By Sue McManus
Warwick & Stanthorpe Today is featuring contributions from the Rose City Writers Group – this week SUE McMANUS shares her latest work…
It was the trip of a lifetime. Kevin and Libby Turner and their son Harley had won a holiday to visit the Grand Canyon. A stay in a cabin for a week and a guide to lead them. Harley couldn’t contain his excitement.
“Dad, when are we going out on a trail, I want to see some mountain goats?” “We don’t go anywhere without our guide. Got that Harley. Don’t think about venturing out by yourself.”
Libby said, “We’ll have some breakfast and wait for the guide.”
Hank the guide had a mule loaded with provisions.
“Won’t it be exciting to camp out under the stars?”
Harley sulked a bit but he was ten. He wasn’t dumb and he wanted adventures to brag about.
After a long hike the guide set up camp. Mum set out the food. Trail Mix was good, Beef Jerky and chocolate bars.
The meal over they set up the tents and sleeping bags.
Harley wanted to sleep in his bag outside but Mum objected.
Hank spoke up. “He’ll be fine Mrs Turner. We have a fire and I’m a light sleeper.”
Kevin and Libby crawled into their tent and slept soundly. It had been a long day.
Early dawn Harley crept out of his sleeping bag, got his camera and trail mix and headed off. He had his torch but he heard unusual echoes.
“Nothing to worry about, just keep walking?” Harley thought.
He’d been walking about an hour when he heard something racing behind him.
He panicked.
It was only the mule, he must have gotten loose.
Back at camp pandemonium had broken out. Parents and guide got organized to find him. Hank noticed the mule missing.
Hank was the first to see blood and noticed Harley sitting on the ground beside the mule. A puma lay dead.
“What the hell happened?”
“You should have seen it Mum. The cat came out of nowhere and attacked us, but the mule defended me.
Mules would kill mountain lions. Hank wasn’t surprised.
Harley knew he was grounded forever but he had some great photos of the motionless body of the puma and shots of him posing with the mule who was the hero of the day.
What an episode to tell his schoolmates.
