The Fossegrimen Folly

by Michael Almich

  They moved on to the clearing, where sat a pile of assorted stuff. Shy could just make out a bow. He then looked up to see if he could see any of the walkways or cabins. If they were up there, he couldn't make them out. They were too well camouflaged.

  "OK… line up, "Tad instructed.

  The boys formed a line like boys that age do. It was crooked and bowed because Henry kept inching forward in anticipation. Tad sighed, looked at Henry, and shook his head with a smile.

  "What?" Henry asked.

  Tad didn't answer, but he did rearrange their order, moving Sampson's tall orange haired frame to the front, and little Ralph to the back. In front of Ralph he put Henry. Then came Sawyer, Shy, Finn, and Daniel. Shy quickly understood the order: Ralph was the shortest, Sam was the tallest, and the rest followed suit in order of height. Shy turned to look at Sawyer. He had felt that Sawyer was taller than him, but now realized it was untrue. Sawyer was definitely stockier, more muscular, and in general stronger looking, but he was slightly shorter. Finn, Daniel, and Sam were all considerably taller than Shy. Like Sawyer they were more muscular too. Sampson was by far the stoutest of them all.

  "First event is rock climbing," said Tad stepping back to view his handiwork. "Who would be interested in rock climbing?"

  Sawyer’s hand shot up, along with Finn.

  "OK," Tad was taking notes in a small notepad. "How about tree climbing?"

  Again, Sawyer and Finn. Tad continued his notetaking, while nodding thoughtfully.

  "Cross country run?"

  Daniel raised his hand for that, as did Ralph and Henry.

  "Good…. Good," Tad murmured. "Now, long distance swim?"

  Daniel, Henry, and Ralph were joined this time by Sam and Finn.

  "Archery?"

  Shy decided he had better volunteer for something, and always liked the idea of archery, so he raised his hand. Then he looked down the line and saw Sam had also raised his hand.

  "OK, three more to go. How about rock skipping?"

  Henry and Ralph both raised their hands.

  "Obstacle course?"

  Finn and Sam both shot their arms up, then turned and made faces at each other.

  Last one… night-time geo caching and orienteering?"

  Not one hand went up. Sam snickered, "It’s for nerds!"

  Shy wasn’t sure what exactly this was, but if no one else wanted it, he wouldn’t have to feel bad if he didn’t do well. Besides, he had been called worse than ‘nerd' before. He slowly raised his hand as Tad waited.

  "Shy it is then!" Tad smiled. "Since you were the only one who volunteered for this, it is your event." Tad handed him a compass and a map with all kinds of swirly lines and an electronic gadget that he said was a GPS unit from the pile of assorted stuff in the clearing, and steered him out of line.

  "Rock skipping will be Henry," Tad continued. Henry got a bag of smooth stones, and was sent over by Shy. Next, after consulting his notepad, Tad declared that the obstacle course would be Finn, who pumped his fist in the air, and ran over by Shy and Henry.

  "Ralph, you will do the long distance swim. Archery will be Sam, Daniel will do cross country run. Sawyer will do rock climbing," Tad rattled these off in rapid succession. "Now, since we only have seven campers, someone will have to go twice. It will be either Sawyer or Finn in the tree climbing…. I will decide later on in camp."

  "Let’s get started practicing!"

  Chapter Four:

  "It was a troll, although I didn’t know it then."

  They spent the whole day practicing, only breaking for lunch. Tad went a step farther than just assigning events. He paired the campers up so that each event had a back-up competitor, in case someone was sick. Also, that meant they practiced together, so no one was ever alone. Shy was paired up with Daniel, though he had hoped it would be Sam so he could practice archery. Tad then took each group and instructed them on practicing one event before lunch, and one after. When it came to Shy and Daniel, Tad explained further.

  "After this first week of practicing geo caching during the day, you will start practicing at night…. And I will have some specific instructions for you before we start that. Yes, Daniel?"

  "What is geo caching? And why do we have it at night?"

  "Geo caching is using GPS devices to find hidden caches. Think of it as finding hidden treasure. You would like to find a hidden treasure, right? Well, you will be given a treasure map of sorts, and you will have to use it and the GPS to find the treasure. This will be good practice and teach you to use maps, a compass, and other skills to find your way through the wilderness, or to find a specific location. You will learn how to use the map and compass first to find your way. That way, if the GPS doesn’t work, you can still find your way, and not get lost. Once you master that, you will learn to use the GPS. I will hide something ahead of time, and give you latitude and longitude coordinates. You will enter those into the GPS which will then get you close to the geo cache. You will still need to look hard to find your treasure. It will be hidden, and the GPS will only get you close. Use your creativity when looking. So, your question, why do they do this at night? Well, quite frankly, it's because it is much harder at night. It makes it more difficult. This is probably the hardest of all the events…. And the most dangerous too."

  At this point, Shy felt a sinking in his stomach. He looked at Daniel who didn’t seem fazed by the fact that this was the hardest event. In fact, he seemed energized. Daniel’s excitement continued throughout the day. Matter of fact, throughout the day, Daniel bragged to each of the boys that they would get to be out hiking after dark. One by one, they brought it up with Shy, who was not so excited. All he could think about was the light he saw the night before. Would they run into something like that? Was it really safe for them to be out at night?

  Shy was able to block out his worry for the remainder of the morning because he had to use every ounce of his energy to keep up with Daniel on their first practice run. Tad had them run to the Lodge and back. Not only was Daniel a good runner, fast and long-winded, but he was also very sure-footed. Shy, on the other hand, tripped and fell twice on roots or loose boulders. Besides those falls, though, Shy was pretty happy with his performance. He didn’t totally embarrass himself. In fact, he kept up well when he was not falling down.

  After an uneventful lunch, they began orienteering. Tad had placed a red flag up in the hills above the cabins. He made sure they had the map and compass. He then gave them a sheet of instructions, and a waterproof spiral notebook with a pencil. The instructions included a starting point, and then also several of what Tad called change points, with distances after them. Tad then took the two boys over to a path. He had measured off 100 yards of flat path. He instructed both boys to count how many paces it took them to walk 100 yards. Then they had to divide that number by three and write down the result. This final number was the average number of feet they covered with each pace.

  So, they were to start at the starting point on the instructions, use the compass to face the direction listed on the instructions, and divide the distance listed by their average number of feet per pace. That should get them to the first change point. From there they would repeat the process, changing direction for a new distance. This would continue until they reached their final destination. If they did it correctly, they should see the red flag that Tad had placed.

  After ensuring they had basically grasped the concept, Tad brought them to the starting position, and said, "Go get it!"

  They struggled initially, but Shy, who had always loved looking at maps, made the connection in his head of how to find the flag. After a few quiet suggestions to Daniel, who looked completely lost, Shy began to assume control of the expedition. He found that the topographic map allowed him to visualize the terrain in his head. He was able to check their progress on the instruction sheet against the map, and what physical features of the terrain they should be by. At the change points, Shy would use the compass to turn the correct direction,
then, before starting off, he would pick a visual target off in the distance that was the direction they needed to head. He used that target to check that they always stayed on track. As he led them past ravines, over rocky outcroppings, and through dense forest, Shy found Daniel sneaking wondering glances at him. Stopping suddenly, Shy spoke up.

  "Why do you keep looking at me like that?"

  "Like what?" Daniel stalled. Finally, when Shy didn’t answer he said, "I just didn’t know you were so smart. You’re really good at this. I don’t think I could do this. Where did you learn to do this?"

  Shy shrugged. "It just seems like I can see how the land should look by looking at the way these lines curve on the map. See…. The closer together these lines are, the steeper the hill."

  Daniel looked, but Shy could tell he was not getting it.

  "It’s OK. You are a way better runner than me, so this works out good. Let’s go find this red flag. We are almost to the last change point. It should be close now, so keep your eyes open" Shy said.

  They found the flag a short time later. Daniel spotted it in the low branches of a scrub tree. Happily they worked their way back to the camp.

  By the time they had returned, the other boys were all gathered in the clearing. Most were trying to keep cool, as it was a real scorcher out. Henry was explaining his throwing technique for skipping rocks. The other boys looked bored. They all agreed to go up to the Hive in hopes of Tom T having some cold drinks ready to cool them down.

  As they relaxed on the bean bags with their icy glasses and talked, Shy decided he was going to draw a map of the campground. He was still proud that Daniel recognized his abilities with maps and wanted to take it a step further.

  He found some paper and pen and began to sketch. Soon, several of the boys were watching him, and making suggestions.

  Tad appeared shortly thereafter to lead them to supper, but upon seeing the map, he insisted they post it up on the wall of the Hive.

  "We are grilling out tonight! Burgers, dogs, corn on the cob, watermelon, soda…. Mmmmmm…" he said as he tacked the map up next to the zip line exit.

  The boys trooped into the clearing behind the lodge. There they found picnic tables lined up, again with their cabin names sitting on them. The boys sat down, and for the first time Tad stayed with them. To their surprise, their names had already been carved into these tables also. Sawyer got Tad’s attention, and called him over. Tad took a seat on the bench, next to Ralph, across from Sawyer. Sawyer lifted up his hands, which had been strategically placed in front of him, covering his name.

  "What is this? It’s on our table in the dining hall too! We didn’t do this… somehow it carved itself. Look, we all have them," He whined to Tad as he pointed at Shy’s name in the table.

  Tad smiled. "I was wondering when you were going to ask about that. There is a nisse that lives in the lodge also. It seems that this creature likes everyone to have an assigned seat. Don’t worry about it."

  "Yeah, but that Clancy lady… the director… she told us that we would get in trouble for carving on the tables," Ralph spoke up.

  "Well, you better not let her see it," Tad smiled even bigger now.

  As if on cue, Mrs. Clancy appeared next to Gust up by the grill. Some campers were still filing into the clearing.

  "How was day two?" Mrs. Clancy boomed through her megaphone. "Did you all get your events chosen? I hope so. Work hard because the winning cabin gets a super prize! Another note, before we sit down to dinner. We will be holding a stargazing party in three days. We should be able to catch the meteor shower that night if this beautiful weather holds and the sky remains clear. The party will take place on the shoreline, and we will have a bonfire and snacks. Please join us… remember to travel in groups, preferably with your counselor. That’s all for now… enjoy the barbecue!"

  As she was finishing her short speech, the Cave cabin boys walked past Shy’s table. Crutch held out his elbow and dinged the back of everyone’s head as he walked past. His buddies snickered. Sampson, who was the last to get nicked, jumped up furiously and pushed the bigger boy from behind. As Crutch turned, one of his cronies pushed Sam from behind. Sam spun to face the new attacker. Then Crutch got him from behind.

  All the boys jumped up, but the Cave cabin boys were all older and bigger. Shy looked for Tad, who had now disappeared. He then looked for Gust, up at the grill. But he too was not noticing. Sam had stood up for Shy, so Shy could not let this happen. He waded into the uproar, pushing Crutch’s buddy from behind. Instantly everyone joined in, and it turned into a free for all. The Forest cabin boys got the worst of it.

  The brawl did not last long. The counselors, Clancy, and Gust all waded in to split them up. It was not stopped before blood was spilled though. Sawyer and Sam had a bloody nose and lip respectively. Shy was scraped on an elbow after being pushed down.

  The only visible injury to the Cave cabin boys was Crutch’s closest ally, Clod. At least that was the name Shy had attached to him. In a petty way, it made Shy feel better to think of his name as Clod. Clod had scraped his head on a table when Shy had pushed him from behind.

  After they were split up, Mrs. Clancy rearranged the tables, so that the Lake cabin was now in between the Forest and Cave. As the Lake cabin table was moved, and the girls transferred tables, Claire again caught Shy’s eye. She shook her head, as if to say, how could he be so immature. She just didn’t understand. Shy pretended not to see her look.

  While they were waiting to go up to the main table set up by the grill for their food, the boys had to first endure a lecture by Clancy, then from Tad. Clancy said how any additional aggressiveness would not be tolerated, and campers may be sent home if there were any more occurrences. After she walked away, Tad leaned over the table and motioned the whole gang to come in close. As they leaned in and gather around, they expected more of the same. What Tad had to say surprised Shy.

  "We have been together for two days now. None of you knew each other before this camp, right?" There was agreement all around. "That is what I thought. I am really impressed by the courage and loyalty you all showed in this little incident. I have been watching those other boys. They really seem to be a bullying sort of group. It’s not just us that they have picked on. I have witnessed other incidents. I think part of it stems from their counselor. He was once a camper here too, just like me. In fact, we were here for several summers together. We, too, had our share of run-ins… maybe I’ll tell you about it sometime. Anyway, I am proud of you."

  As Tad paused, many of the boys exchanged glances. This is not what they were expecting. Then, Tad continued.

  "That being said, you all need to be smarter than this," He said as his voice turned sharper, harder. "You are obviously smaller as a group, and probably, knowing the type of kids they seem to be, you all are probably less experienced at fighting. So, is getting into a brawl a smart way to go to deal with them? No. Simply no. I do not want any of you sent home. This is going to be a great summer, I can already tell," He continued as he snuck a glance at Shy. "Be smarter than them." And with that he ended their session.

  Gust had just approached. "Who is ready for some gooood eatin? Head up and get some vittles boys."

  ***

  The remainder of the BBQ passed without incident. This time it was Henry who remembered to grab a chocolate chip cookie to bring back for Tom T. The sun was starting to set as Tad lowered the Elevator. He looked at the boys, and smiling again, walked around to the opposite side of the platform. The boys followed, exchanging glances. Here there was a rope with the excess looped up many times, tied off and hung on a dead branch stub. Tad untied the rope, and played out the excess with his hands. Shy looked up. Down came a rope ladder from a pulley system that was attached to another platform, high above. Shy had never thought to look above the Elevator platform, but he remembered Tad mentioning something about a lookout way at the top of the Sentinel. It was such a huge tree that it could easily support another platform higher in the mas
sive branches.

  "We are heading up to the Crow’s Nest," Tad explained. "This is the highest point in our whole cabin system. We will be above the other trees here, and we are going to enjoy a Northwood's sunset."

  After the fight at dinner, and the calming effect of watching the sunset from the perch of the Crow’s Nest, the boys easily settled into the comfy bean bags and hammocks of the Hive. They watched Tom T devour the cookie in short time. This night, Tad decided to settle into one of the hammocks, with one leg hanging off. He rocked himself back and forth. The air was beginning to cool for the evening, after the sunset. Tom T, with his snack gone, began to get the bonfire started. Tad sighed happily. Shy could feel it too. He had friends. The last two days had showed him that if he believed in himself, others would too. If he stood up for his friends, they would do the same. He already felt a bond with many of the other boys, as he looked around the room. He looked at Tad. The counselor had begun to feel like an older brother. Shy felt happy. He still missed his mom, Shep, and summer weekends with his dad, but the homesickness was softened. This camp was beginning to feel… comfortable.

  "I suppose you want to hear my story about the trolls?" Tad’s voice shook Shy out of his thoughts.

  "Yeah!" The boys answered as one, and Henry went so far as to do an I-am-so-excited-I-have-to-pee dance. The boys all laughed at the natural entertainer.

  "Well, it basically started my third year at this camp. I was twelve by then. My first two years we had disregarded the warnings about not going out at night alone…. In fact, we had begun to dare each other to go to the river gorge rim and back… alone. You boys have already had more experience with these mythical creatures in two days, than we had had then, in two summers."

  Shy and the other boys looked at each other, feeling important, and tried to keep the smiles from their faces.

  "I am not sure why that is," Tad continued. "Maybe we were just not as aware as you all, maybe not as imaginative, or maybe you all have something special about you that attracts the attention of these creatures. Whatever it was, we had gone two summers, hearing the warnings, but not seeing or experiencing anything beyond Tom T that would give us a reason to heed the warnings.