‘That still leaves the problem of making it go where we want it to.’ Kel said. ‘And we will still have to collect a lot of fruit to eat on the way, as we have no idea how long the journey will take.’
‘We will find a way, sooner or later.’ said Moss, sounding a lot more confident than he actually felt.
The following day they set about working out a stratagem for completing all their needs for the journey across the sea.
Food wasn’t too much of a problem, as they could go back to where they had seen plenty of fruit, but how much to take with them was another matter, as it could well get over ripe and rot before they had eaten it.
The water supply was restricted to the amount that they could carry in their water bags, and as Jay didn’t have one, it meant that they would have to share their supply with her.
All the other bags in which they carried their equipment could be emptied and filled with water, so increasing their supply a little, but it was their main concern that they couldn’t carry enough for their needs having no idea of how long the journey would take. Jay suggested that they could catch rain water, but they weren’t sure if it rained in this part of the world.
The lack of a means to make paddles was the only problem which had them beaten, but Moss wouldn’t give up on the idea, and spent most of his time wandering around the old buildings, looking for anything which might be of use.
The food gathering expedition, when it finally got under way, proved to be most productive, as Jay found a small tree which she recognized as similar to those she had used before, and it provided them with long creeper like strands from which she was able to make carrying bags for the fruit. This enabled them to carry much more in the way of provisions than they had anticipated, and releasing other bags to hold extra water.
The problem of the flat material for the paddles was partly resolved by Moss, insofar that he had found some thin whip like growths from which he wove paddle like blades, weaving stout bladed grasses in between the frame strands to fill in the gaps.
The paddle blades were then attached to staves, and leaning over a rock so he could reach the water, he practised ‘paddling’ as best he could, and thought that if they made some spares in case they were affected by the water after prolonged use, they should be able to move the ‘bot’ without too much difficulty.
With all possible water bags full and safely tied off, woven bags of fruit and pods piled in a heap, some not quite ripe at Kel’s suggestion, the staves and coils of vine lashed together and the feeding trough tied to a nearby rock, the trio were ready to try their luck on the ocean.
When the tide was nearly at full ebb, they moved their supplies down the beach in stages so that when boarding, they wouldn’t have too far to transport their possessions.
The feeding trough was dragged down at the last moment, and as the tide turned, they piled everything into the ‘Bot’, climbed in themselves, and waited for the rising tide to lift them clear. Slowly the water crept up the beach, and before long the front end of the trough began to rise and fall rhythmically with the incoming waves.
The occasional larger wave swept in with great force, and the whole trough heaved itself high up into the air, returning to the sand with a resounding thud, while the occupants clung on for dear life.
By the time the water had reached the rear end of the trough, the rocking motion for those on board was becoming a little too much.
‘I hope it’s not like this when we reach the open water.’ Jay said, looking wistfully towards the top end of the beach and the hills beyond.
‘It shouldn’t be this bad, I think it’s the slope of the beach which makes the waves so big.’ Moss added, trying to add a word of comfort to the rather doubtful start of their adventure. After several more bone jarring thumps on the beach as the larger waves raced in, Kel had had enough and suggested, ‘if we push with the staves when the next big wave comes in, we should be able to move it out into deeper water. All that’s happening now is that we are being pushed back up the beach each time a big wave hits us.’
They unleashed three staves, and stood by ready for the next upsurge. As the trough reared up, they drove the staves into the sand and pushed with all their might, the rear end came free, and they were on their way.
‘Quick, work with the paddles.’ called Moss, who had already grabbed his and was frantically driving it into the water as though his life depended on it.
With three paddles thrashing the water, the trough slowly headed out to sea, the height of the waves diminished giving way to a gentle swell. Gradually the frantic paddling gave way to a more rhythmic action, and the trough steadily glided ahead, while the land slowly disappeared from view.
When the Greater Sun had reached its zenith, Moss called a halt to the paddling and suggested they rest and eat.
Tired and sore muscles sagged with relief as they sat down in the bottom of the trough and relaxed.
‘What happens if we run out of food and water before we find the other land?’ asked Jay a little hesitatingly, as she didn’t want to put a damper on the otherwise successful beginning of their trip.
‘I’ve thought of that,’ said Moss, ‘when the water supply is half used up, and if there is no rain for us to catch, then we use the Direction Pointer to guide us back
