The Q Files XIII:
"I fear that without some weekly dose of experience or adrenalin
I would plunge into depths of darkness and depression."By John Q. Waller
(Pictures at the bottom)
First of all, I need to mention that I write this Q Files from my new
Macintosh Laptop computer. The laptop has revolutionized my life much the
way the cell phone has. At one time I scoffed at “that guy” walking down
the street talking on his cell phone, or “that guy” clickity clickitying
away on his portable laptop computer at some coffee shop. But now I have a
difficult time remembering how I functioned without these items. I have
become That Guy. Not to say I don’t occasionally sign off from the world
with pleasure, but most mountain climbing adventures in the past year have
included a cell phone call from the summit…”Hey Mom! Guess where I
am!”
and later importing digital photographs from the trip into the laptop
computer.
A lot has happened since I wrote you last after the events of September 11.
Even though America is still experiencing the ripple effect of the terrorist
attacks, life does go on.
Fall is clinging precariously to the landscape but it is evident that the
powerful winds and rain of winter have all but overthrown this fragile
season. I first witnessed the onset of winter the other weekend with Aaron,
Ryan, and Betsy, on a traditional Thanksgiving backpacking trip to Twin
Lakes in the Umpqua National Forest. Upon mention of our plans to friends
and relatives who might have heard the local weather forecast, the reaction
was always the same. “It is gonna be completely miserable up there…that is
if you can even get there with this big storm coming in and all. Snow
levels expected to drop down around 3500….your gonna freeze your little
patooties off!…You guys are crazy!” To which we would look at each other
and smile big toothy grins. You see, I have come to realize that some of
the greatest experiences in life are those born out of adversity. Yes, the
backpacking trip would be all those miserable things that we had been warned
about, but if expected, prepared for, and approached with a positive
attitude, it would be a kick-ass experience. We were not disappointed.
Photos of the trip show spectacular beauty, the forest buried in over a foot
of fresh, dry powder snow, an open-sided log cabin shelter tucked in between
two mammoth boulders on the edge of one of the lakes, a brilliant Brook
trout caught and later eaten, and a massive bonfire roasting our happy
souls. Fortunately, photos were not taken of our mad dash into the frigid
lake, breaking through a quarter inch of ice upon entry, subsequent roasting
of buns by the roaring fire, or carnage induced by a bottle of Schnapps. It
was a trip for the memory books.
It was also a nice escape from the city and vacation from school. For those
of you I haven’t told, I have returned to Graduate School at Portland State
University to pursue a Masters Degree in Teaching. You see, one of the
reasons I have not written a Q-Files recently is that I haven’t had the time
to do anything. And when I have done something I haven’t had time to
write
about it… It works out that the last thing I want to do after writing a ten
page paper is sit down and write a Q-Files about nothing of particular
interest. During my employment with Personalized! Tours, it was easy to
incorporate my own personal adventure planning into my daily work
assignments. Flexible hours and “trip research” contributed to a wealth of
opportunity to go out and dump a canoe, hunt for turkeys, crawl around in a
cave, or climb a mountain. But I have discovered that such adventures and
graduate school are not so compatible. Nonetheless, I am enjoying the
return to academic life and the mental stimulation of learning. Reading,
writing essays, and working on projects demands a large majority of my time.
But as much as possible, I try to incorporate my personal interests into
my education. For example, in my Geology of Oregon class, 75% of the grade
was based upon a research project of our choosing. I decided to investigate
the origin of some unique sand formations in a cave in Washington…also a
good excuse to get out and go caving. I am proud to announce that after
this fall term of graduate school I have earned straight A’s! Aside from a
few breaks, like the month long Christmas break I am currently enjoying, I
will be in school for the next year and a half.
This will not be a time without adventure however….I fear that without some
weekly dose of experience or adrenalin I would plunge into depths of
darkness and depression. My excursions may become slightly more subdued and
financially frugal, but will continue nonetheless. Time and resources may
make it difficult, but I consider such experiences to be a matter of
priority. Such was the case several weeks ago…the last weekend of hunting
season.
Having grown up in Southern Oregon, I have been exposed to certain life
experiences unknown had I lived anywhere else. You are a product of your
environment. Hunting is one of the few activities that connects me to my
youth. I don’t feel it necessary to defend my actions or the sport of
hunting in this email. I can understand and appreciate the opinions of
those who would never engage in hunting, but the merits of the sport exist
and can be strongly debated. I was still reeling from last years hunting
shutout. After days and weekends spent tiptoeing through the woods, scoping
the clearcuts, and staking out prime locations, my friend Carey and I failed
to see a single deer. I decided that our problem was location. Location,
location, location….in the Detroit Ranger District there were simply no
deer. We would have to hunt my old stomping grounds if we were to get a
deer. As hunting season rolled around this year, opportunities for making a
hunting trip looked bleak. Dry weather, school, and conflicting schedules
conspired against me. That is, until the last weekend of the hunting
season, when a single window of opportunity presented itself.
Following a grueling eight hour Friday workshop on computer analysis of
statistics, I rolled in the Funner for my home in Roseburg, gateway to big
buck country. On the way down, I joined up with my friend Jaysen who
accompanied me for the big buck hunt. There is nothing like the feeling of
walking stealthily through the woods….tapping into the senses of the forest.
You are pushing the limits of your own senses as well, eyes, ears, and
nose all in a state of heightened alert. Our first day of hunting was spent
trekking through an enormous fire burn in the Boulder Creek Drainage. No
bucks of our own but we did lend assistance to another hunter as he tried to
drag a gargantuan 150 pound 4- point buck out of the woods. He thanked us
profusely, and offered us beers back at his camp. We kindly declined
mentioning we had a buck of our own to find. He thanked us again to which I
replied “Hey no worries…it’s a karma thing”. I suspect he
didn’t have a
clue what I was talking about or if he did he certainly wouldn’t have
agreed, karma being a “do-gooder, tree-hugging, hippy” philosophy and
all….!
Dusk found us empty-handed but rewarded us with a spectacular sunset
behind the silhouette of the Ilahee Fire Lookout perched atop a rocky crag.
Karma found us the next day. Jaysen and I had just spent nearly three hours
hiking down through a ravine and had spooked up several deer. The whispered
hush of the forest spoke of the proximity of a big buck…I could feel it.
Our “big buck” turned out to be a tiny forked horn with antlers so small I
couldn’t even see them. Jaysen confirmed its male status through his
military binoculars but I was unwilling to take a shot without confirmation
of my own. The deer bounded across the crest of the ridge and disappeared.
Tired and frustrated we humped back up the hill en route to another drainage
leading down into the Boulder Creek Wilderness, some of the most rugged and
inaccessible terrain on the Umpqua. I was not being particularly stealthy
and was certainly not expecting to see any deer on this dry and exposed
ridge. Suddenly, not more than fifteen feet in front of me, a massive buck
sprung from the undergrowth. I was completely caught off guard. In a
frenzy of hooves, antlers, and wide eyes, it bounded through the trees. I
raised my gun and through the scope could see the buck leap into view
between two trees. I knew it would be my only shot and squeezed the
trigger. Through the blast and smoke I could see that just that quickly,
it was over. The buck collapsed to the ground. As Jaysen ran back, to see
how far we were from the truck, I stayed with the deer. The magnificence of
this animal was moving and I felt humbled for taking its life. It had
thrived several years no doubt enduring danger and hardship but had now
suffered its fate at my hands. I thanked the buck for its sacrifice and
vowed to truly appreciate its gifts. I am currently enjoying 60 pounds of
venison meat in the freezer.
So another year has passed. I thought I would include at the end of this
email some photos of some of the adventures I have written about. I just
recently compiled a photo album with all of my pictures from the last year
and a half and it is well over a hundred pages. Wonderful memories shared
with wonderful people. I truly feel very fortunate. Thank you for your
friendship and your influence on the person I am today. Please know that
you are in my thoughts especially this holiday season…I hope the new year is
filled with beautiful sunrises for you and the opportunity for me to share
them with you.
1. The Great Canoe Catastrophe, Summer 2001
2. September 17, 2001: The Summit of Mount Saint Helens, Washington
3. Hunting, Fall 2001
4. The Summit of Mount Shasta (14,000 ft), Summer 2001
5. Skydiving for my birthday, Summer 2001
I have recently moved to an apartment near downtown Portland. My info is as
follows:
John Q Waller
0329 SW Whitaker St
Apt. #17
Portland, OR 97201
Tele: (503) 970-9357
Email: john_waller@hotmail.com
Have a very Merry Christmas and a Festive New Year!
Uncage the Soul
JQ
Picture Attachments:
buck
Funner
Helens
Shasta
skydiving