A true story written by myself.
It was a sunny summer day on August 9th, 2012. We had just moved to Idaho during vacation, and we didn’t even see our new house yet. The sun’s bright rays shone down from the trees high above and landed on my face. I had a feeling that today was going to be special.
We picked a spot a little further from the other camping sites a few days ago, on the border of the Sawtooth National Wilderness. It was right next to a loud, raging river and a rarely-used dirt road. It was only us and a few other people, who, I might add, stayed closer to the parking lot.
“Alright everybody, today’s the day we hike a little into the Sawtooth trail we looked at yesterday,” Dad announced.
My sister, Savannah, and my brother, Gabriel, gathered around him. I was bouncing up and down, smiling and laughing for no reason. I’m a very excitable person when I get comfortable around people.
“So,” Dad continued, glancing at us left to right, “I’ll get our food together, you guys pack up your water, and we will leave in an hour or so. The hike will be about six miles.”
I nodded, and raced to my tent, stumbling inside and searching for my water bottle. This was going to be awesome.
The parking lot was too far from our camping site, so we took the truck. Savannah, Gabriel, and I stood back in the trunk. The air felt so good making its way through my long hair I once had.
After a few minutes, we were there. Dad made sure to park it in a nice, shady spot, even though it was hidden from the trees. Everyone jumped out of the car, ready for new memories in this hiking trek.
The hike wasn’t too interesting, except when we stumbled off trail and we got lost a bit. But Dad had it all figured out, saying it was almost impossible to get lost in these woods.
“We’re back! Ahey!” Dad said, his arms spread out. I was a bit tired, just like Savannah and Gabriel.
We all stepped into the parking lot. Empty. Absolutly no cars in sight, except a small black glimpse of our own, the trees hiding it away. Dad perched his arms on his hips. Weird. What was going on?
We drove home, passing by the empty spots that were once, only a few hours ago, filled with happy campers. We got back and rested our legs from the hike. Then, the day ended with oreos for dessert.
***
In the morning, Dad was still curious about the missing people. It could have been they just left all at once… but what are the odds?
“Alright, we are going to go see what’s going on,” Dad told us.
“How? Where are we going?” I asked.
“The nearest town. Atlanta.”
***
After driving past steep cliffs descending into a valley, we finally got to Atlanta. It was like a ghost town. No one was in sight.
Except, of course, the town mayor was there. Him and his wife stood in their house as we knocked on the door.
“Where is everyone over in Sawtooth? Everyone seemed to vanish,” Dad questioned.
The Mayor’s reply was unforgettable.
“Well, haven’t the rangers warned you? The forest is on fire.”
It was then when the pieces of the puzzle finally came together. We parked in the shade, but it was hidden, so when the rangers came they did not see it and did not warn us. Our tents were way back near the border, and apparently the rangers didn’t bother getting that far deep. They had completely missed us.
Dad gathered us into the truck and went back to the site. On the way he explained what was going on, how the first thing we were going to do was pack up and get out of there. I was more sad than worried, knowing this amazing camping trip was going to be ended by a fire, known as the Trinity Fire.
So we did what we did. Packed up and left. My sister, Savannah, was probably more sad. Her star birthday was only in 4 days, and that exact day was when a meteor shower was going to happen. It must’ve sucked for her.
We drove to Boise, the first time in almost 12 years. I was born here, but left at eight months of age. I was still disappointed, and I knew I was never going to forget this time in life.
Today, the area we camped in is now burned and dried up. If it wasn’t for my father's curiosity, we would probably not be where we are today.
The End
If you would like me to create more real-life stories like this, please tell me! I love to write :)
