Wagon Trail

by Bonnie Bryant

  “Oh, just some Saddle Club plans to work out.” Stevie twisted the telephone cord around her finger. “What’s up with you?”

  “Well, something great just happened. About a month ago my dad made reservations for the whole family to go on a white-water rafting trip down the Colorado River. We were all set to go until yesterday, when my sister got this summer job that she’s been dying to have. Now she wants to stay here with friends and work while we go on our trip. That leaves one space that’s been reserved and will have to be paid for. I was wondering if you’d like to come with us. My mom and dad said it would be okay.”

  “That sounds wonderful!” Visions of paddling through rapids of foamy white water flashed through Stevie’s mind. “I’d love to! But I’ll have to ask my parents.”

  “I know. Get a pencil and I’ll give you all the details.”

  “Okay. Hang on.” Stevie searched frantically around her room for a pencil, finally finding a short, stubby one under her bed. A wadded-up piece of notebook paper was under the bed as well, so she smoothed it out and used it to scribble down Phil’s information.

  “This sounds really neat, Phil. I’m so glad you invited me. As soon as I get some kind of semiofficial answer from my parents, I’ll call you back.”

  “I sure hope they say yes, Stevie,” Phil said.

  “Oh, I do, too. I’ll talk to you soon!”

  Stevie hung up the phone and looked at the notes she’d scrawled on the paper. Something seemed vaguely familiar about the dates, but she couldn’t quite place it. Finally it hit her. Phil was going rafting at exactly the same time she had just promised to go on the Oregon Trail!

  “Oh no,” she said, her fingers automatically dialing Carole’s number. “This is terrible.”

  “You’ll never guess what just happened,” Stevie blurted out as soon as Carole answered the phone.

  “Your parents took back their permission for the Oregon Trail because you did something awful to Chad.” Carole had known Stevie to get in trouble like this on more than one occasion.

  “No, nothing like that. Phil just called and invited me to go with his family on a white-water rafting trip on exactly the same dates as the wagon train.”

  “Oh no!” said Carole. “That’s terrible. Are you positive the dates are the same?”

  “Yes,” Stevie replied miserably, studying her scribbled notes. “I’m looking at them right here in black and white. They fly out West on Monday, then start rafting on Tuesday. Just think, Carole, it would be rafting with Phil and camping along the way and having a great time!”

  Carole sighed. “That’s a tough call, Stevie. Phil’s trip sounds wonderful, but don’t forget that you did promise to do the wagon train trip, and Deborah is counting on all three of us.”

  “I know,” replied Stevie.

  “Plus, the newspaper is paying for the Oregon Trail trip. Wouldn’t your parents have to pay for your part of Phil’s trip?”

  “Yes, they would.”

  “Well, Stevie, there’s your answer. No parent would pay for an expensive rafting trip when you have another equally fabulous trip waiting for you for free.”

  “I hadn’t thought of it that way, but you’re right.” Stevie knew her parents were generous, but she also knew that money was always tight in a family of four children.

  “Anyway,” Carole continued, “who says it might not be a good thing for you and Phil to be apart for a while?”

  “What do you mean?” asked Stevie.

  “You know that old saying ‘absence makes the heart grow fonder’? You’ll have plenty to do on the wagon train trip, but if all Phil’s doing is paddling down a river, he might begin to think about you a lot.”

  “Think so?” Stevie pictured Phil pulling a paddle through the Colorado River, all the while seeing her face on the sunlit boulders, in the foamy white water, in the blue sky above.

  “Yes,” said Carole. “He might come back a totally different person.”

  “Well, I don’t know that I want him to be totally different, but a little different might be okay,” Stevie said with a smile. “I think you’re right, Carole. I think it would be crazy for me not to go on a totally free, totally neat trip. Plus it might be the best thing in the world for Phil and me. I’m going to call him back right now and tell him!”

  Stevie hung up the phone and dialed Phil’s number. His sister answered; then Phil came on the line.

  “Hi, Phil, this is Stevie.”

  “Hi, Stevie. Did you ask your parents about the trip?”

  “Well, no. Actually, after we hung up I realized that your trip is scheduled at exactly the same time as a trip I promised to go on with The Saddle Club.”

  “What kind of trip?”

  “It’s a wagon train reenactment along the Oregon Trail. Max’s wife, Deborah, is writing an article about it for the paper, and since Max can’t go and we know all about horses, the paper is paying our way to go along with her.”

  “Didn’t you know about this trip when I called before?” Phil sounded annoyed.

  “Yes, but I didn’t realize the dates were the same. I’m sorry. I’ve talked to so many people on the phone tonight, I just got mixed up.”

  “That’s too bad, Stevie. I was really looking forward to you coming along. Now my little sister will get to invite her best friend, Sarah Groom.”

  Stevie frowned. “So what’s wrong with Sarah Groom? She’s a neat little kid.”

  “Yeah. Well, she’s a neat little kid who’s got this weird crush on me. Every time I say anything to her she just turns red and starts sighing.”

  Stevie laughed. “Gee, Phil, it must be pretty tough to have all these younger women throwing themselves at you.”

  “Stevie, you know that’s not what I mean,” Phil said.

  “I know. I was just teasing. I really wish I could go on this trip with you, but I promised Deborah that I would go with her first, and a promise is a promise.” Stevie smiled and coiled the telephone cord around her finger again. “Anyway, it might be good for us to take separate vacations.”

  “What do you mean?” Phil sounded surprised.

  “I mean, you know how sometimes when you’re away from a person you really like, you can begin to see them differently and it makes you realize how much you like them all over again? In fact, it makes you like them even better?”

  “Yeah, I suppose,” Phil admitted.

  “Well, just think. By the time we both get back from our vacations, we’ll really have missed each other and we’ll like each other all the more!”

  Phil sighed. “I guess you’re right, Stevie. But I still wish you were coming with us instead of Sarah.”

  “I do, too, Phil. But think of how great it’ll be when we finally get back together!”

  On that they said good-bye; then Stevie immediately dialed Carole and Lisa on three-way calling.

  “I solved my Phil problem,” Stevie announced proudly.

  “How?” Lisa asked. “Carole just called and told me that he had asked you to go rafting at the same time as our wagon train trip.”

  “Well, first I explained to him that I’d promised you guys and Deborah first and that I had just gotten confused on the dates.”

  “What did he say?” asked Carole.

  “He was real disappointed, because that meant his little sister would get to invite her best friend, Sarah Groom, who has a big crush on Phil.”

  “Uh-oh,” said Lisa.

  “No, it’s okay,” Stevie assured her. “Phil thinks Sarah is a pest. And anyway, I convinced Phil that the best thing in the world for us would be to be apart for a few days. We can see new sights and meet new people, and when we get back home we’ll appreciate each other all the more.”

  “Did he believe that?” Lisa asked.

  “He seemed to,” replied Stevie. “Anyway, I think it’s a great idea. Just think of all the new people we’ll meet. Why, maybe you and Carole will meet some terrific guys on the wagon train.”

  “
We might, Stevie,” Carole laughed, “but so might you!”

  “Me?” Stevie asked incredulously. “I don’t think so.”

  “You never know!” teased Lisa.

  Stevie started to reply, but a thought stopped her cold. She didn’t think it would be possible for her to meet anybody half as cute and funny as Phil, but it was entirely possible that Phil might meet somebody a whole lot cuter and funnier than she was. And not just Sarah Groom. Lots of different people went on those rafting trips. What if some really cute girl fell out of her raft? Phil would leap in the river and rescue her and then their eyes would meet and they would fall—

  “Stevie, are you still there?” Lisa’s voice crackled over the phone.

  “Huh?” Stevie pushed the thought of Phil and the cute half-drowned girl to the back of her mind. “Yes, I’m still here.”

  “Can you go to the mall with Deborah and us tomorrow? We need to get some supplies for the trip.”

  “Sure. What time?”

  “Deborah said Max could watch Maxi at noon. Let’s meet at the stable at about eleven-thirty.”

  “Sounds good to me,” said Carole. “I’ll see you two there tomorrow.”

  “Bye, Carole; bye, Lisa. See you tomorrow,” Stevie said. She hung up the phone and massaged her ear again. The vision of Phil and the cute girl popped back into her head, but she ignored it. “Travel broadens your horizons,” she told herself resolutely. “And if Phil’s horizons are getting broadened, then mine will just have to be, too.”

  “WHICH STORE DO we want to do first?” Carole asked as she followed Deborah, Stevie, and Lisa into the mall. “I need a couple of pairs of socks.”

  “I could use some socks, too,” said Stevie. She sniffed the air, then turned toward one corner of the mall, where the aroma of baking cookies rose from a small storefront café. “I could also use a large chocolate macadamia nut cookie.”

  “Let’s get our shopping done first,” Lisa said. “Then we can pig out on cookies.”

  “Did anybody bring a list?” asked Deborah.

  Stevie and Carole shook their heads, but Lisa gave Deborah a resigned smile. “I did. Or at least my mother sent my packing list along. I don’t need to buy that much on it.” She reached in her purse for a sheet of paper. On it was a typed list of supplies Mrs. Atwood wanted Lisa to take.

  “My mother is afraid that the nights will be cold. So she thinks I should take three sweaters, a down jacket, a heavy-duty sleeping bag with two extra blankets, two pillows, three sets of gloves, three sets of long underwear, moisturizing sunscreen, and a pair of earmuffs.”

  “Earmuffs?” Stevie frowned. “Where are you going to buy earmuffs in June?”

  Lisa squinted at her list. “Actually, I already have earmuffs and most of the other things on this list. I just have to buy what my mother’s typed an asterisk beside.” She looked at her friends, then turned the page over and continued. “Then I have to get aspirin, bandages, cough syrup, decongestant, antihistamine, vitamins, and throat lozenges.” She shrugged. “She thinks I might catch a cold.”

  “And I think you’ll be suffering from exhaustion if you pack all that stuff,” said Carole.

  “Wait a minute.” Deborah stopped in the middle of the mall. “Lisa, I know your mother wants to take good care of you, but I don’t think she understands the nature of a wagon train reenactment. This is not going to be a cushy trip. We’re really going to be traveling by covered wagon. We’ll be responsible for all of our clothes and provisions ourselves. Unless you can fit all these things into a single backpack that you can carry, you’re going to have to leave a lot of things along the trail.”

  Lisa blinked. “Along the trail?”

  “Yes. It’s going to be just like the old days, and the old days were awfully rough. People had to trash treasured items they brought from back East because they couldn’t get them through the mud or over the mountains. It wasn’t uncommon to see horsehair sofas and dining room tables and even pianos abandoned by the side of the trail.”

  “Wow,” said Carole, her dark eyes wide with wonder.

  Deborah went on. “We’re going to have to travel light. I mean really light. Here’s the list they faxed me.” She unfolded a single sheet of paper. A short list of supplies covered the top half of the page, with the instructions in big capital letters: ALL YOUR SUPPLIES MUST FIT INTO ONE LARGE BAG.

  “Gosh,” Stevie said. “They aren’t kidding. But why do we have to take laundry soap?”

  Deborah laughed. “Because the directors of this trip want us to live as closely as possible to the lives the settlers lived. That means we’ll be wearing pioneer clothing and washing both our clothes and ourselves in creeks along the way. No showers, no bathrooms, no hot water.” She smiled at the girls’ open mouths. “This trip is to be as authentic as possible without endangering the participants.”

  “Cool,” said Stevie.

  “Sounds fun to me,” agreed Carole.

  “I’m all for it, too,” said Lisa. “But we can’t tell my mother. She’ll never let me go if I don’t take everything on this list with me.”

  The girls frowned for a moment, thinking. Then Stevie grinned. “I know what we can do. Let your mother pack all this stuff for you, and then you can bring it over to my house and stash it there during the trip. That way your mother’ll think you’ve taken everything, and you can take only what you need.”

  “Would your mom mind?” Lisa asked.

  Stevie shook her head. “We’ll put your suitcases in my closet. My mom’s afraid to go in my closet.” She shrugged. “For that matter, everybody’s afraid to go in my closet.”

  Carole laughed. “Why am I not surprised?”

  Deborah raised one eyebrow at the giggling girls. “I know this sounds like a lot of fun to you guys now, but are you sure you can do without your computer games and your CDs and your VCRs for a whole week?”

  “Sure we can,” said Carole. “This is a real adventure instead of just goofy fake cyber-stuff.”

  “Okay.” Deborah smiled. “Just wanted to be sure we were all on the same page here.” She held up the short list of supplies again. “So who needs what from this list?”

  The girls peered at the paper. “I’ve got all of that stuff at home,” said Stevie. “Except the biodegradable soap.”

  “Me too,” Lisa said.

  “Me three,” added Carole. “But I still need to buy some socks.”

  “Well, I think we can get the soap at the sporting goods store, which is down that way.” Deborah pointed past the café. “I’m sure they have socks there, too.”

  They walked down to the sporting goods store, passing a computer software outlet and a music shop along the way.

  Stevie gazed at a giant software display. “I wonder if they have the new version of Squelch.”

  “I don’t know,” replied Carole. “I was kind of wondering if the music store had the new Shimmery Emery CD.” She stopped for an instant, then shook her head. “Stevie, what are we talking about? The day after tomorrow we’re going to be living in a world without computers or CD players or anything.”

  Stevie grinned sheepishly. “I know, but we’ll be back in a week. Should be a real challenge, huh?”

  At the sporting goods store, Stevie and Carole found socks they liked, and everybody grabbed a big plastic bottle of liquid peppermint soap. They were standing in line to check out when Stevie heard a voice behind her.

  “Hey, Stevie!”

  She turned. Phil and his father stood there with a half-filled shopping cart.

  “Hi, Phil. Hi, Mr. Marsten.” She walked over to talk to them.

  Phil’s father smiled. “What are you doing here, Stevie? I figured you made most of your purchases at the tack shop.”

  “Oh, we had to get some biodegradable soap for our wagon train trip. We’re going to be washing our clothes in creeks along the way.”

  Phil eyed the bottle Stevie held up. “Your trip sounds really neat, Stevie. You’ll be like rea
l pioneers.”

  “That’s right.” Stevie looked over at the Marstens’ cart. It was filled with a cookstove, sleeping bags, and a cooler. “Looks like you’re going to be taking a pretty neat trip yourself, Phil.” She smiled at him. “I’m sorry it didn’t work out that we could be together.”

  “I’m sorry, too. It would have been lots of fun.”

  Something caught Stevie’s eye over Phil’s shoulder. On a sale table near the cash register was a display of trip journals—little red plaid books of blank pages to write in. “Hey!” she cried. “I’ve got a great idea! Let’s each get one of these and keep a diary of our trip. Then, when we get back home, we can share them with each other. It’ll be like writing one long letter full of all the interesting stuff we might forget.”

  “That is a great idea.” Phil turned around and grabbed two journals off the shelf. He handed one to her. “One for you and one for me. That way I’ll learn all about the Oregon Trail and you’ll learn all about white-water rafting. It’s almost like going on two vacations.”

  “Well, almost, but not quite.” Stevie laughed. “Look, I’ve got to go. I hope you have a wonderful trip, Phil.”

  Phil gave her a gentle smile. “Same here, Stevie. I’ll call you as soon as I get back to town.” He waved to Lisa and Carole. “Have a great vacation! I’m sure the Oregon Trail will never be the same!”

  “Thanks, Phil,” called Carole. “Hope you have a good vacation, too.”

  Stevie waved to Phil, then rejoined her friends at the checkout line. After they had paid for their supplies, they walked slowly toward the entrance of the mall. Again the scent of fresh-baked cookies wafted through the air.

  “I have a suggestion,” said Stevie.

  “I bet it has something to do with those cookies,” Lisa laughed.

  “Well, kind of. Since we’re leaving the day after tomorrow, and since tomorrow we’ll be busy packing and taking our last horseback ride at Pine Hollow, I vote we each get a cookie and drink a toast to our last contact with the modern world.”

  “Stevie, you can’t drink a toast with a cookie,” Carole said.

  “Yeah, but we can click our cookies together before we take our first bite. That’ll be just as good as a toast.”