By 3.00pm we have reached our mooring.
We will be setting off on our hunts from here, but first we have to test the two guns. That is not an easy operation here. Trees grow right down to the water's edge, bending over the shoreline, with jungle-like thickets between them. There is no clear view for 300ft., not even 30ft. So we must place the target close to shore, standing in the water, and we take aim from an island 363ft.
away.
We get into two boats and, after testing our guns, we part company. I remain with Randy, which I'm perfectly happy about. In Brooks Range we got very used to each other. He knows of a nice little spot, not far away, which is good for black bear. This is where the bears come when they want to have fish for dinner. But for some reason there aren't a lot of fish about this year, which won't improve our chances; but we go and try anyway.
Mooring is a real pain.
I get out first and Randy passes me the guns and equipment. As there is nowhere to safely tie up the motorboat Randy goes back out to sea a short distance. In the boat is a kayak, ready for use, and its moment has now come. Randy comes back in it, we pull it up onto the shore, and then go to our hide to await the bear. As I sit down I suddenly realise what has been missing from my hunts so far.
The forest!
Since I've been in America I haven't seen one forest!
I've been in the mountains, on the tundra and on the prairie, but never once in a forest. This is unusual for me as I am a forest hunter. But just how unusual, I am only now beginning to realise.
Our hide is exactly like a Hungarian one. Except that we sit on the floor. And are waiting for baribal instead of boar.
It's 9.00pm and we still haven't seen a bear; and my feet, in the unlined rubber boots I have borrowed, have become so frozen that we return to the boat. In this biting cold it is very comforting to see the cosy lights of the yacht flickering in the distance.
Chapter VII.: Hard times in Alaska
Page 14
This boat is now our home.
At dinner guides and clients sit down together. We have roast meat with two garnishes and a salad. (The reserves of cans of coke seem inexhaustible.) The meal finishes with ice cream. We could not ask for better fare. Dinner passes in a pleasant atmosphere and general harmony.
There are some people who judge a hunt's merits by how spartan the conditions are: the more so, the better. I hold a different opinion. I suffer enough while preparing for hunting, as well as during my ruthless trainings throughout the year. I consider the training period to be a part of the hunt as those months will determine how well I will be able to perform while hunting. I don't believe deliberately seeking discomfort and ordeals will make me a better hunter. When I get home I have no inclination to start boasting on internet forums or in hunting magazines about how much I have had to go through for the sake of a successful hunt. I always try to find the best accommodation and food according to my circumstances. I don't confuse my hunting with the training given to some elite corps of mountain soldier. Suffering is not my goal. I will put up anything that the hunt requires, but I won't accept more than is necessary. I'm quite happy to sleep in a tent, but if there's a good hotel nearby, then I'll go there.
That's what makes me feel good.
And the pupose of this trip is to make me feel good.
On board the Ruffinit