Where on Earth?!

Typical of many urban settings, the historically proud church held its ground as it was slowly engulfed by more contemporary  high rises and electrically charged avenues of modernity.  Its quaint brick tower punctuated with large panels of leaded glass still dominated over the centuries old burial grounds that were its origin.  In reverence to those eternally asleep, this modest cathedral was constructed on brick piers over and above the aged tombs,  creating a mysterious network of catacombs beneath.

Myrtlewood Image, © Terry Woodall

Retreating from the energetic heart of this city, I seek out the grave of one of it’s proud sons in this old church yard, and ponder the tragic course of his life.  He could never rise above the loss of his young sweetheart, who was 14 when they married and 25 when she died, leaving him in an unrecoverable grasp of despair and leading to his death 2 year’s later at the age of forty. Inscribed on his last monument to the world is the name of his wife, mother and himself, as they all lie beneath the one tombstone that rises like a beacon behind the neat iron grill work and brick walls of this sanctuary.

Later in the day I find my way back to one of the finest establishments in the city, an elegant hotel that faces the waterfront with its prominent old sailing ship surrounded by bustling  water taxies.  The retreat to the large cocktail lounge and its adjoining sitting room was a step back in time, into the gentlemen’s club of a hunting lodge, with life sized carved leopards guarding the entry, and the ubiquitous foot stools of the elephant’s feet and arched tusks of the elephant’s teeth accenting the exotic wildlife surroundings.  Carved animals, hides and mounted horns are prevalent throughout, and the spacious sitting room lined with book shelves sports typical over-stuffed chairs and couches, while the large wall of windows hosts seating for drinks and dining.

At the end of the evening and back in the fine hotel room I gaze out at the night lights with the feelings of awe and curiosity that I always feel being at home, however briefly, with a new city skyline.  And with those sensations, I drift off.

I’m on a high speed roller coaster, hurtling up and down and over clouds on a ride one could compare to the Las Vegas high rise with the ride at the top that swings out over the city , and I am very hot, sweating with the thrills.  Suddenly, the coaster car soars into the blackness of space, and I am sailing above frozen mountain peaks and sliding down ice sheets which seem to be in the Andes, and I become very, very cold.

Looking down from the cold onto another place,  there is a funeral procession and the hearse has strange, bronzy- tan  netting draped all around its windows and over the casket, and I know it is my own.

I am not shaken by the dream, and forget it easily enough, as I begin a new day exploring this city with its sea aquarium and colonial landmarks.  Later in the afternoon, in a waterfront area, I browse a gift shop, which I enjoy doing to get the feel and expressions of a new place as is evidenced by postcards and local crafts.  Gazing across a wall of assorted merchandise, my heart freezes as my eyes lock on a long swag of bronzy netting furling down the wall, and the dream of the night before washes over me.  It is the same netting, identical to that draped around the ghostly hearse, neatly packaged and displayed on this gift house wall.

All of history’s great deja-vu explainers fall short in describing this actual sensation of an invisible cord connecting an image of the sub-conscious to that of the conscious in a framework far removed from the confinements of time.  In this conscious space of time, I did not deem it necessary to purchase the mysterious garland of netting.

Where on Earth?!  Poe’s City of Ravens, Baltimore, Maryland USA

Where on Earth?!

"Prancing Eland" ©Terry Woodall

By mid-day the Southern sun at its height found us at ever higher altitudes, with distant pinnacles towering to ten thousand feet. Rocky rubble, slides and precarious cliff edges punctuated the switch backing trail, which occasionally dived deep under ledges, revealing caves pungent with recent primate activity.

Our young guide Raymond proudly pointed out his village far below and away, caught in one of the continuous folds of the lower grassy ridges. At my side, Carlin engaged him with queries as our daughter Astra and her husband Toby surged ahead with their enthusiasm for mountain trekking. From a world unfamiliar to us, Raymond revealed his ambitions for college, but lamented that none of his many, many sisters could even attend school. Their traditions required that they stay working in the household until marrying and establishing their own family.

Young Raymond waved upwards towards the very top of the precipice, and our eyes followed a solid rock wall of ledges to a gaping maw and our destination. As we scrambled up the final ascent, muddy runoff from the caves complicated the remainder of the trail. Throwing ourselves over the final steep cliff edge and scrambling upward, a wondrous world unfolded.

A sea of red and white elands migrated across the face of a cave wall twenty feet across, with human figures arched above and beyond these antelope in a maze of activities. Broken by rock outcrops, three such walls formed this art gallery of the ancients that was fittingly known as Game Pass Shelter.

The ritualistic paintings were created by the San peoples thousands of years past, with the eland, largest of the world’s antelope, at center stage. This is not surprising, as these people were surrounded by herds of these life sustaining animals since time immemorial.

The complex polychrome images also included eland blood mixed in the ocher, imbibing the spirit of the animal onto the cave wall in an ultimate expression of the artist-shaman.  The “trance dance” rituals of these ancients led them into a spirit world through the hypnotic effects of collective circular dance, also depicted in the paintings.

Herds of elands in this vicinity still follow the age old seasonal migrations from lowest to the highest elevations of this Drakensberg range. However, they were nowhere to be seen on these slopes cooking in the afternoon sun, which even drove the prolific baboons into hiding.

Later, these antelope giants presented themselves as we hiked along a cool mountain stream to a waterfall in this rooftop of the continent, and at the very southerly continental tip, where they were grazing on the scruffy, rocky terrain forming the Cape of Good Hope.

Where on Earth?!   Kamberg, South Africa

Where on Earth?!

Careening along like light aircraft tipping wings at the mercy of erratic winds, two large black eagles appeared in a head on profile.  But these two were in complete control as they broke away from each other for their varied pursuits in the brushy, tree lined shore.  Within seconds, the leading bird rebounded from the vegetation with a large, yellow-green branch dangling from its talons.  With the mass of foliage fully twice its length, the eagle landed with ease on an aged pier post jutting from the waters edge and began sorting through its prize.

Without any apparent nest building sites nearby, “sci-fly” expert Kim Middleton surmised that “there must be some prey tangled in the sapling that has this eagle’s attention.”  The group of wildlife artists guided by Kim, an accomplished artist and ornithologist, had just traversed fields turned white with multitudes of snow geese and trumpeter swans, and were crossing a waterway bridge by van when the bald eagles appeared.  After this encounter, the van slowly rolled into the migratory bird estuary which was the field study destination.

Herons in Myrtlewood, © Terry Woodall

From the waterways transecting the thick marsh grass to a distant sandy shoreline and up to the foggy mass called the sky, a cloak of gray shrouded the tidal delta.  One could call it mist, or heavy fog, or drizzle, or rain—precipitation is an apt description—but it is all the same thing, a steady permeation of moisture settling over the northwest that birds and mammals weave through for at least 90 days of the year.

Spilling out of the van and into this scenario, the nature artists began their exploration of this reserve rich with waterfowl.  Hundreds of various types of ducks led to stimulant overload in all directions, with a selection of trails following the numerous canals and ponds, and as I began to meander here and there, Andrea Rich’s husband pointed out roosting Black Crowned Night Herons tucked back into some tree branches.  Further along the trail, dozens of ducks crowded together in comical line ups on single floating logs extending far out into the ponds, with the occasional Blue Heron on the fringes.

As I set out with a map and focused on a loop trail, I found Artist Kelly Dodge on the same trail and offered to take photos of her as she was hand feeding a cluster of American Coots, a dark waterfowl with very unusual green-yellow legs and feet. Kelly has an affinity with living nature like no other, as evidenced by her 40 days and 40 nights Artists for Conservation flag expedition to the Galapagos Islands, where she studied virtually anything that moved.

As Kelly continued to attract an ever growing lunch time crowd, I stalked a blue heron in a nearby open, grassy area.   This was a curious challenge since the bird’s approach zone was about twenty feet, at which point he simply strode a few steps away rather than escaping through flight.  I see herons every other day, but they will fly at the slightest movement of a person on foot within 100 feet or more. Obviously, this one was completely comfortable with people.

As we rounded a corner of the trail, barely ten feet away a Northern Harrier hawk perched on a fence post bolted in a panicky crescendo of flying feathers.   After this jolt of adrenaline, the long, straight trail opened up to a wide vista of marshes stretching all the way to the distant shores of the sea.  With harriers fluttering and hovering about on the left, a cornucopia of waterfowl in ponds to the right, and songbirds and flickers scattered in the brush lines in between, our  eyes strained to absorb everything this symphony of wild nature offered.

After this long stretch of trail and around the next corner came another surprise as Kelly made one of the more exciting observations of the birding day.  A Northern Shrike had caught a chickadee and flew with it into some low lying shrubs.  And in one of the more peculiar events of nature that must relate back to the bird’s lineage with the dinosaurs, the shrike impaled the luckless song bird on a thorn, and commenced to pluck and peel away the skin before devouring it.  Such is a common practice of the Shrike, the only predatory songbird.

By this time, the entire group had reached this far end of the reserve, and by calling out, everyone had the opportunity to view this avian action since the Shrike was taking its time and too busy to worry about bystanders.

On the return loop of the trail, our “sci-fly” expert Kim Middleton identified fresh owl activity under the occasional thick, blocky fir trees with foliage so constricted that spotting the roosting owls wasn’t going to happen.   A pair of Sandhill Cranes with their young offspring were easy to observe, however, as they wandered about seeking handouts from the artists.

Well dampened physically from the day’s prevailing drizzle, but not with dampened spirits, the jolly Pierre Pepin, his fine artist wife Patricia, and all the others bid the delta adieu. Upon leaving the reserve, the van stirred up flocks of Snow Geese that rippled from pasture floor to sky and back down again, keeping time with the passing vehicle like notes on a musical scale.

Where on Earth?!   Reifel Island, British Columbia, Canada

Where on Earth?! Palenque

First there were two of them, and then three and then five, maybe six, all in the same posture, hunching forward and snapping their whips in unison.  The short, stocky men in matching sombreros looked almost comical as they marched in a tight circle around and around the stone patio. Snap!  Crack! They whipped the floor of the terrace in a steady onslaught.

Perhaps their aggression was aimed at us, a band of four youthful adventurers openly visible in the palace tower barely 50 meters distant.  “Naw,” assured Charlie offhandedly,” they’re just sweeping off the patio floor.”  Sweeping with whips?

Charlie was always nonchalant  about almost everything, but I was not so sure if  we were welcome here at this early hour.  However, we chose to ignore them from high above the scene,  and they seemed to ignore us as the sun continued to rise and the new day unfolded.

Warrior Profile, 100 % natural image in myrtlewood grain ©Terry Woodall

On  the day before and late into that evening, our trek of  exploration had followed the jungle perimeters of this ancient site of a past civilization.  Breathing in the lavish scent of flowering plants and reveling in the cornucopia of life with frogs and birds chiming away, we had clambered along the banks of a rushing jungle stream, and as  night approached, our light chatter articulated the haunting threats of the local jaguars and added urgency to our quest.

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This stream of abundant water was in stark contrast to our trek days later but not so far in distance.  Following a trail of fate with a dry and dusty ride  in the back of a rock hauling truck,  we disembarked as it left the main rode for a distant limestone quarry that undoubtedly served the ancients in building their cities and shrines.  At this junction we found only one humble dwelling in a sea of flat jungle, and the occupants offered refreshment from their rain barrel of green, algae corrupted water.

“Why not strain the water through a tee shirt?” I suggested.  Although  gagging signs were the first reaction of  my comrades, we commenced with the process and quenched our thirst as necessity dictated on this hot and dusty occasion.

Exploring the trails at hand behind this modest homestead  brought us to surprisingly intact ruins of temples elaborately carved and overgrown with jungle.  They were of moderate size, but of excellent quality and condition, and we were amazed that they were devoid of signage and unmarked on the detailed and extensive maps which I carried.  Thrilled with the sense of discovery,  we followed the trails and found more extensive structures of stone long ago resigned to the smothering leaves and vines.

At a village cantina further down this jungle road, the ceiling fans lazily coaxed away the heavy tropical air from a scattering of bar tables, as a veteran jaguar hunter ignited our imaginations with tales of stalking the jungle for the powerful beasts.  Having explored for jaguars since 1956, he proclaimed “there are still plenty of jags out there, and the locals hold them in high regard, with an affinity that goes back millenniums.”

That affinity manifested itself in Mayan lore as their nocturnal jaguar god,  which every evening replaced the sun god of daylight, since the jaguar god was of the dark underworld and hid the sun from the eyes of man.  And to this day there are still jaguar masks worn in village jaguar festivals highlighted with wrestling and fighting.

Jaguar in the Night, 100% natural image in myrtlewood © Terry Woodall

Seeking out more Maya lore brought us to a nearby dwelling where a mysterious elderly woman spoke of the Maya past in her native tongue while a younger woman translated for us into Spanish.  In a gifted moment, she revealed to us crude, translucent, quartz crystal lenses paired as eyeglasses.  The elder claimed that these were used by Maya shamans of ancient times as she gave us the privilege of peering through  their milky and mottled views.  But alas, no extraordinary visions seemed to appear.

*                            *                          *                       *

We left the stream as  twilight fell on our jungle exploration and  the prevailing darkness drove us to our chosen sanctuary for the night.  It loomed high above us as we entered the plaza in its shadow, and in youthful haste we navigated the ruins of stone and begin ascending the ziggurat with steps resounding like drumbeats to an ethereal anthem. In our ascent we followed in the footsteps of the great lord Pacal, the builder and emperor of this city and its temples, and whose eternal slumber was beneath our feet under tons of limestone,  deep within his Temple of Inscriptions.

Maya Chieftain Profile, 100% natural image in myrtlewood grain © Terry Woodall

It was at the top of the pyramid and in the protection of its alcove that I reflected on what I had come here for, to be immersed in  the underworld of the classical Maya priest kings.  For one starlit night I could fully appreciate those ancients who had mastered the sciences of the heavens.

Throughout this starry night, as my mind opened up to the black sky,  purple hieroglyphics streamed down like lightning bolts, interchanging between my eyes and the furthest depths of the ageless constellations.  When  this deluge from the heavens subsided, I peered through the haze at an earthly level, and to my right appeared a surreal scene of urban life as it was, an intact vision from the past  appearing like a snap shot of activity in an ancient time and place.

It seemed an eternity passed before the dawn again closed the door on the celestial night ruled by the jaguar god and opened to a  new day.  Slowly the blazing tropical sun began to emerge,  illuminating the jungle tree tops that were hugging the flat plain spread out before us. In unison with the increasing glow of light, a hum of insect and bird life grew in intensity.

In the new light the old stone walls  came alive with their sculpted chieftains and warriors, jaguar gods and feathered serpents.   Stelae after stelae lined  the courtyards in a magnificent display, and I pondered over the intense labor, the painstaking chipping and chiseling by legions of artisans,  that was never fully described in the history books.

Like four sets of wide open lemur eyes absorbing the morning light, we peered  from the open cubicle at the top of the four story palace  tower high above the jungle. Down and to my left, a group of short stocky men in sombreros began whipping a nearby terrace in unison….

Where on Earth?!   Palenque,  Mexico   1971

Where on Earth?! Lake Baikal

Flames shot into the air and bright sparks twinkled into the night sky as I tossed another arm load of Siberian larch and pine onto the growing campfire. To my new Russian friends this was more like a bonfire, but for me, with the resinous branches on the fire and its showers of sparks, it became a substitute fireworks celebration for this Fourth of July evening.   And I mused that there was lots to celebrate, since I could hear the nerpa colony slapping the water as I gathered wood on the bluff above camp.  These reclusive animals were the objective of an Artists for Conservation flag expedition, and with my expert guides I had found them in their very remote summer haul outs on the other side of the globe.

Nerpa Sculpture in Bronze, Terry Woodall ©

Its not every day that you see seals swimming around in a lake, and you won’t see the seal [nerpa in Russian] in just any ole’ lake.  This 7th flag expedition and artistic field study brought me to a wilderness island in the middle of Lake Baikal to study this unique species.  Baikal, the oldest and deepest of all lakes, holds a fifth of the earth’s unfrozen fresh water in its far reaching  realm of southern Siberia.

The cold, calm waters surrounding the island are crystal clear, varying with aqua colors of blue and green, with the rocky bottom visible to thirty foot depths.  The beach of our camp gently curves to the north, and the ever present nerpa scouts curiously eye us from a safe distance.  Ten miles across the water  from our camp,  the Svyatoy Nos Peninsula’s majestic wall of peaks fill the horizon, and the very distant sawtooth ridges of the snow capped Barguzin Range are visible to the Northeast.  We are surrounded by a vast wilderness as Lake Baikal is about thirty miles wide here.

The following evening the campfire was even bigger as the crowd grew unexpectedly.  From literally out of nowhere a small catamaran sinking  low in the water struggled ashore  with an enormous load of goods and people. I imagined that these sea gypsies could have been on a Kon Tiki type expedition if Thor were still alive. As they pulled up and anchored to the white marble boulders found everywhere, we welcomed three Russians and one Finn who were on a month’s long filming venture.

The very knowledgeable and English speaking Finnish explorer  expounded on the subject of freshwater nerpas to include Lake Saimaa and Lake Lagado of his homeland.  Yes, I had heard of his nerpas and while defending the Baikal nerpa as the only distinct freshwater seal species, I pointed out that the lakes harboring Finnish seals were close to saltwater seas, and in some cases even connected to the sea by canals, while the nerpas right here were over a thousand miles from the nearest ocean.

As the animated discourses in three languages died down with the campfire, our new  acquaintances on adventure expressed a desire to film the nerpas at morning light.  “The nerpas are all around us,”my Russian guide Eva explained,  “It is as easy as hiking over this bluff behind us to the island’s north shore.  But you must go quietly and stay low, hidden behind the cliff edge, as the nerpas are very shy animals.”

Chuckling, I recalled our first endeavor of observing the nerpa colony, having crawled on all fours over  the lush, extra thick carpet of Siberian moss to peer over the cliff edge, only to have them scatter at the slightest sound or movement.  Later, after they had become accustomed to our presence, it became a game of cat and mouse; sometimes we were ignored while we sketched and photographed, other times they slapped the water and scattered .

In that first encounter, we counted sixty aquatic individuals, and later, double that number.  Altogether, with hours of quiet observation, there was  more than enough nerpa activity to satisfy my field study goals in this isolated theater of nature.

Where on Earth?!   Lake Baikal,  Siberian Russia

Where on Earth?! San Dimas

Besides admiring the art works, one can find the  artista fashionista as another entertaining aspect of the art show circuit, with all the colorfully attired personalities found at most art shows and museum exhibition openings.  Artists generally have a free pass with the fashion police, even at the special coat and tie dinners and receptions common to major art events, and dressing in a quirky style is acceptable, if not expected.

So it was on a Sunday morning,  the last day of a significant wildlife art show, and I had been invited to a country club brunch with a few other artists by the  local mentors of the event.  Such occasions are always upbeat and full of the optimism that art appreciation can engender, and this would be no exception. With added flair, I prepared for the brunch and the last day of the art show by wearing a splashy black and gold batik style shirt that was a special gift from an Indonesian friend, although this style was typical to import markets everywhere.

Dean [pseudonym] was an ever friendly, engaging gentleman of the age when sound leadership is the norm and had actually founded this wildlife art exhibit promoting conservation and helped steer it into one of the more prominent USA venues for wildlife art.  Preliminary to the brunch, I was to meet up at Dean’s house with other artists including Mark Eberhard and his charming and witty wife.

As I entered the house with an  exchange of greetings, Dean and I were faced with an immediate nervous revelation.  His shirt was almost identical to mine! A bright and flamboyant black and gold, sure to attract maximum attention.  It’s one thing to be in a large hall with hundreds of people where a similarity of cloth would go unnoticed,  but at a light brunch it would be like two zebras in a horse herd.

Before the clash really settled in, Mark’s wife appeared in the room and always quick with the wit, merrily observed,  “Oh, I see we’re nicely color coordinated for the day!”    And with a glint in her eye and a wide smile she reveled in the rarity of two gentlemen experiencing an awkward fashion miscue moment.

Knowing I held the high ground since the artist is  expected to shine on for an art festival, I wasn’t too abashed, but Dean looked flustered.  I  felt badly for him, since it probably meant more to him to partake of the flamboyant dress at this once a year event, whereas I routinely attended many such events, and in this instance, was not in a position to easily change.  However, with a respectable command of the situation, Dean proceeded unscathed through the brunch with a light jacket tightly zipped.

*                  *                  *

Being in vogue at western art shows is an entire spectrum to itself.  I have only been on the fringes of the western art world, which sometimes incorporates wildlife art into their line up.  When exhibiting in a western art show, my particular adornment consists of some old boots that fit quite well and a cowboy hat made from hardwood, which draws plenty of comments, such as the knothole in the top “ that must be a bullet hole!”

Whereas the spectacle of western cowboy fashion at these art shows can be extraordinary, it mostly follows long established traditions of western wear. Of course there are always the ubiquitous boots and cowboy hats for men and women, and often enough there is a real cowboy or cowgirl under that hat, but the closer you are to Hollywood, the more bizarre the costumes.  In the audience attending one such art event appeared a pair that looked like they were auditioning for Wyatt Earp at the OK corral,  adorned in classy knee high boots and smooth, mid length leather without any of that “crude” fringe.

A fellow artist explained to me that they were likely from  a club of western adherents who go all out with the attire and look forward to appearances at western art shows or any other western type event.  “Its almost scary,” he exclaimed, referring to a trapper rendevous- type event he once attended. “There’s like, guys in full length bear skin robes.”

From all this western attire, an entertaining jargon is bound to emerge.  At a  reception table of one western art show  the conversation led by an authentic cowboy artist named Joe covered the finer points of how to fence in buffalo.  “First you have to find out where the buffalo like to be,” was his advice, “If they don’t wanna be where your fence is, well its not gonna work, no fence in the world will hold them in.”  He paused before unraveling more first hand accounts of buffalo and ranching experiences.

*                *                 *

Sometimes it’s the garb that’s not there that draws the attention.  While setting up my art display at a national wildlife art exhibition, some light conversation ensued with the artist in close proximity.  “Did you see that barefoot gal walking up and down the aisles,” this newcomer artist exclaimed with a touch of disbelief.

“Oh, you mean that tall, leggy blonde in the knickers.  She’s just greeting all her artist friends,” I explained.  Little did he know  that she was one of the premiere artists of the show with a magnificent  life size bronze sculpture adorning the front steps of this large, stoic exhibit hall  in the shadow of the space needle.  I asked him where he was from.

“Camden, Maine, a small town you’ve probably never heard of, on the eastern shore,”  was the reply.

“ What a coincidence!” I responded, “I know your town quite well, worked in a lobster house restaurant there when I was seventeen.  I hitchhiked from a beach of the Pacific to Camden in just four and a half days.  It was three in the morning when I dipped my hands into the Atlantic.”   I went on to explain that maybe my high school girl friend being there had something to do with my quick coast to coast transit.

Besides the bohemian  attire common to displaying art , the wildlife art world can include the safari look of khaki, since observing wildlife in the field is key to the art.  Sometimes there is room for real wildlife adornments. That can be a pygmy owl on the shoulder, or in the case of artist Gary Johnson, a full size macaw, and cheetah expert Dr. Laurie Marker promenaded one of her fabled cheetahs at a major wildlife art exposition;  real wildlife in wildlife art venues.

And for those show openings and receptions – the clink of toasting wine glasses can be heard above the soft music wafting over the exhibit hall which is dotted with beauties in beads and bangles, and the dance of the hour is a celebration of the visual arts.

Where on Earth?!   Southern California and Seattle, Washington, USA

Where on Earth?! Elk River

"River Sojourner" Myrtlewood © Terry Woodall

The power of a river upon us is universal, and a good example of the mighty ones is the Columbia of the Northwest.   The first time I saw the river, stopping at a sandy beach, I eagerly ran to the waters edge and filled a small vessel to be treasured,  a piece of this awesome waterway to take home as if it were holy water to be revered in longevity.  Seven years was my age then, and that was also my age when I met Tom Chasm.

But even a small river, or any river, can be mighty in its own right with its own unique mysteries and powers,  as I discovered through the years by exploring the waters in many different pursuits.  All youthful river ventures aside; jumping off Castle Rock, those long drop rope swings, tubing the rapids;  a paramount river experience was fishing with Tom.

Tom is as engaging a person as one could ever hope to meet, the type who seems like your best friend after only ninety seconds of conversation, and will keep you amused with his quick wit thereafter. After a number of fishing trips with lodge owner and fishing guide Mark Kimball, an easy bond of comradery developed, enough so that Mark bequeathed upon Tom, abet temporarily, a very special fly rod and reel for an upcoming steelhead outing of which I was a part.

The reel, dulled to bronzy patina by year’s of use, and the slender rod were imbibed with untold stories of patient pursuit, of victories and set backs, all part of the quest to master the unwilling in nature. These cherished instruments of the sport belonged to Mark’s mother, an avid fisher woman active into her 90′s.

Well, this is a fishing tale, and if you want to add something to your bucket list, fighting a
steelhead in a small mountain river is as thrilling a tug of war with nature as you will ever find,  to have 15 pounds of frenzied fish dashing up and down the river, leaping and dancing on his tail as he spits your hook right back at you.

"River Sojourner" Myrtlewood © Terry Woodall

Such was the pursuit we embarked upon in late winter, when the mountain streams ran the coldest and the steelhead runs were prevalent. Our  method of traversing the wild river canyon opening up before us was by unmotorized drift boat, letting the current work for you in casting a line and moving the boat down river while using oars for maneuverability.  As the wild river gushed out of the mountains, one of  its biggest drops presented an extra challenge.

“We’re heading for the falls, so get ready for the drop and hang on,”  Mark’s warning rang out as he held back the boat in a wide expanse of the river.  The procedure was to reel in the lines and secure the poles for the ride over the  approximate 4 foot drop of the waterfall in the middle of a turbulent, rock strewn series of rapids.  Looking at the flat expanse of water ahead from only a few feet above the water line, it felt like the ancient mariner’s view of sailing off the edge of the known world.

Just as we were beginning to reel in, “Boom” it hit, sending a shudder through the boat as the dynamics immediately shifted. With the rapids looming, there was no time for the colloquial “FISH ON” to be shouted. At the end of the long, wide calm that forms at the top of rapids, where the river gathers its energy for its propulsion into the narrowing  channel, out on the very brink, the shiny steelhead leaped and tugged at the end of Tom’s line.

Mark was a  strong an oarsman as any on the river, but there was a limit to fighting this wide body of water that gathered strength with every lapping wave as it funneled into an ever tightening corridor.  While Tom fought the fish, which was now evident to be a very large steelhead, Mark attempted to keep us in position away from the looming rapids, but finally called out, “I can’t hold us back much longer, we have to try and take this fish through the falls.” In the few seconds before Mark gave in to the current, he elaborated, “We’ve got to pull the fish through with us, if he decides to stay behind, above the falls, the force  will snap the line, we lose the fish.”

The  wide expanse of compounding force engulfing all three of us and the fish quickly propelled us to the drop off, and as we were sucked into the raging current, all pandemonium broke loose.  While Tom frantically reeled to keep slack out of the line, Mark somehow kept his footing standing upright, slashing and slapping at the fish with an oar, trying to drive it through the falls with us.  All the while the boat was bouncing and rolling like a toy, careening about with the current and finally making one big drop from bow to stern as we  transcended the falls and shot out the other side into a chute of rapids.

When the rapids subsided, we found ourselves in a  verdant green pool shimmering in an oasis of  calm.  For a moment is seemed like a dreamlike state, a surreal moment in the quick transition from rage to calm. But even as this moment engulfed us, we were shaken back to reality with  a mutual concern.  Where was the fish?  And just as quickly, Tom knew he still had him on the line, as it began streaming about this wide pool of the river.

The fight was on, and as Tom slowly urged the fish into sight, Mark readied the net.  Slowly, slowly, in an ever shrinking circle, Tom brought him in, until this beautiful creature was in close proximity to the net and fully visible. In its tight circle, it vibrated with a  green brown back melting into a swath of bright pink with silver white underneath, all speckled with black spots. With its full forty inch length shimmering in the cold, clear river water, it exemplified  the world of nature at its finest and a splendid sight to behold.

But it did not hold still, and as Mark maneuvered the net for the catch, it made a terrific lunge, and pulled out the bail line as it made its way back across the river.  Once again, Tom brought him up to the net, but this time, as this beguiling creature sensed the entrapment, his powerful lunge completely broke the line.

Our collective sigh echoed down the canyon walls, raked the wispy tree tops, and bounced back to haunt us. It is always risky to recount stories of “the one that got away”  but with  three witnesses, and  only one third of them known to exaggerate, it should be enough to safely validate this tale.  Although the grand prize had eluded us, the day’s venture on the river and the image of its awe inspiring, aquatic sojourner that was frozen in my mind was merit enough.

During this time, Mark and others like him ardently supported a campaign to ensure the protection of this river’s headwaters, and in March of 2009 President Obama signed into law the Copper Salmon Wilderness, which did just that.

Where on Earth?!   Elk River, Southern Oregon, USA