The Separation

I was once fishing with a man whom I know as the greatest to live, my Grandfather, My Grandfather was an avid outdoorsman and a man of all man for his time. He was a professional hunter and won several awards from his wild hunts and held much wisdom over hunting and being outdoors as a whole. I learned everything I know about the woods from him, and I have hundreds of stories about our outdoors adventures but there is one I remember and have learned from to this day.

When I was about 11 we went on an overnight fishing trip where there was a treacherous 3 hour hike. when we reached an isolated river, we walked towards the white water section and my Grandfather sat me down and told me if I were to get swept away to stay calm and keep my head above the water and slowly move towards shore. After I reached shore I was told to stay put and make a fire if possible and he would reach me as fast as he could. I said okay although I was nervous. I had a thought in my mind to ask what if he fell in, but as fear set in and In my naive child mind I thought my Grandfather was invincible and such thing could never happen to him. So I say quiet while I put on my waders to enter the river. The fishing started off slow and gained speed and action as we continued to fish. A storm was claimed to come in later in the night and little did we know it was misforecast and was about to hit us and fast. The storm started with river waters rising and the water moving faster, we decided to return to shore and seek shelter. where we were fishing was nearly a hundred yards from the shore so we had a long walk back. We walked slowly but the unexpected happened, My grandfather slipped and fell in and was swept away in mere seconds he was gone and I had no clue what to do. Fear took over and I booked it to shore, watching my step to not have the same fate. I laid onto the shore to rest and realize what had just happened. That same question that I was scared to ask had become a reality in seconds, I was scared alone and soaking wet. I didn’t know what to do so I did all I could, wait. As time passed I got nervous that maybe he had gotten hurt and I really would be alone. I grabbed the matches and lighter kit that was in my hiking bag from earlier when I had been given them in case we got separated. I then noticed his bag adjacent to mine, I got curious and looked into it for supplies or anything I could use to get help. At first I looked desperately afraid lurking through my whole body, sending me into shock when I found nothing. I took a few minutes and a bite of a candy bar to relax and calm myself. I then looked again and found it, a hand radio that my grandfather mentioned he had earlier in the trip. but unlike the scenario I had asked how to use it just in case and was taught by my Grandfather. I immediately sprang into action using the universal SOS signal or Signal of Distress. I received a reply within seconds. It wasn’t my Grandfather but rather a local warden who was flagged down by my Grandfather after he had escaped the raging river he had been swept away by. He was in panic mode and was found running up the trail nearly 2 miles away from me and when questioned said he was going back to his grandson alone after his incident. The warden then began to help my Grandfather in fear I may be lost or even worse hurt. It had only been a few minutes from when my Grandfather was found that they heard my signal of distress but it was a worrisome time for all involved. After they found me a great sigh of relief was taken and they seemed to have just won the lottery by the look on their faces. We left our trip early and retreated to a local motel for some pizza and well needed rest. This story is one that taught me that asking questions isn’t scary or dumb it is how we learn, and many situations may not be as dire as this. It is still important to ask any questions you have.

“Raging River” by Walt Stoneburner is licensed under CC BY 2.0.