The Most Excellent Bruno Putney!

Days Walking - 113

Heather - thanks muchly for your thoughtful words! You can always be counted on for insight and quality advice. I think one of your very first tidbits was the 'deodorant makes you stinkier' factoid, and it's true!

At the end of the hike yesterday, after another slow day totaling five miles, Church gave Gabe a thorough exam, focused on his knee. It was frightfully discolored and swollen. I had to leave the tent.

When he could not withstand the exam, (i.e. he screeched like a mortally wounded rabbit. If you've never heard a bunny scream, take my word for it and don't because it's a horrible sound) it became very clear that he was in far too much pain to be walking on the knee. How he managed five miles today is a mystery.

What a goofus. Why he felt the need to be a hero is beyond me. Everyone was willing to put up with me when I hurt my ankle, why he thought we'd treat him any differently, I don't know.

Maybe he thought he could make it, and didn't want to say "I almost made it to Fairbanks" which I can understand.

We all got into a huge confrontation with Gabe, trying to get him to agree to catch a ride, come morning. He was adamant about making it to town on his own two feet. We all stayed firm and told him that he could be tearing apart his knee from the inside, and that knee surgery could only repair so much.

He could have torn cartilage or a torn ligament, or both - there's no telling, we can't know. He needs to be properly examined. And with no job, and no insurance, it's fully stupid to keep walking on it, short of a life or death situation.

He would not agree, and in the end we had to tell him that if he didn't catch a ride, no one would be hiking the next day. We would all stay put, we'd sit on his gear, and he wasn't going anywhere.

Oh, it was ugly. He really wanted to keep walking, and he wasn't budging. But when you have seven other people who only want the best for you, eventually you cave. You can't fight kindness with cussing, though he tried.

So first thing this morning, we hailed a few passing trucks - the third one that stopped had a driver - Mr. Bruno Putney, thank you, yer a good man - willing to take Gabe into town. Church went along - she's not of the psycho mindset that most of us are, that she feels the need to physically tread every last step. We had discussed sending Anneli instead, but then Jake would want to go too, and she's only a few weeks pregnant, anyhow.

We sent the heavy equipment along with the two of them, and we hope to make a forced march to Fairbanks and hopefully arrive by late tonight. We're about thirteen miles away, we think. Since sunset doesn't deign to arrive until about 12:30am these days, it's pretty darned likely we'll make it during the 'day' even if we get in at 11pm. Weird I know. And sunrise is about 3:15am, it's bizarre.

We need to dig out, combine and count our fundage - it's good and it's odd not to worry about money, or where your purse, ID and ATM card are for weeks on end. We'll have to pay for the campground when we arrive in town, yuck, but running water will make it well worth it!

I feel really bad for Gabe. It's not like he was showing off or being stupid when he got hurt. He was just putting one foot in front of the other. And we forced him to lose the last thirteen miles to Fairbanks.

If he gets examined and the Docs tell him we were wrong and he was right, I don't know what he'll do. But you have to err on the side of caution. I'd be happy to return to this very spot and hike these miles with him in a few weeks, when he's better...

Litany Webb, signing off

Jump to Start..........FAQ..........Previous Post..........Next Post