Room with a View

Here’s a few photos from our sea kayak trip in Prince William Sound.

Rain is the default setting in Prince William Sound.

So, a little sunshine went a long way.

I was fortunate to catch some salmon.

Which we cooked in the coals of a driftwood fire.

Mostly, it rained. But I still loved being out there!

 On those rainy days I managed to do a bunch of writing in my journal. I even started a new YA novel, which I had no intention of doing while I was out there. Oops!

This was one of our kitchen/writing rooms.

Definitely a room with a view.

We saw countless numbers of sea lions and bald eagles and otters but spoke with just one other party of kayakers during our ten day trip. And saw maybe three other groups of kayakers from a distance. 

The longest I’ve ever gone not seeing another human being was on a nine day solo backpacking trip where I literally not only didn’t speak to anyone but saw no one, not even from a distance. I definitely did a lot of talking to myself on that trip, but hey, I do that anyway.

I’m reacquainting myself with my WIP this week, reading it and making some notes before writing the last 10K or so of a first draft.

How long have you gone without seeing or speaking to another human? And, what are you up to this week?

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Packing up

I had to put my “How my writing journey is like a Desert Tortoise” post on hold because I’ve been packing for a kayak trip.

We leave Monday. That’s tomorrow! Yikes!

I’ve been battling a cold and sore throat which I hope to leave at the dock in Valdez as we paddle into Prince William Sound.

I’ve started other trips feeling a little on the lousy side so I’m not too concerned, but still, I’d like to be 100 % by the time we leave.

The first time I went sea kayaking (19 years ago) I was out for nine weeks and paddled over 500 miles. Since then I’ve paddled both solo and with friends on trips ranging from one week to one month. My wife’s shoulder is a little on the blink so this trip will probably be more hiking-oriented, and lounging on deserted beaches than paddling. Or, hunkering down under a tarp in the pouring rain.

Yeah, that’s us on one of our more soggy trips. We named this place Camp Hunchback because we spent most of the time stooping under a tarp while it rained buckets. On a few trips we’ve had more sun than rain. But hey, you go into the rainforest, you expect it to rain!

I look forward to catching up with everyone when I return.

Happy writing!!

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River Time

A couple days ago we put our boats in the Clearwater, a friendly little spring-fed river that S-curves its way through the spruce forest.

After eight miles, the Clearwater flows into the Tanana River, which is a highway of suspended silt, a major tributary of the Yukon River, and wide enough that we could paddle side by side with our friends and talk.

We try to do this float every year and always stop at the same south facing bluff and go for a hike to see the first flowers of Spring.

Pasque Flowers

I searched for an Eagle’s nest I remembered seeing on the bluff a few years ago. I knew the nest had fallen because I hadn’t seen it last year. I thought I’d find the remains, a big pile of sticks on the ground, but instead all I found was this.

The fish head was so dry that it had no odor. And it’d been there a while, probably several years, because there was moss growing on it.

Back on the river we encountered lots of ice still holding onto the bank on the north side.

I knew it wouldn’t be getting dark until August so I didn’t bring a watch. We were paddling from one point to another and it’d take however long it takes—that’s River Time.

I think the same is true when you’re writing a book. You might have word or page-count goals, but it’ll take however long it takes and hopefully you’ll enjoy the journey along the way.

We’re hopping on an airplane in a couple of days, bound for Indiana and then New York City. I’ll still be online much of the time and hopefully working on my new WIP, too. I have a general outline, and am 17,000 words into the first draft.

What are you up to this week? Do you get much writing done when you travel? I hope I will.

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