OnAlaska has been the gameplan for my first resupply for quite some time. I carry about 3 weeks of food in my boat and will have a couple of resupply stops along the trip. Christy( my wife) has a 90 year old uncle here so It seemed like the perfect spot to mail items I needed etc.
Sam picked up “Uncle Doug” and the waved as I approached the lock above his town and then I paddled the 3-4 miles down to the spot Sam found as an easy takeout. The takeout was fairly flat, but had a black muddy drop off just under the water so I was cautious not to take a swim, but Sam wasn’t as lucky and ended up with a nice muddy pair of pants and boots.
We got my boat out of the water and made the short trip to the hotel and the gameplan was to lock my boat up behind a trailer for the night. Sam casually brought up the fact the town was ok but the panhandlers and homeless had moved in recently and had become an issue. As we got to the back of the trailer Sam said “look at that, people like that are the problem”. I looked to my right and there was a panhandler passed out behind the trailer covered by a cardboard sign, beer bottles on the ground and his belongings stacked behind him. He was a middle aged man who was down on his luck. I looked at his sign “Baja or Bust” and thought wow… that dude knows a great spot to go and had great taste. Clear intoxicated, and passed out cold…. I decided I needed to sit down next to him for a photo opportunity like a creepy stalker so cautiously walked up and sat down next to him for photo. Once I sat down, I happened to look at the side of his beard thinking wow…. That looks like my good friend from Washington states beard.
It was at that point I had flashbacks of 3 years ago when I surprised him showing up at his house disguised as a “State Inspector” in the middle of his home renovation and super stressful month in his life lol
At that point, I knew I had been had, appreciated the NORRA race book and props he had placed on the ground as last week was when we normally have a trip to Baja, MX planned together.
I truly have amazing friends. Thank you all for showing up to give support!
