11

Twenty minutes later we could see the top, highlighted by the last of the twilight. Then a strange black figure appeared leaping wildly up and down and racing down to us. It was Kirk.

"We found it, we found it!" he chuckled and gasped.

"Found a campsite?" I said wearily, wondering what the fuss was all about.

"Red Hills! We found Red Hills!"

"You're kidding me."

"No, honest! Come on!"

We followed him to the top and watched as he searched with his flashlight in the dark. Then there it was, a sign with the, oh so welcome, words and an arrow pointing off down the mountain. We were not there yet, it seemed, but we sure knew what to do next!

We started away, then stopped. Mike was sitting on the ground rubbing his foot. I had forgotten his condition and my promise.

"I can't go any further," he said.

"It's just down hill now," said Drew.

"My foot hurts too much."

"There will be water down there," said Matt.

"That would be good, but I can't walk that far."

"How about if you didn't have the pack to carry?" said Adam.

"Well, yeah, I could do that, but what will happen to my pack up here? Won't we have to come back up and get it in the morning?"

"Maybe somebody can carry it for you."

"Nobody could carry it down the hill plus their own stuff. I'll carry it," he said resignedly.

"No, you can't carry it with your foot like that. You'll trip and fall and then we'll have a bigger problem. Hey, you guys, pick up a corner of Mike's pack."

Then the guys messed around until they struck on a way for four people to pick up the pack. Mike didn't like it, but I had not liked being relieved of my sleeping bag, and he, like I, saw that something extraordinary was needed if the crew was to sleep at Red Hills that night. Finally, he grabbed one of the corners himself and was satisfied to be one of the four scouts who manhandled his pack down the mountain in the dark.

It was another of those miserable rock covered trails, but this time we tackled it as a team rather than as individuals. Scouts lit the way so that the mules carrying the pack could see to get good footing. Other Scouts pulled branches to the side to ease the way past brushy places. We never rested, merrily heading down and down in the dark as it started to drizzle. In fifteen minutes we heard Comanche Creek, and a minute later were staring at another sign --- "Red Hills Camp." We had arrived.

Four scouts grabbed the water purifiers and pumped until their arms throbbed to fill half of the empty canteens. Their thirst satisfied, the remaining guys set about erecting the dining fly and making a start on the tents. Clay had a look at the various blisters that had appeared during the day's wanderings. Nate made the decision to eat tomorrow's lunch instead of that evening's dinner --- this save us from cooking anything. Soon we were all relaxing in the dark munching away on crackers and cheese, Oreos and sausage. It tasted mighty good.

By now it was a little after 10, dark as the inside of a black cat, and high time for bed. There were still a few things to tend to though.