by Giselle Fox
“No, you’re right. I couldn’t feel more different sometimes.”
“You are looking for adventure,” Lexi grinned.
Cate sighed. “Maybe that’s the problem.”
“Well, look.” Lexi nodded to the group of islands in front of her. “Want to go exploring? Maybe there’s a little adventure waiting for you in the deep dark jungle.”
Cate gazed at the islands up ahead beyond the glassy blue surface of the water. She looked back at Lexi and smiled.
CHAPTER FIVE
Lexi pulled within forty feet of the beach and dropped anchor. “Grab your pack and carry your shoes. We’re going in,” she announced.
Cate pulled off her sandals and tucked them into the side pockets of her pack. Lexi slipped into the water and gave the anchor line a tug. Cate dropped in beside her. The warm, clear water lapped at her thighs. The bottom felt sandy and soft except for scattered rocks and shells. She followed behind as Lexi led them onto the shore.
“So, options - we can go this way and hit the waterfall in about ten minutes or we can go the long way and I can show you the cliff and we can hit the waterfall at the end.”
“Let’s go the long way,” Cate decided. She was up for a walk and she sensed that Lexi was more interested in the second option anyway.
They padded along the warm sand in bare feet until they reached the edge of the forest.
“You’ll definitely want shoes in there,” Lexi said.
Cate pulled her sneakers from her pack. Lexi grabbed an old pair of high tops from inside hers.
“You said you have bug spray?” Lexi asked.
“Yes, I’m guessing we’ll need it.”
“You guessed right. The mosquitoes will have a field day on you otherwise,” Lexi grinned.
Cate sprayed her arms and legs and watched Lexi do the same.
“All set. Watch out for snakes.”
Cate laughed until she realized Lexi was probably serious. She kept her eyes on the ground and on the hanging foliage in front of her as they entered the dense brush. The forest seemed to swallow the sunlight and it took a minute before Cate’s eyes adjusted to the dim light.
“It’s so fragrant in here,” she said. The air smelled of fertile mud and flowers.
“Good nose. There are some Panama roses growing along the edge over there.” Lexi pointed back to where the water met the green.
Sunlight streamed in through the thick canopy of leaves and tangled vines. It was magical though intensely humid. Cate could feel the moisture collect on her skin. They walked on, following a vague but unmarked path through the forest. Cate watched where Lexi placed her feet and stayed close behind.
“So what do you do for fun back in Chicago?”
Fun? Cate thought to herself. “In the summer, I like to get out of the city. There’s a cabin I rent on Lake Michigan sometimes. There’s some good hiking around there too. But that’s just mostly to get away from the city.”
“Sounds nice,” Lexi said. She walked on, stepping carefully, avoiding roots and loose branches.
“It’s amazing how thick everything is in the tropics. The air, the forest - it’s all so … dense,” Cate said.
Lexi laughed. “It’s true. Things can’t help but grow in here.” She pulled a collection of vines to the side to let Cate pass.
“Thank you,” Cate said.
They were both sweating or covered in mist, Cate couldn’t tell which. It was inevitable inside that density.
“It’s just a little further, in case you’re wondering,” Lexi smiled. Her cheeks were flushed. Moisture had collected on her shoulders and chest. Mingled with the fragrance of the forest, Cate caught the musky notes of Lexi’s skin. She wiped her brow with the back of her hand. A few steps further, they veered upward and over a gnarled clump of roots.
“Okay, here we are,” Lexi said as they pressed through. “Make sure you’re hanging onto something that is actually attached.”
Cate watched her hand placements as they edged along the side of the slope around a cluster of rocks. Down a short slip of muddy ground was a rocky ledge wide enough for them both to stand on. The canopy of trees hung above them. About twenty-five feet below was the water. The rocky face eroded into rippling ledges and smooth pockets that ran from the surface of the water upward. Lexi hung her bag on an overhanging branch and kicked off her shoes.
Before Cate could ask what she was doing, Lexi stepped off the ledge and plunged into the water below. She watched her surface and wipe the sea water from her eyes.
“Is there a way back up?” Cate called.
Lexi kicked herself to the edge of the rock and reached onto a ledge. With one swift motion, she pulled herself out of the water and began to scale the rocky face as if she’d done it a hundred times.
“That answers my question. You make that look easy,” Cate smiled.
Lexi shifted her weight from one tiny hold to another and swung her legs up and out of the water. “Want to give it a try?”
“I don’t think I’m strong enough,” Cate said.
“I bet you are,” Lexi replied. She jumped for another hold above her and gripped on with two fingers as the rest of her body swung below. Then with graceful precision, her feet found their place and she continued upward.
“For example... I could never do that,” Cate said. “You’re a climber.”
“You don’t have to. There’s an easier route.”
“What happens if I fall?”
“You land in the cool, refreshing water,” Lexi said. “Here.” She traversed along the face a few feet. “Watch.” She took a few easier looking moves, gripping larger and more obvious holds, placing her feet on more defined ledges. Cate could see the line now that there was someone to follow.
Lexi smiled over at her as she drew nearer to the top. “This is a 5.4 at most. You could do it, but ... no pressure.”
“I have no idea what a 5.4 is,” Cate laughed nervously.
“It means it’s for beginner adventurers.”
“Touche,” Cate said. “Fine. I guess the worst that can happen is I go for a very much needed swim.”
Lexi reached the ledge and pulled herself up. “I’ll follow behind if you like.”
“What if fall on you?”
Lexi’s eyes sparkled. “Then we hit the water together.”
There was something in the way she said it that made Cate blush. She took a deep breath and pulled her bag from her shoulders and hung it on the same branch as the other. She tucked her shoes at the back of the ledge and looked down. “Oh, God. What was I thinking?”
“It’s super deep, don’t worry.”
“You go first,” Cate said.
Lexi smiled and then did a back flip off of the ledge and whooped as she plummeted down. She hit the water with her body straight and her arms tight to her sides. When she emerged she was laughing.
“Now you’re showing off,” Cate smiled down at her.
“Are you coming in?”
Cate took another breath and stepped off the cliff. She’d planned to yell something ridiculous like kowabunga but the drop was so sudden that nothing managed to come out. When she hit the water, she sunk like a stone. When she kicked herself back to the surface, she found her voice. “Holy shit, I did it!”
Lexi wiped the splash from her face. “That was perfect!”
Cate tipped her head back into the water and floated on her back a moment as she let her heart quiet inside her chest. “Oh my God, the water feels sooo good.”
Lexi watched with a smile on her face.
Cate looked up at the rocky face and found her line. “Okay, I better do this before I lose my nerve.”
She swam up to the wall and grabbed on. “Here, right?”
“Yep. Feel for the ledge with your feet.”
“Ouch! Got it,” Cate said as she stubbed her toe.
“Now pull up and grab that jug with your left hand.” Lexi pointed to a smooth looking edge just above.
“Here we go,” Cate said. She pulled herself up and grabbed onto the ledge above her.
“Okay, right foot where your... that’s right, you got it,” Lexi said when Cate found the foothold herself.
Cate looked up above her and saw nice little ledges all around. “Okay, this doesn’t seem so bad.”
“You can make it harder if you want,” Lexi said. Cate looked down into her smiling face. She hadn’t left the water yet and was holding onto the ledge below her feet.
“Maybe I’ll stick with the easy route for now,” Cate said, suddenly aware that her clothes were clinging to her body.
“Alright, I’m coming up behind you,” Lexi said. Cate heard a splash and saw Lexi propel herself out of the water and grip onto a hold with one hand.
“Okay, up,” Cate said to herself as she scanned the rock above her but didn’t make a move. Lexi pulled herself up until she was right beside her.
“Hi,” she said and leaned herself backward. “Are you stuck?”
“No. You’re distracting,” Cate laughed.
Lexi smiled and flipped her hair out of her eyes. “Moi, distracting?”
“Well... yes!”
“Hmmm,” Lexi said with a sly grin. She reached over and touched the back of Cate’s hand with her index finger. “Straighten your arms a little, let your legs carry your weight rather than making your biceps do all the work.” She smoothed her finger down the inside of Cate’s elbow until she relaxed and straightened her arms.
“Good. Sink into your legs more, that’ll let your arms rest.”
Cate sunk down into more of a frog-like position against the wall and straightened her arms. “Like this?”
Lexi slung her weight down into a similar position and lay back on one arm. “Yes, like that.” She looked up the rock. “Now you can see what’s above you better.”
Cate looked up the rock again. Leaning back felt more natural and relaxed. Her arms felt instantly relieved and she could see her next moves easily.
“Right?”
Cate nodded. “I get it. It’s counterintuitive.”
“Okay, up you go.”
Cate made her next three moves as easily as if she was climbing a ladder.
“You’re almost at the crux,” Lexi said.
“What’s a crux?”
“The hard part,” Lexi grinned beside her. “Don’t worry it’s not that hard. You’ve got this.”
Cate could suddenly see what she was talking about. Above her was a slight overhang. She realized she would have to curl her body over and around to make it past. “Beginners do this?” she asked breathlessly.
“Maybe that move is a little closer to a 5.9.”
Cate glared at her.
“What?”
“You wait until I’m almost at the the top to tell me this?”
Lexi smiled sheepishly. “I have no doubt that you’ll make it.”
Cate looked down into the water and took another breath. “Okay, if I drop, I’m pulling you down too.”
Lexi smiled. “I’m totally okay with that.”
Cate went a few more feet and then stopped right below the overhang.
“Okay, reach up and feel for the hold with your right hand,” Lexi coached.
Cate released her right hand and felt around above her. “Is it this?”
“Yep, that’s the one. Now lift your left leg and jab your toes into this mossy crack.” She reached out her hand and touched it.
Cate scanned the rocks around her. “Can I even reach that?”
“If you shift a little and extend, yes.”
“I’ll be sideways,” Cate said.
“Only for a second.”
“What happens after that?”
“See that jug right there? The big hold above the split in the rock?”
Cate looked up to where Lexi was pointing. There was a ledge hidden behind another crop of moss. “I see it.”
“Once you have your foot secure, push off with your right hand and reach high for that hold with your left.”
“And if I miss, I go for a swim, right?”
“Probably,” Lexi grinned. She was beside her now just beyond her reach. “You can do it, Cate. You’re strong.”
Cate looked down the face of the rock and then closed her eyes when she felt the swimming sensation in her stomach.
“Think up, not down. When I’m scared, I try to keep my eyes within the few feet around me,” said Lexi.
“I’ll try to remember that when I’m falling,” Cate said sarcastically.
“Count of three,” Lexi said.
Cate blew out a puff of air and focused on where she was going to put her foot.
“Remember, once your foot is on, push up with your leg and pull with your right hand all in one motion. Then reach.”
“Got it.”
“One, two, three!”
Cate kicked her leg out and jabbed her toes into the moss.
“Now, kick and pull!” Lexi said.
Cate pushed off her foot and pulled hard on her right arm as the weight of her body swung out from under her.
“Pull!” yelled Lexi.
Cate pulled and lunged for the hold above her which suddenly seemed impossibly out of reach.
“Now push with your right hand!”
Up her body went, scraping up the rocky overhang until she felt her fingers curl around the edge of the rock beyond.
“Yes! You’re there, keep going.”
With her last shaking ounce of strength, Cate pushed herself up and gripped the rock tightly. “Now what!” She yelled as she felt herself hang there in the abyss. She felt around below her with her right foot but could only feel sheer rock.
“Six inches higher and you’ll feel the ledge with your toes.”
There it was. Cate relaxed and rested her weight on her leg. “I did it!”
Lexi was smiling. “Yes! That was great! You’re a natural.”
Cate felt every nerve ending in her body quiver. “That was terrifying! Please tell me it gets better.”
“Keep going. It’s all easy from here.”
Cate closed her eyes and hugged the rock for a moment while she caught her breath. Then she looked up and saw the easy path in front of her.
When they were both safely on the ledge, Lexi held up her hand in a high five. “Here’s to your first adventure.”
Cate clasped her hand. “My first.”
CHAPTER SIX
They climbed back down the muddy path and back into the thick of trees. Cate’s clothes stuck to her skin but her body felt like it was vibrating with adrenaline. The sights and smells of the forest seemed brighter and more alive. Mist covered everything. Cate could see the trail their bodies had sliced through the silvery drops. It was magical.
“How far to the waterfall?” she asked.
“About ten minutes at this pace,” Lexi said.
Cate had felt her eyes on her since they had started walking. Each time she looked up, Lexi smiled back at her. “What?” Cate asked finally.
“You’re smiling now,” Lexi said. “You were so serious this morning.”
Cate thought about that. “You’re right, I am smiling.”
Lexi ambled happily along the path and then glanced back at her again. “It looks good on you.”
Cate walked a few steps behind. She watched Lexi’s sure steps, the graceful way she moved through the brambles and over roots. The way her hands grazed over the tops of the ferns and leaves. They were quiet as they moved through the forest. Cate felt an ecstatic peace inside her. She’d overcome her fear and done something completely outside of her comfort zone. She felt fantastic, even though her feet were sore from the rocks.
“Almost there,” Lexi called back. She was a little further ahead now that Cate had relaxed her pace. A colorful bird had caught her eye from a branch behind them and she’d stopped to watch. She hurried ahead when she heard the splashing sounds of water.
“This is going to feel so good,” Lexi said gle
efully.
“I thought I was still soaked in sea water but now I just think I’m sweating this much,” Cate said as she pulled her sticky tank top from her abdomen.
They stepped down a short rocky face into a narrow channel between one rock wall and another. As soon as they did, Cate could feel the heavy mist of the falls. The bottom of the canyon was sandy and soft. Eventually, they came to a round opening and in the center was a pool no more than thirty feet across. A thick stream of water spilled over the rocky ledge above and into the pool.
Lexi put her bag down on a rock and kicked off her shoes. “Coming in?”
Cate didn’t need any encouragement. She dropped her bag and kicked off her shoes where she stood. “This looks amazing.”
“It’s nice and cool,” Lexi said as she lowered herself in off the rock.
Cate approached the edge and deliberated about whether to touch the falls first or just jump into the pool. But Lexi sent a few heavy pushes of water her way before she could make up her mind. Cate shrieked when the cold water hit her.
“You’re slow,” Lexi grinned. She flipped backward and submerged herself before Cate could kick a wave of water back at her.
Cate felt around the rocks and lowered herself into the pool. The water rushed around her from the push of the falls. She swam over to the edge of the spray and held her hand out to touch them. The water felt like soft needles against her hand. Lexi’s voice came from somewhere behind it.
“How did you get back there,” Cate called through the falls. She heard Lexi’s voice call back but couldn’t hear what she said. A few seconds later, Lexi popped up beside her.
“Hi,” she said.
“Hi,” Cate smiled. “How did you get back there?”
“Dive under. Keep to the side where the water isn’t so heavy. It’ll push you down a bit. Just keep kicking.”
Cate wasn’t sure.
“Here, hold on to the back of my shorts. We’ll kick together.” Lexi turned slightly and Cate reached out her hand and grabbed onto the back of her pocket.
“Okay, count of three,” Lexi said.
Cate readied herself. “One, two, three,” They counted together. On three they took a deep breath and dove under the falls. As soon as Cate was under, she could feel the pressure of the falling water beating against her back. She couldn’t tell which way was which at that point, but she felt the tug of Lexi’s kicks pull her down and under. Cate opened her eyes under the swirling water and saw light up and ahead. She let go of Lexi’s pocket and kicked hard. In a few seconds, they both surface on the other side of the falls.