Nehaveigur

Our canoe was made by the Grumman Aircraft Engineering Corporation from heavy-duty aluminum and weighted 75 pounds. On account of it being late summer, some of the river passages had low water levels and were muddy and we often had to get out of the canoe to push or pull it. The sections which we were able to paddle were pleasant, the portages less so. And there were dozens of them: For the longer ones, we would first carry our bags, then return to carry the canoe together, which meant that we had to walk the section four times. The longest portage was almost three kilometers, so that we had to walk a total of twelve kilometers. An afternoon-filling activity.

This being a remote part of Vancouver Island, we didn’t encounter many people. On our second day, during one of the longer portages, we met two burly men in their twenties, both holding a can of beer and in good spirits. We chatted a little, then continued carrying our bags. At the next lake, we saw their boat and some of their gear. On the way back to get our canoe we encountered them again. They were carrying our Grumman monster for us. It was heavy enough for the two of us, and even then it was hard going, but now one of them was carrying it by himself, uphill, over rocks.

They were appreciative of the canoe, at length remarking on its qualities including the straightness of its keel. “It’s so straight, you could use it as a carpenter square”, one of them said.

They also asked us if we had seen their Tickle Trunk. This turned out to be a plastic suitcase that they had left next to their boat. We enquired what was in it and they replied, surprised that we would even ask, “Why, it’s full of drugs”.

They had a system: they left the Tickle Trunk where it could be found, and people would deposit weed in it or help themselves. I recognized the system from those mini libraries people put up in front of their suburban homes to exchange books.

We talked some more, then parted ways after having profusely thanked them for carrying our canoe for us. Before us, more lakes, fish and forest.

The next day I had to empty our food barrel to look for the small salt container, which had settled at the bottom. I found it, together with some weed-laced candy our friends had left there as a parting gift.