Six

"You don't see that every day." Eddy thought to himself. He finished reeling in his line and dropped the fishing rod beside the tree. He skidded down the bank and onto the pile of wood near where he'd been casting. The runaway canoe was moving slowly enough that he had a good chance to grab it and bring it ashore.

After some struggles with the driftwood shifting under his weight, Eddy stepped into the water and waded out to the middle of the creek. The water was high enough to reach just past his knees, making his progress fairly swift. This being his first time intercepting a runaway canoe, he tried to come up with a plan. The boat was now 50 yards away and had stopped spinning, thankfully.

He positioned himself to be able to grab the boat from the side. Trying to stop it head-on seemed like a great way to get knocked over and soak the rest of his clothes. It was at this point when Eddy realized he also had his wallet, phone, and keys in the pockets of his jeans and he let out a frustrated grunt. "Why didn't I just leave that stuff on the bank? I don't have the money to replace a phone right now," he thought.

The canoe was light enough that it skated smoothly on the surface of the water. When Eddy laid a hand on its side, the bow redirected slightly toward the bank. Using light pressure, he slowed the boat until it was firmly in his control. He edged the boat back to shore and hauled it up to where he'd left his fishing rod.

Inside the canoe was a sparse collection of gear. One oar, one anchor, two crawfish traps, and a backpack. There were fresh boot prints in the bottom of the boat, but no markings of ownership. Not one to invade privacy, he decided against searching the bag for ID.

He saw two or three options on how to deal with this. One, he could drag the boat out to the parking area and hope the owner found the canoe on their own. Two, he could take it to Lucky's and let them deal with it - the tackle shop sometimes functioned as a 'lost and found' for tackle and such. Three, he could try to locate the owner of the boat himself.

The fishing wasn't going quite how he would have liked, so he went with the third option. The water was moving just fast enough in Cattle Creek to make rowing upstream a bad idea. He'd also have to find a way to negotiate the rapids. The easiest method in the end was to push the little boat upstream while he walked in the shallows. He made his work slightly easier by lashing the anchor line to the bow of the craft and pulling it by the rope instead of pushing the canoe itself.

Eddy made surprisingly good time. He had to haul the boat onto the bank to bypass rapids twice within the first quarter mile, but after that the stream was flat and gentle. Nearly a mile upstream he rounded a bend and came upon a man splashing angrily downstream. He was an older fellow, Eddy estimated him to be in his mid-sixties. When the man saw Eddy pulling the canoe, he let out a hoot of excitement and rushed over to meet him.

"You found Darla! Thank goodness, I was worried she'd be long gone down the Wise," said the man.

"It was close, I was fishing the mouth of the creek and caught it just before the confluence. How'd she get away from you?" Eddy asked. He beached the canoe and sat to catch his breath.

"I had it tied up to the limb of a tree while I was fishing upstream. Had my back turned and the knot must have come loose. When I finally turned around all that was left was a stretch of rope dangling from the branch." The man rested on the edge of his canoe. "I sure appreciate you bringing her back to me, buddy. That's a kindness I won't soon forget. What do I owe you?"

Eddy shook his head slightly. "You don't owe me a thing, I just didn't want to leave someone stranded. You need a hand getting her back to where you were?"

"Nah, I can manage. You in a hurry to get back?"

"Somewhat. I'm hoping to wrangle up a few more carp before the end of the day. I was just about to get a bite to eat and try a different stretch of water." Eddy said. His stomach growled as if to emphasize his point.

"I won't keep you, then. Maybe we'll run into each other on the water under better circumstances in the future. I'm on the water most days now that I'm retired. My name's Foster, by the way."

Eddy stood and shook Foster's hand. "Nice to meet you. I'm Eddy. I'm getting in on this carp bounty stuff while I'm searching for job, so I'll be on the water often too. Just on shore, though." Eddy helped push the canoe back off the bank and handed the rope to Foster. "Keep her secure on your way back. Be safe out here."

They parted ways with a wave. Eddy walked the bank downstream to the mouth of the creek. He picked up his fishing rod from where he'd left it and put it in the bed of his pickup. Thankfully, his clothes were mostly dry from the walk back. He climbed in the cab and set off to find a more promising fishing hole.