Hunchback:
We began exploring the sedgeland as gunfire echoed more or less continuously in the mountains around us. Beth and I made sure that only one
of us at a time was hunkered down to the ground at a time, while the other stood guard. In this photograph, Beth is wearing her raingear over her
backback--hence the lumpish body profile.
By the way, during our hike to the fen we had an excellent bear encounter. We were approaching the top of a hill, when it was
simultaneously crested by a pair of black bears trotting the trail towards us, unaware of our presence. When they were 30 meters away
my nerve broke and I called out
to them. They froze and looked at us. For that mere instant I was very aware that we were facing two bears that were calculating their
next move. What would they decide to do?
As was almost inevitable, they turned and ran into the woods, leaving Beth and me with
drained adrenal glands. It was a high point of the trip.
