Camp Clearwater

  Chapter 12

  The Hunt for Help and Troubled Times

  The ground was hard but Jacob, C.J., Luna, and Cindi all managed to sleep. At the break of dawn, they were eager to continue their search even though they hadn’t had anything to eat or drink for over twenty four hours.

  It was difficult to walk over the rocky terrain in their weakened state, but they knew the rest of the group was depending upon them. Excitement filled their hearts when they heard the sound of rushing water.

  “Did you hear that?” asked Cindi. She pointed, “It’s coming from that direction.” Encouraged, they all picked up speed to keep up with her quicken pace.

  Following the splashing sounds, they were disappointed when they realized they were at the edge of a cliff and saw the water was quite a distance away.

  “There’s no way down, I’m afraid,” said Cindi saddened.

  “I think we can make it,” returned Jacob encouragingly. C.J. agreed.

  “I don’t,” complained Luna.

  “Come on, we’ve got to try. It’s our only hope. Just follow me, and I’ll show you where to put your feet,” said Jacob. “Luna, do you still have your rope?”

  “Yes, but it’s only thirty four feet long, so it won’t go very far,” replied Luna.

  “That’s good enough. I think it will take us as far as we need to go. We’ll go slow and easy,” said Jacob who was not willing to allow her to waste his time with negative comments.

  “I’m right behind you, Jacob,” said C.J. “I think we can do this. We have to get to that water.”

  “Okay, but please be careful,” warned Cindi.

  “Tie the rope to the tree and let’s see how far it will go. Maybe we can get to a ledge,” ordered Jacob as he looked around the cliff for anything that would help them on their dangerous climb.

  “I’m afraid to look down,” whined Luna. “I don’t think I can do this.”

  “Yes, you can. Just believe you can because we have to get to the water. We have to do this,” insisted Jacob. He anchored the rope to a thorny bush near the edge of the cliff and pulled on it to make sure it was secure.

  “Watch out for the thorns,” said Jacob as he eased himself down the rope, not knowing what he would find when he got to the end. Everyone looked on with sweaty palms and hearts pounding. If he couldn’t make it, then none of them could.

  Jacob eased himself to a part of the cliff that was indented which left a platform for him to rest his feet, but there wasn’t anywhere for him to anchor the rope, so he held it securely to help steady the next climber. If he lost his footing or couldn’t hold on, it would be certain death. Rocks jutted out and he held on as tightly as he could with one hand and grasped the rope with his other one. Very carefully, he inched his feet to the left to allow C.J. or whoever was brave enough to come down and share the narrow but long ledge.

  Looking down nervously Cindi asked, “Jacob, now what are you going to do? This is too dangerous; I think you should come back up.” Never in her life had she faced such a dangerous situation. Using her training as a counselor, she forced herself not to panic. Silently, she prayed for wisdom and strength as she watched Jacob. She was glad he was strong and taking the lead because she had a fear of heights and could have never been the first one down.

  “It’s alright. I can make it. We all can,” he insisted. Cindi didn’t argue as her eyes were fixed on his every move.

  Luna began to panic. She had a fear of heights also, and doubted she could possibly lower herself down the steep incline. “How can we make it, Jacob? It’s too dangerous. Please come back,” Luna begged, having no confidence that she would be able to make it down.

  “Just give me a moment, and let me think,” said Jacob. He scoured the area and saw some vines and roots that were sticking out of the ground. “We can hold on to these roots and ease our way down a little bit more. We will take it little by little.”

  “Are you sure those roots are strong enough?” asked Cindi.

  Jacob pulled on them, and they seemed strong.

  “Yes, they’re good. Trust me. We can do this. Just ease yourself down. When everyone gets to the ledge, I’ll show you what to do next. Look at me and nothing else. I won’t let anything happen to you. I promise. You can do this,” said Jacob reassuringly. “Come on down to this ledge.”

  “Okay, I’ll try,” muttered C.J. She went down with surprising ease and landed on the platform next to Jacob. “It’s not that hard, really. Come on, Luna. You can do this. I know you can.” Jacob moved over allowing room for Luna on the ledge.

  “I’m afraid. I can’t.”

  “Yes, you can. Trust me. C.J. and I won’t let anything happen to you. You have to try, Luna. It’s our only hope,” persuaded Jacob.

  Trembling and crying, Luna lowered herself down to the ridge. The rope bit into her hands, and she didn’t know if she would be able to hold on, but she lowered herself one hand length at a time. Her foot slipped against a sharp rock, and she thought she was going to lose her grip, but she caught herself and hung on to the rope for her life. Her heart beat wildly. Shaking and feeling light-headed, Luna finally found herself next to C.J. and Jacob. C.J. reached for her and told her where to put her feet, and hands, while Jacob kept the rope taunt. She hung on to cliff and didn’t look down. A sense of temporary relief filled her, while she looked up and anxiously watched Cindi as she started her descent.

  Cindi was as scared as Luna, but she didn’t want the group to know. She held her breath the whole way and prayed as she lowered herself. Seeing everyone make it inspired her to lower herself quickly. She was both amazed and surprised that she made it to the ledge with little difficulty. Jacob said, “I wish we had more rope or had a way to get that rope down.”

  “There’s no way,” said C.J. “We can’t get it down. It’s attached to the tree. We’ll just have to leave it.”

  “Okay I know. I hope these branches support me,” said Jacob as he grabbed hold of them and lowered himself another body length down the cliff. His foot rested on a large rock, and then he lowered himself a little more to another rock close by. His moves were angled from the left to the right as he continued down a few more large steps before he stopped. His hands had rope burns, but he didn’t mention that to the girls. There was no way he was going to complain. “Come on guys, just do what I did.”

  “Oh I can’t look. We should have never tried this,” bawled Luna. “It’s just too scary.”

  “Yes, you can. Quit saying we can’t. Be positive. We can, and we will. There are people who rock climb without ropes all the time, and we can do it too,” reassured Jacob.

  “Yes, but they’ve had lots of practice and experience,” babbled Luna.

  “It’s really not that much farther. You’re making me angry. Come on. We can do this. There are no other choices but to continue going down, so just keep quiet and do it. I’m tired of all your griping,” snarled Jacob unsympathetically as he eased himself down to another small ledge. “There’s another place to put your foot and give your arms a rest when you get here,” he said as he breathed deeply and continued looking for an easier way down.

  Fortunately, the ledge was large enough for each of them to rest and regain their footing. “This isn’t hard. Come on C.J., you can do it. Just hold on tight, and do just what I did,” urged Jacob. “Look at the rocks, and think of them like they are rungs in a ladder. It’s not that hard,” he lied.

  “Okay, I’m coming,” she said. Being on her own had made her tough, and she had the desire to survive running through her veins. She held on and lowered herself next to him. She was trembling, but she didn’t tell Luna.

  “Okay Luna, if you could do that distance with the rope, you can make it with the vine to the next rock and then to the other ones. It’s not as far. Come on and try,” said C.J.

  Shaking, Luna didn’t complain because she knew she was past the point of no return. She had to make it, because she couldn’t survive for long on the long skinn
y ledge. Lowering herself carefully, she hung on to each rock until she was next to C.J. Cindi again was the last one down. Her legs and knees felt weak and wobbly, but there was no other option except to try and keep going down. She had a death grip on each of the rocks as she moved slowly and cautiously.

  Luna looked up and saw the fear in Cindi’s face. She began to encourage her by saying, “Don’t look down; just take it one step at a time.” Jacob and C.J. also coached her with each rock she stepped on. Seeing and hearing them cheering for her pushed Cindi forward when her foot finally touched the rocky surface which held Luna, and C.J. Seeing Cindi had made it, Jacob began lowering himself downward.

  “Are there any more vines to hold to?” asked Luna as she looked down the long incline. Her encouraging words had quickly turned to despair. “Oh no, what are we going to do? It’s still such a long way down,” she complained. She gasped as her foot slipped and sent a small avalanche of rocks downward which barely missed Jacob. Rattled, he paused when he found another place to rest his foot. He wasn’t as optimistic as he had been earlier because they still had a long ways to go.

  C.J. yelled, “Are you okay?” Jacob just nodded and didn’t say anything which made her worry.

  “I’ll take the lead, Jacob, while you rest a minute,” said C.J.

  “No, I’m okay. I can make it. Just look out for Luna and Cindi,” Jacob yelled in a strong commanding voice. Determination had replaced his fear.

  Cindi had dirt in her eyes, and she started blinking rapidly from the irritation. She wanted to wipe them desperately, but she didn’t have a free hand, so she willed herself to cry to flush the dirt out. She didn’t want anyone to see her crying, and she wished she could wipe the tears away before anyone noticed them.

  The tension of the pinched muscles in her neck and shoulders ached. It was the worst pain she had ever experienced, and there was still a long way to go. Seeing Luna stumble and nearly fall, almost made her lose her grip too, but she couldn’t focus on the mishap instead she called. “There are crevices where you can put your fingers, Luna. Come on Luna, you can do this. You’re almost to C.J.”

  “My hands are slippery,” yammered Luna.

  “Don’t think about it,” yelled Jacob. “Just take it slowly. There’s another ledge not too far down.”

  “I don’t think I can,” whined Luna again.

  “I told you to quit being so negative. There is another ledge, and it looks like there’s maybe even a path. We’ve done the hardest part. The rest will be easy,” roared Jacob. He eased himself down to a narrow path below the girls. There was nothing to hold on to, so he leaned his body next to the rocks. His foot slipped, and he began stumbling. He slid on his backside, but managed to stop on a slope. Obediently, the girls followed him down to where he was. They all took a short break to regain their nerves.

  The rest of the way was steep, but it was more like taking giant steps. They found themselves on dirt which was gentler to their feet, which made the last part easier. After a two and a half hour climb, they found themselves on solid ground. Gratefully, they stumbled to the edge of the river, where they cupped their hands and began lapping up the cool water.

  To her delight, C.J. spotted two rafts in the distance and pointed to them. “Hurry y’all run; maybe there’s food inside,” coaxed C.J.

  With hope feeding them like fuel, they hobbled as fast as their weary legs could carry them. When they arrived to the rafts, all they found was two empty canteens. A mixture of feelings ran through Cindi. She felt frustrated, relived, exhausted, and hungry. She tried her walkie-talkie again, and but she still didn’t get any reception. Not wanting her disappointment to show, Cindi managed a slight smile and said, “It’s a good sign to find these rafts. They’ve got to belong to someone, someone who can help us.”

  “I’m going to check to check this out,”” said Jacob with renewed strength and energy as he lifted his leg into one of the rafts. “We can use it to get back to our bunkhouse to get help.”

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