Montana Wild by Roni Hall Read Free Book Online

to chance the rougher second or third landing sites. The boats were taken out of the river and portaged to a clearing where the rafting company workers systematically deflated them. It saddened her to see their faithful lifesavers demoted so quickly to rubber cubes. She reminded herself that they would come to life again for the next lucky rafting party.
    Jamie decided to test her legs. They felt solid so she walked around, exploring the new site. Since they were surrounded on three sides by rushing water, the roar of the river was much louder here than the camps of the past few days. The whitewater churning over the rocks was hypnotizing, but the sheer power frightened her. The feel of solid ground under feet gave her a sense of security. The thought took her by surprise because she had enjoyed her white water rafting, but she now felt safer on terra firma. The violent motion of the river unnerved her, as if her friend had a Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde personality and she was seeing the monster for the first time. Rick must have had similar feelings for he would not let Tommy take off his life jacket and instructed him to stay clear of the water’s edge.
    A rustic rope wood bridge crossed the river and allowed campers access to the other side. It was a beautiful site, very picturesque and many campers tried their hand at fishing here. In fact, the menu featured a fish fry tonight, so campers were encouraged to fish for their dinner. The water appeared fairly tame near shore but if you ventured out more than eight or ten feet, your chance of getting swept away was very real. All campers were warned not to go past ankle-deep water.
    The rafting staff busied themselves packing up gear that had completed its tour of duty. Rafts, paddles, and lifejackets were neatly packed into their traveling containers and loaded onto trucks that left while there was still daylight. The campers’ vehicles would be delivered early tomorrow. A sense of completion, pride, and physical expenditure hung in the air. They had completed their job well and now deserved rest and celebration. Ice-cold beers appeared followed by a loud cheer. There had been no alcohol the whole trip, except for Kevin's contraband bottle of wine the first night. The ice-cold beverage tasted wonderful! She was not sure if it was the spirit or the temperature of the beer that hit the spot.
    Some simple appetizers were served to tame their hunger for a while. The rafting staff passed out poles with bait and the game began. The biggest fish challenge started slowly but began to escalate.
    “Hey, Mike, my momma catches fish bigger than that. Without a pole!”
    “Wait, let me get my glasses on. Oh yeah, I see your fish now, I think. Looks like the hook is bigger than the fish.”
    “Is that the fish, or is that the worm?”
    “I didn’t know there were shrimp in this river!”
    Taunts and jibes were thrown back and forth regarding the fish competition which had now become a full-blown dog-eat-dog contest. Fish stories of the ones that got away were exaggerated by the minute. Jamie leaned against a big rock and took it all in, laughing at the bantering back and forth.
    There were pools of calm waters and most of the fishermen had congregated around these. She watched as Tommy could hardly contain his joy. Surrounded by his dad and his friends all fishing together, his grin stretched from ear to ear.
    “Hey, Dad, they’re catching bigger ones on the other side. Let’s go there!” Watching Tommy in his glory was pure entertainment. She chuckled as Rick tried to keep up with his son as he raced across the wood bridge.
    The cold beer warmed Jamie’s insides and made her a little drowsy. As she rested her head back on the large rock, her well-earned fatigue combined with the warm sunshine helped her doze off.
    A short time later, she awoke to laughter and the sound of the rushing water. Refreshed by her power nap, she stood and stretched her limbs. Fisherman were scattered on both