Shortly after I met my husband, he told me “You got to spend time out in the middle of no where with somebody before you really get to know them.” Then about two days later his friends Jim and Gail asked if we would watch their fjord horses and huskies for a month…out in the middle of no where! Meant to be, so we went on the hour long skiff ride, bucking into waves in a flat bottom aluminum boat. Once we arrived and unpacked, we sat down to a nice dinner of Moose steaks. They were so juicy and succulent I haven’t had mouse again since Farragut bay and I miss it. The next morning Gail made us Sourdough pancakes and then they were off leaving us and the animals to the bay and its wonder. 
We set out on our first adventure, just a walk down to the edge of the water on low tide. It took a little over a 1/2 hour to get to the water, it is truly amazing how far the tide can ebb. Suddenly we hear Mckala the young husky yelping crazy and scared. Denali the big husky comes out of the thick forest and barks, then he disappears again. There are wolves, grizzlies, this is the wild country! My husband runs back for a gun, I stay weighing my options if a big bear comes out. I could get in the ocean, but I’ve already been scared by a grizzly in the water, I was in a kayak and he vanished. Freaky. Or I could throw some sand, maybe play dead. Mckala is scaring me with her cries, finally he’s back shotgun in hand. ‘Stay here!’ He growls. Now I am waiting again… Watching him disappear in the forest, BOOM the gun goes off, frozen and not breathing I open my eyes slowly. Out walks my husband with a big smile. “A porcupine had Mckala pinned up a tree” he says laughing. That set the beat for our time in Farragut. Fast and uneven.
Next morning we set off in the other direction, into the valley. Full of winding paths made by the ever changing tide. We learned after that day to plan our outings by the tide, coming home on a high tide meant getting wet or taking the very long way home. The valley was full of the most beautiful muskeg I have ever seen, colors of pink, gold and green shaded in their own rainbow. 
Hiking deeper into the valley we came upon an old trail leading towards the mountains. The dogs ran ahead and we strolled enjoying the romance of our young love. I was going to work on the Yacht, and he was going fishing, so this time together was it for the summer, and we both didn’t know if we could be apart.
‘Smack!!’ We heard from two different directions. “Beavers” my husbands says. This is his world there are no surprises, for me I am always surprised in Alaska. The path opens up to a breathtaking muskeg, and a deep pond in the center. To the left our trail continues up the steep mountian into darkness and mystery… We decided to stop and fish a bit. A moss covered fallen tree jets out into the water. Light on his feet he casts as he walks out on the log. Strike, he gets one. Now I am hurrying to get my gear ready, I’ve never really been fishing and defiantly never caught a fish. “Come on already, are you waiting for me to catch all the fish?” he smirks as another fish strikes his line. I finally get my pole in the water and no joke I got a fish just as fast. Of course, I didn’t get mine off the hook and back in the water as fast as he did… We listened to the beavers working and king fishers fishing. All around us life was breathing and smiling. That moment was one of the best of my life.
We left our poles against a tree, called the dogs and hiked on and up. It was hand over hand for awhile, then it was thick trees and the dogs gave up and left us. “We don’t need them, I know where we are” He says. Well I needed them, I was about ready to cry this was hard and scary. I am with this Alaskan man I want to impress, show him I am tough, rugged and up for any adventure! Here I am wussing out and wishing I could just sit down. So we had our first fight, it was good to get it over with. Let us both know it was real and not a dream. He told me I was being a baby and I called him a slave driver, then we hiked on. We came to waterfall and thought it would be fun follow it down to the ocean, figuring we would come out in the bay, close to where the porcupine was.
We surfaced from the forest at sunset, crossed the bay to our luck at low tide and to our cozy cabin for the night. Most nights we would hear the wolves howl and watch the northern lights. We hiked everyday, and went on the water in a canoe, or skiff, we laughed and slept. Farragut bay out in the middle of now where we learned to work together and to be friends…best friends.
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