THE TRAIL
DIVIDES
The three men traveled together for three days. With each step, Stewart and Raymond left their farmland further behind and the terrain was increasingly mountainous with no more traces of foothills. As they walked they kept the conversation light. Stewart and Raymond knew almost everything about each other – their families, home and backgrounds.
At first, they figured they would only be walking with Daryl a week or two and would then part company, so there was no need to get too familiar. Daryl and Raymond were closer in age than they were to Stewart. Each day, Stewart noticed the two seemed to be of like mind in most things they discussed. It was almost as if separated brothers had rediscovered each other.
Late afternoon, about the time they usually started looking for a place to camp, they came to a fork in the trail. They had been following a trail adjacent to a river cutting a valley through the foothills and a pass into the mountains. The fork in the trail appeared as another trail veered off along a stream that fed into the river. Raymond said, “It looks good to the right. It looks like we could stay on lower ground. You can’t tell what might be ahead.”
“Taking either trail would have its advantages and disadvantages.” added Daryl. “Why don’t we set up camp here tonight, decide on our course of action and begin fresh in the morning?”
After a tasty supper of beef jerky, nuts and raisins, they reclined near the fire to ward off the brisk night air. Daryl opened the conversation, “Raymond, you seem to want to take the safer route.”
“Yes, it seems the traveling would be easier, and the weather would be milder. I’m amazed how much cooler the temperature gets the higher we go. Even though it’s mid September, it feels like November would feel down below. You also never know what we might run into in the mountains.”
“That’s true,” interrupted Stewart, “but think of the brook trout and the wild game. Until you are up there, seeing from the height, you really never know what view of the world you might have.”
“That all sounds good,” added Daryl, “but Raymond, who seems pretty logical, has good points for taking the lower route.”
“Let me propose this,” responded Stewart, “I feel safe enough to take the higher route, and you two would be safe, taking the lower route. We can meet each other in Wellspring in a few weeks.”
Raymond argued, “You’ve never been to Wellspring. It might take up to Thanksgiving until we can locate each other.”
Stewart responded, “Now we think we’ll be able to get back up into the mountains any time we want. Let me tell you. Once we start working down in Wellspring, we’ll never find time to get back up here. If we have the time it will mean we are not working and won’t be able to afford to leave. I heard Wellspring is outgrowing nature and will probably even swallow up these mountains someday. Then there won’t be anything left worth seeing.”
Stewart knew he was exaggerating a little. He felt his argument had gained momentum and had begun to carry him.
Daryl added, “Stewart, you seem pretty independent, almost to a fault. I am sure you will be all right up here. Raymond and I will plug along and find him a place in town, um, in the city.”
Stewart reluctantly agreed, although he had an uneasiness that no rationalization would overcome. Daryl smiled a smile that would have indicated a sense of accomplishment, had his smile not been shielded by the night.
They soon drifted off to sleep. Lying on the hard ground, the fatigue of walking good distances each day, coupled with the briskness of the mountain air made a night’s sleep seem short.
Stewart was up before the other two. He was anxious to get back on the trail. Raymond awoke to the smell of bacon frying and coffee brewing. They ate breakfast and did not talk much. Each person thought any further effort to convince the other two of the soundness of their plan might actually have the opposite effect. It might have sounded as if they were over-pleading their case. They quietly finished packing their gear.
As they broke camp and bid adieu, they made their promises to meet in Wellspring in two or three weeks. Since the two plainsmen had no concept of the size and magnitude of the sprawling Wellspring, Daryl made a suggestion, “Whoever gets into town first, find an inn close to the trail head and wait. The other will be along shortly.”
Stewart began his lonely trek. He soon lost visual contact with Raymond and Daryl. Although he was alone, he did not feel lonely. He felt strangely secure; even though he did not know if or when he would ever see another human being.
As he was walking, he was reflecting upon the parting scene with the other two travelers. Even though Stewart had been the one to suggest the arrangement, there was something haunting him about the way Raymond decided to travel with Daryl. He wondered why Daryl was so quick to agree to the separate arrangements. Could Daryl have had some hidden motive in predetermining the separate routes?
Stewart attempted to convince himself that his impression was wrong. He could not think of a motive for Daryl to divide the two or to coax Raymond into taking the lower route with him. Besides, he did not think badly of Daryl. Even if he decided to turn back and attempt to catch the other two, he knew that would be almost impossible. He reassured himself that the fatigue, coupled with the altitude and the solitude were just playing games with his mind.
Stewart walked about three days and ate plenty of fresh brook trout. He was grateful for the extra food. To pack light enough for the length of the trip, there was not room for extra provisions. Sometimes, without the victuals provided by nature, he knew the amount he was able to carry would not be enough. He decided then and there that if God was able to feed five thousand with seven fish and some loaves of bread, who was he to question the Almighty’s motives or ability?
Toward noon, about the time Stewart usually stopped for lunch, he saw a tree which had fallen across the trail. He thought, “That seems strange. Why would a tree just fall across the trail, and who would be around to cut it?”
Then he heard the moaning of someone in pain. As he moved close enough to survey the situation, Stewart found the source of the distress. The tree was pinning a man to the ground by his left leg. Before he had time to ponder the situation, Stewart had thrown himself into action. He was chopping the tree in half a few feet from the man’s leg.
The man was unconscious, but still had his color, so Stewart felt reasonably assured there was time to save him. There was no time to waste, as he needed to be treated for shock and the chills as quickly as possible. Within fifteen minutes the tree was chopped in two and the injured man lay on the path – barely alive.
Stewart gently placed his parka over the man and propped his head on the bedroll he had pulled from the pack frame. The leg was obviously broken, as it was bent in a direction that no joint would accommodate. Stewart made a splint and patched the man as well as he could. As the man warmed under Stewart’s coat, he began to regain consciousness.
“Do you live close-by?” inquired Stewart.
Struggling to fight the pain, the man shook his head to the affirmative and pointed his eyes up the path to the left. Stewart gently carried the man in his arms. Fortunately, the distance was not very far. As they reached the cabin, Stewart was able to push the door open with his foot. He felt relieved when he was able to place the man in his bed. Although he now was reluctant to do so, Stewart knew he must set the break. He could see no signs of internal bleeding in the leg, so he knew the break was a clean one.
Stewart did what he had to do. Now that he had an old bed sheet to rip into bandages, he replaced the splint and attempted to make the dressing look a little more attractive. At this point he realized how effortlessly he had carried the man, but how extremely exhausted he now felt - both physically and emotionally.
As the man drifted off to sleep again, Stewart began to look around the cabin. From the cold ashes in the fireplace and the stale bread on the table, it appeared the man had been out of the cabin at least half of a day. He rekindled the fire and began to make some bean soup from a few slices of the cured ham hanging from the rafters and a bowl of beans that had been left to soak. After the beans and ham were cooking, Stewart found the tin of corn meal and made corn bread in the cast iron skillet.
While the beans were simmering and the cornbread was cooling, the cabin acquired the combined aroma of beans, ham, cornbread, coffee and a wood fire. The heat from the fire began to radiate throughout the room and he laid his head on the table. When he opened his eyes, the cabin was almost totally dark, except for the diminishing flicker and shadows cast by the embers from the waning fire.
At first he had no recollection of where he was or how he got there. Stewart fumbled around in the twilight and found the lamp in the center of the table. He stirred the glowing embers, placed fresh wood in the irons and soon rekindled the blaze.
Shortly, the man awoke. Stewart asked him if he was up to some ham and bean soup and cornbread. The man winced and nodded in the affirmative, as he struggled to find a more comfortable position. As they were eating Stewart began asking some questions. “How long were you under the tree?”
“I started cutting about daylight. That was my only tree I cut today.”
“I am amazed you survived. You could have been done in by a wild animal or the elements.”
“I learned a long time ago not to question some things. I am thankful when things work out.”
Stewart asked, “Does anybody live with you?”
“No, I manage by myself. I have for the past four years.”
“You know it’s broken?”
“I had my suspicions.”
“Oh, how rude of me. My name is Stewart. I’m on my way to Wellspring.”
“Coming up from the farm?”
“Yes, how’d you know?”
“I’ve seen a lot of them coming through. Most of ‘em go the lower route. My name is Michael, by the way.”
“I am happy to meet you.”
“Son, you don’t know how happy I am to meet you.”
For obvious reasons Michael already trusted Stewart. The trust was not entirely due to the fact of the sacrifice and skill Stewart demonstrated in saving Michael’s life. Michael also trusted his ability to judge character. From his vantage point and his own past experience, he seemed to have a way of knowing people and being able to determine their motives. He knew he could trust his perceptions of people when he was wise enough to not allow his emotions to get in the way.
After eating, Michael drifted off to sleep. In the loneliness of the cabin and the awareness of growing darkness outside, Stewart realized Michael would need care and attention for some time. He entertained thoughts of Raymond. How would Raymond know Stewart was detained? Would he worry needlessly? Stewart also came to the stark realization that Michael would have died if he had not taken the high trail.
