Twenty One Days on the Danube | A Journey of Endurance and Grace
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Viper on board!
We had to unpack all our gear and Cristian found a long stick to force him from his hiding place.
There he is hiding in the shadow a rather large one too. After pinning him with a stick and many attempts to wrap him around the sticks he grew rather docile so we were able to tangle him up and throw him overboard. This was the first of two events, the second much scarier as the viper made his presence known by climbing up Cristian’s back under his tee-shirt and then down across the top of his legs, we had a much smaller and more hissing mad snake to deal with but managed just when we were considering we would have to kill him.
I did some research on the internet and from the best I could determine they are known as Danube Delta vipers, poisonous though not usually deadly we still were cautious to not get bitten.
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Strong cross winds blew us ashore as nature’s way of letting us know we needed a rest stop. We had seen many horses along the banks even some wild ones so when we met this stallion that wandered over to greet us an apple was offered and he accepted my caresses around his head and neck.
A stallion greets us.
Cristian got out to walk the kayak upstream as the wind was blowing in strong gusts, sometimes we just got out and out tired of paddling so hard, only making 3 km an hour it got discouraging. We couldn’t fight with these moments though we would sometimes grumbles as tensions were released. To appease the wind, we started offering her cookies which sometimes helped and a cookie or two along the way for us was always enjoyed.
Better walking than paddling.
We had a few forced rest stops in which we managed to make the most of the moments even finding time to take a nap as there seemed no hurry to get anywhere. Pulling our sleeping mats from the kayak and laying under the shade of a tree we let the physical tensions dissolve into the Earth then finding that when the gaze is freed from inner struggle there are amazing little things all around to be perceived.
Dragonfly that played in the branches of a tree above our head for during the whole stay of our rest stop while we dozed under the shade of a tree and ate crackers with cheese washing them down with our last warm beer.
I played with my iPhone and experiment with black and white images.
“The dragonfly is symbolic of transformation and change, something that connects us with the spirits of nature and offers us joy. When a dragonfly is noticed you are being called upon to transform and evolve into a better version of yourself. She sparks the imagination to go beyond limits of perception.”
We pull to shore for the night, once again unloading our gear and setting camp. I never took pictures of our dinners but I managed to make some darn good meals over the campfire with a small pot and cheap fry pan. This night as Cristi set tent I made roasted eggplant pasta sauce with spicy chilies thrown in. We opened a bottle of wine which along with the pasta made any hardship of the day melt away. We laid down that night in our tent home to the sound of popping wood in the embers of our fire.
Unloading the kayak for the night, two food bags, two water proof bags with tent and sleeping bags. We also had two backpacks and my sundries with electronics in another water proof pouch. Amazing that we never left anything behind.
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A funny anecdote before I close this chapter. I was hanging up a line to dry the clothes that I had washed in the river while we floated, as we had found a high ground camp with lots of trees I walked a short distance and while tying the line around the tree trunks two things happen simultaneously, I heard a grunt of a pig then Cristian’s alarm that it might be a wild boar. Well, I stood my ground and as I did a wasp stung my leg, normally I would jump or flee but being stared down by a big sow made me stand still. Once we got past the startle we were visited by the whole group, seems we made camp in their nightly grubbing ground.
Piggies!
Sunrise with Moon and Mars visible. Every morning I would rise before Cristi and make some coffee, have a smoke and allow Spirit to speak as she does, in whispers and gentle urgings. This morning was exceptional in every way and by now I had remembered to have my iPhone ever ready.
Sunrise with Moon and Mars in the dawning light.
“There are a thousand ways to kneel and kiss the ground, there are a thousand ways to go home again.”
― Rumi
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