Beyond The Burning Shore: Searching For Survival

by Ron Foster

  Annie even had another couple who tried hers out with their dog and enjoyed it so much they bought one.

  Hogan’s 10.6’ Sport Runabout was the best kind of boat for fishing the river though and they cut quite a picture playing with it launching it from the river access at the apartment building. It wasn’t the best place in the world to launch from but it was free and convenient and generally speaking no one ever used it. It was more of a worn path on a short piece of beach and trail that dog walkers and playing kids had tramped down over time more than anything else.

  The two boaters were about 20 years different in age but it didn’t affect their friendship any except when Annie playfully joked at him about lifting something or doing something he was griping about being harder than it looked.

  “Come on old man!” she would say and lend him a hand picking up something heavy or get him to push himself a little further on a long paddle if he started talking about taking it easier if she wanted to go fast versus slow in her tandem kayak.

  Annie kept her Kayak in her trunk and it weighed an amazingly light 32 lbs. That particular Kayak packs down small enough to fit in the smallest car trunk. Don't let the light weight fool you, it's a rugged kayak able to hold 3 people or 650 lbs and yet easy enough to be carried and paddled by one. It could even be sailed downwind because she had bought that neat accessory to play with and enjoy.

  Hogan’s boat on the other hand was larger and as safe and seaworthy as an inflatable boat can be made. He had spared no expense getting what he wanted in comfort and mobility in one package. He wanted something very durable to stand the test of time and be able to haul cargo and people easily.

  He had certainly found those characteristics in this one because the overall base hull weight of 90 lbs. while still able to carry 5 adults or an amazing 1200 lbs. with ease. He had purchased an excellent fishing boat as well as a tough reliable prepper bug out boat with some functional class, in his opinion.

  His weighed 78 lbs. (hull), 90 lbs. (w/ inflatable floor installed) he could move it around by himself but it sure was easier with another set of hands to help. Two people could easily carry it inflated but he solo boated a lot and eventually got himself some wheels to drag it around if he wanted to.

  Hogan and she had gotten on the subject of using their watercraft as excursion camping or bug out boats, a subject he was already well versed in. That was the reason he had made sure he got to live on this river when he moved up here. That was why he had chosen his particular Sea Eagle boat for recreation as well as emergency transportation use.

  It was in his studied opinion that his best chance of survival was to use the Chattahoochee River as his escape route out of the city should he find the road ways blocked. The Chattahoochee runs all the way to Florida but is not navigable the entire distance without pulling out here and there and portaging around things. The current plan of his was sort of dead ended by that fact but he wasn’t sure how far down he could actually travel without the need to avoid something. He knew the official kayak river trail ran 45 miles out of Atlanta and of course there were off shoots like the Flint River and various creeks but he didn’t know what was waiting for him at the end of the road navigable water passage wise.

  He hadn’t found the time to explore that far downriver yet nor buy any maps that detailed that region. All he knew that south was the direction of his escape and the way he wanted to go to get out of the city as fast as he could avoiding the highways. He kicked himself for that bit of un-preparedness right now but it couldn’t be helped. He had a general map showing all the rivers’ contours but it was a highway map and didn’t indicate hardly anything about true river conditions.

  “Turn right up here, I have a back way we can use to get to the grocery store. Don’t know why I didn’t think of going this way before. You got to cut through the back of the shopping center to get there but that might work out to our advantage. I wonder if anyone will be doing any deliveries today. Might sound stupid but what is a trucker going to do if he has a load scheduled to be dropped off today. Does he drop it and haul ass home, turn around and take the trailer with him knowing it contains food or what?” Hogan asked and they pondered the question.

  “No telling, if I was the trucker I would be wondering if anybody was going to show up to work today to unload the truck or open the store at all.” Annie offered.

  “Guess we get to see soon enough, hang a left on that service road and just wrap on around towards the back of the building.” Hogan said giving directions while looking around for any signs of big rigs. Two more cars decided to use the same road they were on but they turned off to go to the front of the stores as Hogan and Annie carried on with their mission to explore the back lots first. There weren’t any parked trucks back there but there were a couple cars parked in back of the dollar store and they apparently were loading up their vehicles with stuff out of the back door.

  “Careful, this situation can get real touchy quickly. Stop here a minute.” Hogan said about 50 yards off from the activity.

  “Looks like the employees maybe are having themselves their very own pre-looting day sale.” Annie declared studying the people.

  “Got your pistol handy?” Hogan asked already knowing she had put it under her seat when she got in but not knowing how fast she could get to it.

  “Yea I got it, what’s the plan?” Annie said fishing under her seat and not liking any part of what was going on in back of that store.

  “We are going to wave to them and act all friendly like and I am going to hold up some cash and see if they will parlay. Evidently they got the front door locked and the lights turned off to repel any would be customers, I am guessing. What I don’t like thinking about is what type of answer that manager looking type standing over there eying us with what is probably a chrome plated .357 revolver on his hip might say. Probably, he will just run us off and wave and tell us to go away so be ready for that and just leave if he says so.” Hogan said assessing the situation.

  “Ok, here goes nothing.” Annie said driving slowly forward towards the group.

  “Hey, isn’t that one of the Yak boys over there? I think his name is Danny.” Hogan said looking at a young man carrying boxes out.

  “Yea that’s Danny! Whew this doesn’t sound so crazy to be coming over here now.” Annie said relieved they had seen somebody they knew from their Kayaking group. This particular individual floated from this group to that one at another landing but Hogan had labeled him and his millennial daredevil buddies the Yak boys because they were your typical young Georgia yuppie river rats that could have easily turned out as California dude surfer types had they been raised on the opposite coast and played with surfboards instead of kayaks.

  Hogan waved cash; Annie called out to Danny and Mr. .357 magnum manager type seemed to relax a little.

  Danny and the manager walked over to the car and told them the store was closed due to power outages and to hearing this obvious news Annie whined they didn’t need much and Hogan cajoled the manager that they would pay whatever it took to get supplies.

  Annie waving her $200 must have looked good to the manager because he finally conceded to let them have some stuff but it was pricy. They could have two hand baskets of canned goods and Danny would get sent to get them for them. They were not going to be allowed to come in the closed store they were informed. Danny assured them that he would pick out some good stuff and he did. He grabbed pretty much what any seasoned camping Kayaker would want and threw in extra wherever he could.

  While Danny was inside the store getting their groceries, Hogan talked the manager into giving him a case of beer for $25 bucks because that’s all the money he had and evidently the manager took a liking to him or just felt magnanimous because he gave him two cases and wished him good luck before they left.

  “Well that turned out to be painless. Way to go, Hogan, for thinking of coming to the backdoor before going to the front door! You should of tried to get more food instead of that
beer though.” Annie said as they began to exit the parking lot not even bothering to see what kind of melee was going on over at the grocery store in the front of the place.

  “Hey beer has calories in it! Hold up a minute, slow down and honk your horn at those folks, Annie. That’s Mr. Wong from the Chinese takeout food place that is heading this way!” Hogan said pointing at a small blue Toyota pickup truck with a camper shell on it.

  “No time to talk today, Hogan! I got to go! Must get to the restaurant!” An apparently overly rushed and excited Chinese man said with a thick accent.

  “Won’t keep you but a minute Mr. Wong, can I trouble you to sell me a sack of flour, please? I got a Silver dollar to trade!” Hogan said with a big smile reminding the man he was a regular patron and had once given a silver dollar as a tip to his cook for an exceptional meal and had given another to his wife as a present when she had become a full fledged U.S. citizen.

  Mr. Wong turned to his wife and chattered something in Mandarin and he turned to Hogan and said yes to follow them as his wife gave Hogan a thumbs up.

  “Well we are just batting a thousand today, our lucky day it seems in spite of that solar flare!” Annie said as she waved at the waitress and cook following Mr. Wong she also recognized in the other car and got turned around.

  Before they got out of the car, Hogan reached around to the back seat and pulled out a six pack of still somewhat cold beer and offered one to Mr. Wong when he got out.

  The proprietor took it from him just to be courteous it seemed and held it unopened as did the cook who eventually soon enough opened his and took a swig while the two ladies demurely said no thanks.

  “You have Dollah for me?" Mrs. Wong said in her gruff Asian accent

  “Got it right here!” Hogan said handing the shiny coin over to the admiring women’s hands as they followed them in the back door of the restaurant.

  Hogan had never heard the cook speak English before and they had been mugging at each other and using sign language of sorts for months so they had their own form of understanding one another. There was a tiny five stool mini bar around the corner from the takeout corner and Hogan would hang out at it once in awhile as the cook doubled as bartender occasionally.

  You and Lady want a drink he motioned while looking to his boss for an ok which he got but in many more words than seemed necessary.

  “Uh, you want a drink?” Hogan asked Annie thinking what the hell, be the last one he ever got in this place and hanging around here as the owners were evidently going to carry some food off or something might prove profitable or beneficial.

  “Yes sure as long it is ok with Mrs. Wong and her husband?” Annie said looking over at the pair to which Mrs. Wong hearing her name being mentioned first immediately stepped forward motioning with her hand for them to have a seat as she reached for the whiskey to make Hogan his usual Jack and Coke while asking Annie what she wanted and was pleased to hear the “same.”

  A torrent of Chinese started up as the restaurant operators chattered at each other incessantly and left Hogan and Annie sitting there all by their lonesome as they tended to the kitchen with the opening of coolers and slamming of cabinets.

  “I don’t have any cash for these drinks.” Hogan whispered to Annie.

  “I know that, I didn’t know you had any silver on you.” Annie whispered back.

  “I got four silver dollars left and a roll of dimes left.” Hogan confided.

  “I got three ounces of silver in my bug out bag back at the apartment but that’s it.” Annie said in a hushed tone back.

  “Then we are wealthy.” Hogan said with a grin.

  “Think we can get anything else here?” Annie asked still whispering.

  “I have no idea, flour was all I could think of when I saw them, they usually use fresh ingredients to cook with I think.” Hogan replied.

  “I don’t think you need any more to drink, Hogan, if you’re asking a Chinese restaurant if you can buy flour from them instead of rice.” Annie said in a mock scolding voice before tittering at the expression Hogan got on his face for not thinking of it until now.

  “Ah hell I had boiled noodles on the brain, I eat them every time I come in so I was thinking of them and how the hell we might be able to make them and wontons and dumplings and such first. DUH! Can’t believe I missed the obvious.” Hogan began to say before someone tried the front door awful loudly.

  Annie jumped a mile and Mr. Wong suddenly appeared with a 1911 .45 pistol in the kitchen doorway as a group of teenagers appeared at the glass front door motioning they wanted to come in.

  “We Closed! We Closed!” Mr. Wong said waving them away.

  “I don’t like leaving my gun out in the car.” Annie whispered.

  “I got two, we are going to be gone in a few minutes but I will tell Mr. Wong to be sure his backdoor is locked if it isn’t already.” Hogan said.

  “I hear you, Hogan. Doors locked, those bad boys wanting to get in here, trouble.” Mr. Wong said now walking back towards them with a look over his shoulder to see if any more scowling faces appeared to contest his restaurant being closed to the public.

  “I have a drink with you, Hogan, and then we all go home. You come back in kitchen where no one sees you though.” Mr. Wong said asking them to move away from the bar.

  “No problem.” Annie and Hogan said heading that way carrying their drinks.

  Mr. Wong put his pistol into his waistband under his vest and opened the beer Hogan had given him that he had sat inside the melting ice machine

  “Bad times are coming, Hogan, best we don’t stay here too long.” Mr. Wong said as his wife and the rest of the help went on stacking stuff next to the back door.

  “To better times!” Hogan said giving him a glass to can cheers which they shared with Annie.

  “You stay around and help guard until cousins come and help load vehicles I give you boo coo Chinese take out!” Mr. Wong said with a big smile then he translated what he said to the rest of the group and everyone had a nervous big laugh.

  “I do.” the cook said and started filling up a flat cardboard box with little take out containers.

  “Damn, he does speak English a little.” Hogan murmured as he gave the man thumbs up and was rewarded with a crazy happy gap-tooth grin in return.

  “Go get your gun, Annie, looks like we are on kitchen guarding duty.” Hogan said starting to rise to accompany her but Cook waved for him to sit back down and produced an ancient Police .38 special revolver and walked back to stick his head out the door and motion Annie to come on.

  “We are going to the mountains, Hogan; you wait here for a minute, please.” Mr. Wong said slipping out to go to the bar and coming back with a bottle of Peppermint Schnapps and four shot glasses which he dutifully filled and called his wife over while they waited for Annie to return.

  “We always go to mountains in times of trouble or running from the Communists.” Mr. Wong stated as Annie came back and eyed the shot glasses lined up on the bar wondering what was up.

  “Where you and woman go, Hogan?” Mr. Wong asked handing a glass to his wife and Annie and signaling everyone bottoms up.

  Hogan couldn’t help but make a small face as the fiery peppermint flavored drink hit the back of his throat and the taste conflicted with his whiskey but he forced a smile anyway.

  “The river most likely, I am thinking the world will be on fire tomorrow or tonight. Run to the mountains quick my friend because the traffic will stop soon.” Hogan said and at a curious look from his wife Mr. Wong translated.

  “I tell her emergency man warn of us of traffic jam and fire coming soon. She no understands you talking about fire, wants to know if it be fire come from sky like dragon moon, I think she mean meteorite.” Mr. Wong said before jabbering at her again in Chinese.

  “She says no mean sun fire like radiation maybe.” Mr. Wong said scrutinizing him.

  “No radiation to worry about that affects humans; the city is going to burn down becau
se of no Fire Department communications and water pressure.” Hogan said and motioned with his hands like he was doing Indian sign language palm down like a house burning to the ground to which the cook got it and started jabbering at his wife.

  “Cook wants to know if the fire will be everywhere even in the mountains. I think he is saying will the fire be coming from sky?” Mr. Wong said.

  “No fire won’t be coming down from the sky; it will be coming from the transformers on the telephone poles.” Hogan stated still regretting drinking that Schnapps but it wasn’t too bad after all when it settled and maybe he would ask for another.

  “I don’t think they know what an electrical transformer is.” Annie whispered as a confused sing song of language went on to their ears.

  “You got a pen?” Hogan asked and Annie fished one out of her purse to which he started drawing a power pole on a bar napkin with a lightning bolt hitting the transformer.

  “Ah!” everyone exclaimed looking at the picture.

  “Well the lightening is invisible you won’t see it.” Hogan managed to explain to what he hoped was acknowledging head nods.