American Hunting: Starting with Solitary Life in the Wilderness

Chapter 129 Trapped in a Cave During a Rainstorm (5K views, please vote with monthly tickets!)
At dawn the next day, before it was fully light, Lin Yu'an heard the sound of a zipper coming from the next tent.

He opened his eyes and saw a thin layer of frost on the inner wall of the tent.

When he stepped out of the tent, Stan and George had already begun packing their gear.

Stan and George moved with great efficiency; years of wilderness experience had made these tedious procedures instinctive for them.

The night's rest did not seem to completely dispel the fatigue on their faces, but their eyes were unusually determined.

"How did you sleep, kid?" Stan asked as he shoved the sleeping bag into the compression bag.

"It's alright, just a bit cold," Lin Yu'an replied.

Old George remained silent, standing at the edge of the camp, having been observing through his binoculars for quite some time.

He put down his equipment, turned around, and said to the two men, "The wind direction has changed, which is a good sign. Let's cross this ridge directly today and try our luck on the east slope."

“I saw rams there when I was young; they liked the rock salt there.”

"Alright, guys, the real challenge is about to begin! Get ready to go!"

All morning, the three of them slowly and laboriously climbed upwards.

This was no longer the relatively gentle tundra trek of the first day, but a climb that tested core strength and balance.

They often have to use both hands and feet, gripping the edges of bare rocks, and digging their trekking poles deep into the ground on steep slopes covered with loose soil to gain a stable foothold.

Around noon, they arrived at a designated observation point and began systematically scanning the opposite hillside.

However, two hours passed, and apart from the occasional bushes swaying in the wind and a few circling crows, the view was deathly still.

Just as old George was about to order the evacuation, the weather changed without warning.

The once clear sky was completely swallowed up in just over ten minutes by dark clouds surging in from behind the western mountain ridge. The sky's color quickly changed from bright azure to leaden gray.

The mountain wind suddenly became violent, carrying a biting dampness.

"It's going to pour! Quick, find somewhere to take shelter!" Stan shouted in a low voice, full of experience.

He glanced up at the wind direction and the speed at which the clouds were moving, and immediately made a judgment: "We have at most ten minutes! Lin, go find some firewood, get as much as you can! George, let's find shelter!"

"Find a spot in just five minutes! If there isn't a suitable place, pitch a tent right away!"

The order was clear and swift, and the three immediately split up to carry out their tasks.

Without the slightest hesitation, Lin Yu'an rushed towards a gentle slope not far away.

His target is the dwarf crooked forests that stubbornly survive on the edge of the treeline.

There was a grove of low, crooked trees lying on the ground. Most of these trees were dead, their trunks deformed by hundreds of years of wind and snow, clinging tightly to the ground, their bark cracked and a pale gray.

He found a dry tree trunk as thick as an arm, with gnarled and intertwined roots—that was it!

He pulled out the hand axe Stan had handed him and began to chop. "Bang! Bang!"

After a few dull thuds, he successfully removed the pieces of old firewood.

This piece of wood is extremely dense and feels heavy in the hand, making it the best long-lasting fuel.

He quickly broke off some thinner branches from the bottom of the dead dwarf shrubs to use as kindling.

Meanwhile, Stan and George were moving quickly up the steep slope, scanning every possible rock face for cover.

"Over there! Quick! Go there!"

George pointed to a huge granite wall, below which several boulders had broken off and formed a natural, inward-curving crack.

Old George led Stan's equipment to the crevice first, while Stan rushed over to meet Lin Yu'an and they collected firewood together.

As Lin Yu'an and Stan, carrying the heavy old firewood and a bundle of kindling, met up with George in front of the crevice, the first large raindrop had already hit his forehead.

They managed to move into the natural cave at the last moment before the torrential rain began.

The clever stacking of several huge rocks at the cave entrance forms an excellent windbreak.

Almost the instant they stepped into the cave, the rain poured down like a waterfall!

The heavy rain shut out the entire world; the raindrops pounded against the rocks with a dense "pitter-patter" sound, and the wind howled at the cave entrance, instantly turning the outside world into chaos and hostility.

Inside this small cave, the sound of the wind is weakened, creating a strange and peaceful independent space.

Looking at the white expanse outside the cave, Stan said with lingering fear, "Damn, that was close! The three of us almost got soaked to the bone."

"Well done, kid!" Old George gave Lin Yu'an an approving look at the twisted piece of pine wood he had brought back.

"These are the old roots of dwarf crooked trees, which are very heat-resistant."

Inside the cave, they began to skillfully prepare for starting a fire.

Lin Yu'an used a hunting knife to scrape some oily, powdery wood chips off the old pine firewood.

Old George then took out tinder from his best-preserved waterproof bag.

He placed tinder on the sawdust, struck a match, and the faint flame burst forth with a "whoosh" as soon as it touched the sawdust, releasing a rich and pleasant pine scent.

The flames quickly ignited the twigs, producing a soft crackling sound, and a small, steady, warm flame rose deep within the cave.

The orange-red firelight instantly dispelled the cold and dampness inside the cave, casting three swaying shadows on the rough rock walls.

The rain shows no signs of stopping, and we'll probably be stuck here for the rest of the day.

But at this moment, no one complained. They took off their backpacks, sat down against the cold rock wall, and stretched their slightly cold hands toward the fire to warm them.

A warm feeling came from my fingertips, and the fatigue and tension of the past few days seemed to slowly melt away in the dancing flame.

“Fire, what a magnificent thing,” Stan couldn’t help but exclaim.

Outside the cave, a fierce storm raged; inside, a campfire blazed, companions mingled, and the wafting scent of pine resin filled the air. This stark contrast between the inside and outside created an indescribable sense of security and warmth.

To pass the time and boost morale, Stan looked at old George, who was silently staring at the flames.

"Hey George, since you're just killing time, tell us your story from your younger days, and why you became a hunter!"

Old George did not answer immediately. He poked at the campfire with a twig, sparks crackling and flying up, illuminating his deep eyes.

He seemed to see a reflection of his past self in the flickering flames.

After a moment, he slowly spoke, his voice lower than usual, carrying a quality that had been polished by time.

"That's because of a black bear."

His opening remarks immediately captured everyone's attention. Stan leaned forward slightly; this was the first time he was hearing old George tell this story.

Old George's gaze wasn't on them, but rather fixed on the flickering flames, as if the scene from years past was playing out there.

“I was only eighteen years old at the time, and I had just come to Alaska with my father. We were working in a logging camp, and it was tough and tiring.”

“After finishing work each day, I would go to the river to fetch water. You know, the forests were much denser back then, and the air was filled with the smell of damp moss and rotten wood.”

"I was carrying a bucket of water, walking through a spruce forest, and then... right behind a big tree, I bumped into it."

He paused, took a sip of water from his water bag, and his Adam's apple bobbed.

The cave was so quiet that the only sounds were the hissing of burning matches and the sound of rain outside.

“A mother bear with cubs,” he continued, his speech slowing down.

"The moment that guy saw me, he stood up on his own and roared at me!"

"That's not the roar you hear in movies. That sound goes straight into your bones, with a stench of blood. I felt my whole chest vibrate with it!"

Lin Yu'an also thought of the time when he faced that black bear, the deafening roar and the overwhelming sense of oppression he felt. He had experienced it firsthand!
Old George chuckled self-deprecatingly: "I was so scared that my mind went blank, and the bucket I was carrying fell to the ground with a 'thud,' spilling water everywhere."

“But I still remember my father, George, telling me that you should never run away from a bear! So I just stood there, facing off against that mother bear who was a head taller than me!”

“I could see its yellow teeth and even smell its distinctive animalistic odor.” “Time seemed to freeze. I don’t know if it was a minute or ten minutes. I thought I was going to die, and I didn’t even dare to blink.”

"Finally, it was the mother bear herself... She looked at me for a long time, making 'gurgling' sounds in her throat, before slowly lying down."

"It turned around and slowly walked away with the little bear cub that was hiding behind it and curiously peeking out. I didn't feel like I could breathe again until it completely disappeared into the woods."

"When I got back to camp, my legs were shaking, and the water in the cup I was holding was sloshing around."

Old George finally looked away from the flames and turned to Lin Yu'an, his eyes sharp and bright.

"From that day on, I truly understood that on this land, every day you open your eyes, you are wrestling with death! Fear is real, but you can't let it control you!"

"From that day on, I started learning how to use a gun, how to observe, how to track, and how to become a hunter, not... the prey."

The story was over, and the cave was silent.

Stan silently added a thick piece of firewood to the fire, and the flames suddenly blazed brightly, dispelling the last trace of chill brought by the story.

As Lin Yu'an looked at the old man in front of him, he realized for the first time that the wrinkles etched on his face were not just the marks of time.

It is also the mark left by countless stories of brushing shoulders with death.

Lin Yu'an listened intently to the story, as if he could see the young George bursting with the courage to survive amidst fear.

The rain fell all afternoon, only gradually turning into a light drizzle as night fell.

They spent the night in this cave.

On the third day of the hunt, the rain finally stopped.

However, a thick fog still shrouded the valley, making visibility very poor.

They had no choice but to continue their journey to the next target area across the slippery tundra and rocks.

Finally, around noon, the sun pierced through the clouds, and the view gradually became clearer.

"Hey! George, look over there!"

At 2 p.m., Stan, who had been observing through binoculars, suddenly lowered his voice, his tone carrying a hint of uncertain excitement.

He pointed to a small platform in the middle of a distant cliff: "Is that... right?"

Lin Yu-an and George immediately pointed their binoculars in that direction.

Indeed, there was a blurry white object more than a kilometer away from them.

It remained motionless, but its shape and size closely resembled that of a Dol goat lying down to rest.

Old George turned his binoculars to maximum magnification, observed it carefully for a while, then shook his head: "Something's not right. It's too quiet, and that posture... it's a bit stiff. Let's take another look."

His experience made him skeptical from the start; Dol goats are highly alert animals that will make subtle, unintentional movements to sense their surroundings even when resting.

The three of them lay there behind the cold rocks, staring intently at the white dot.

Time passed second by second, but the "target" remained like a white sculpture.

Stan's excitement had mostly worn off, and even Lin Yu'an was beginning to think that it might just be a rock.

At this moment, a dramatic scene happened.

A cloud drifted past in front of the sun, and the light and shadow on the hillside moved accordingly.

When the sunlight pierced through the clouds again and illuminated the cliff once more, the angle of the light had subtly changed.

"It moved! I saw its head move!" Stan almost shouted.

Lin Yu'an immediately looked over as well. In that instant of light and shadow change, the shadow above the white dot did indeed distort for a moment, looking very much like a sheep slightly shaking its head!

The sun was setting rapidly in the west, and the shadows in the valley were being stretched at a visible speed.

Stan said anxiously, "George, we're out of time, we have to take a gamble!"

“Let’s go! Let’s go take a closer look!” Old George accepted Stan’s suggestion.

By the time they finally closed the distance, panting heavily, it was already close to dusk.

Stan had frequently raised his binoculars along the way, but this time he lowered them after only a few seconds, a look of utter disappointment and self-mockery on his face.

He muttered a curse under his breath: "fu*k".

Lin Yu'an also raised his binoculars and saw clearly that the "white spot" was not a Dol goat at all.

It was just a huge white quartzite rock shaped like a reclining sheep, which looked remarkably lifelike in the hazy light of dusk.

Old George silently put away his rifle. He didn't seem overly dejected; instead, he let out a long sigh, a bittersweet smile on his face.

He said to the other two, "Alright, now we can get a good night's sleep. At least we tried, right?"

This strong old man was not defeated by failure, but accepted reality in an admirable way.

The search on the third day ended in failure once again.

The group set up their tents, had a simple dinner, and planned to get up early the next day to conduct the final search.

On the fourth day, which was also the last day of their planned search, they would have to return if they found nothing.

In the chill of the early morning, the team's atmosphere was no longer as heavy as the previous day, but rather more calm and determined.

Old George was the first to step out of the tent. Instead of immediately raising his binoculars as usual, he laid the weathered topographical map back onto a flat rock.

“Come here, guys.” He called to Stan and Lin Yu’an.

He drew circles on the map with his finger: "We've been looking for higher ground these past few days, but we've overlooked one thing: sheep are living creatures too."

"They need water, shelter from the midday sun, and protection from sudden downpours like the one the day before yesterday. While higher ground is safer, it's not the only place they'll stay."

His finger finally landed on a low valley on the map, sandwiched between two mountain ridges, with a thin blue line of a stream meandering through the area.

"The stream flows through this valley, and the willows and alder bushes on both sides provide the best natural shelter."

"If I were that cunning flock of sheep, after the storm the day before yesterday, I would never stay on the bare mountaintop to freeze. I would lead my flock down here to rest."

He looked up at the two of them, his eyes gleaming with confidence: "We're changing our strategy today. Instead of climbing up, we'll head down and try our luck one last time in this valley!"

Stan looked at old George with genuine admiration and a smile on his face: "I knew you old man wouldn't give up so easily."

They packed up their equipment and began their ascent into the low-lying valley.

When they actually entered the area filled with willows and shrubs, Lin Yu'an, who was walking in front, suddenly stopped.

He didn't speak, but squatted down and pointed to the edge of a grove of willow trees.

The two walked forward and saw Lin Yu'an pointing to a broken willow branch. The break was very fresh, and you could even see the dampness. The branch was about waist-high for an adult.

“Look at this mark, it’s very shallow and very neat. Deer use their lower incisors and upper jaw pads to tear leaves, so the marks would be very rough.”

"Sheep, on the other hand, have molars in their upper and lower jaws, which are used for cutting, so this mark is more likely to be left by a sheep."

"Great analysis, kid!" Stan excitedly patted Lin Yu'an on the shoulder.

Old George smiled too: "Good! This proves we've come to the right place! Let's keep searching here! Even if it gets dark, we'll find them!"

This time, it was old George who took the lead in tracking.

His experience played a decisive role in close-range tracking; like a seasoned old wolf, he carefully discerned any unusual traces on the ground.

They slowed their pace and followed the trail little by little.

Finally, after navigating around a massive pile of rocks, their pursuit paid off!

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

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