiak once a person leaves the coastal villages on the island. Access into the interior is only possible by air or grueling hikes. Kenny checked in with his guest biologist team at the US Fish and Wildlife Service Outpost when they landed. Lynette carried the video satchel like she knew what she was doing. She checked the cartridges and lithium battery while Blaze and Kenny bullshited with the staff the way guys do.
The guys folded up the bulky telemetry equipment so that it fit comfortably in the cabin of the bug-shaped helicopter. When the pilot lifted off, Lynette looked out into the water, then down, hoping that Blaze could not sense her fear.
“You doing ok, Lynn,” he queried, a little concerned.
She didn’t exactly answer, neither did she lie.
“My God, it is so beautiful from up here,” she replied.
About ten minutes after take off, the pilot spotted mama bear and her cubs grazing near a rocky incline by the lake. She was exactly where the radio telemetry signal had been the strongest. The pilot sat down in a meadow about a mile from her location, then lifted off leaving the three team members on their own. For a few minutes she was struck with the total silence. There was no sound where they stood. It was deathly still until the screech of an eagle cracked the silence. Lynette was grateful for a lot of things. At this point, she was most grateful for all the hip, stomach and leg exercise that had strengthened her from love-making with Blaze. Exercise is good, she said to herself. Huffing and puffing with Kenny in front and Blaze behind her, they reached a spot down-wind from mama bear. They sat quietly watching her graze, amused at the playfulness of her two cubs. Lynette focused the camera and watched through the mirrored lens.
Thunder In Her Body Page 30