A Kayak for One Read online

  A Kayak for One

  Book one in the six book Kirk Lake Camp series

  Copyright 2017 K.L. McCluskey, all rights reserved.

  Published by An Taigh Buidhe air an Lohan Publishing at Smashwords.

  Cover by: copyright 2017Arthur McBain

  Smashwords Edition License Notes

  This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your enjoyment only, then please return to Smashwords.com or your favorite retailer and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

  Table of Contents

  Acknowledgements

  Chapter 1 - Tuesday September 22, 2015

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17 - Wednesday September 23, 2015

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34 - Thursday September 24, 2015

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39 - Friday September 25, 2015

  Chapter 40

  Chapter 41

  Chapter 42

  Chapter 43

  Chapter 44

  Chapter 45

  Chapter 46

  Chapter 47

  Chapter 48

  Chapter 49

  Chapter 50 - Saturday September 26, 2015

  Chapter 51

  Chapter 52

  Chapter 53

  Chapter 54 - Sunday September 27, 2015

  Chapter 55

  Chapter 56

  Chapter 57

  Chapter 58

  Chapter 59

  Chapter 60 - Monday September 28, 2015

  Chapter 61

  Chapter 62

  Chapter 63

  Chapter 64

  About K.L. McCluskey

  Other books by K.L. McCluskey

  Connect with K.L. McCluskey

  Acknowledgements

  This book is dedicated to my mother, Rose McCluskey

  (September 19th, 1931-September 24th, 2015)

  I would like to be able to thank my mother for her encouragement in getting me started on A Kayak for One, my first book. Her enthusiasm and belief that I would serve myself better if I wrote down the words that were piling up in my head, motivated me to just get at it. Sadly, my mother died before I completed the book.

  My thanks and appreciation go out to Arthur, my partner, who listened to my idea for a series of books and told me he thought it was a great idea. His continued support and encouragement have helped guide me through my writing. We have shared our thoughts about the characters and had lots of laughs over zany ideas for the plots in the six book Kirk Lake Camp series set in northern Ontario.

  I would like to thank Arthur for all his work at getting my book formatted properly as an ebook, as well as acknowledge his creativity and artistry in designing the cover for the book.

  Last, but not least, I would like to thank my family members and friends who read this book in its rough stages and asked me when book two would be finished.

  ****

  Chapter 1

  Tuesday September 22nd, 2015

  Charlie

  Charlie looked up and out the bedroom window at the morning sky and maple branches just as the loon started its call. Just hearing the plaintive, haunted cry made getting up out of bed to look out through the tree branches toward the lake worthwhile, that, and the autumnal reds and oranges of the maple leaves on the branches that almost touched the second-floor bedroom window. The birches along the shoreline were still bright yellow. Though the tamarack was still holding onto its green hue, Charlie knew the hard season was almost over.

  It was 7:05 am. The alarm clock was set for 7:20 so Charlie made sure to turn it off, not wanting to hear the jarring sound if not needed. There had been too many years of early alarm get-ups with the variety of bells, beeps, buzzes and noises that came from the alarm clock, radio alarms, pagers, and now the cell phone. That done, Charlie padded out naked to the kitchen and turned the coffee on, then moved to the living room to nudge the thermostat of the propane fireplace up to some respectful temperature, then moved next into the bathroom. Having learned from experience with the season change and dark early mornings, Charlie looked first to make sure the shutters were tightly closed on the big window over the tub before turning on the light. Now near the end of September the sun was still just rising. After a quick wash and listen to see whether it was time to go turn down the stove element under the percolator, it was time to get dressed for work, starting with long underwear bottoms and top, thick wool socks, wind pants, and a flannel shirt. The hot shower would come at the end of the day. There was no point at the start.

  Charlie slipped on a well-worn pair of moose-skin moccasins, thinking, not for the first time, that it was time to buy another pair. They had been re-stitched with heavy thread last year, but that wouldn't work again, and the thick-skin soles were no longer thick all over. It would be tough to find some with the padded bottoms. The trading posts in the area seem to be stocking more moccasins with a designer look and less substance, rather than those made for everyday wear, for going in and out of the house, at least on dry days. The shopping trip though, like anything else personal, would have to wait.

  With fresh coffee in the thermos, Charlie started down the stairs. Breakfast would come after the coffee, making the most of the strong black coffee first.

  Chapter 2

  Bob

  He woke up where he fell asleep. It wasn't the first time and wouldn't be the last that it wouldn't be his bed. He dug the heels of his hands into his eyes and rubbed the Jim Beam and sleep from them. He shoved the chesterfield cushions aside, rolled up to sit, and looked out the wall-to-wall windows across the lake. He smiled. The lights in the office were on at the resort across the narrow channel of water. Charlie was up. He reached for the binoculars.

  Chapter 3

  Dan

  "Fuck. I am fucked."

  There was no point keeping this as an inside-the-head phrase. It only felt better saying it out loud, but not so loud to disturb anyone. Who would hear anyway? Charlie? Looking out the window over the bed toward the house, Dan could see the light in the bathroom, just showing between the thin spaces between the slats of the shutter. Charlie must be up then. The students would be asleep though. They had youth on their side and the late beer nights after studying would allow them to sleep soundly. He better be careful though. The resort was dead quiet, with only the loon and nuthatches making any noise this early. There were other cottages on the lake but spaced out well and tucked in to the trees. Unlike a lot of the recreation lakes in northern Ontario, around here there were only a handful of cottages and they each had lots of acreage. Most were built by Americans in the 1950s and many third generation family members came to t
he lake for just a few weeks in the summer, happy to use what their grandparents paid for, decades before them.

  The six hour drive from Toronto kept a lot of people away. That, and there was no road to most of the cottages. The resort wasn't on an island as most people thought when Dan described the area to them, but most of the land was provincial park and a First Nation reserve. The dirt road in to the back half of the land was on reserve land, for reserve use only, and there was no road access into the park. Other than the few properties along the bumpy road that was mainly a tract over rock, the way in was by boat. Most people had to park at the resort parking lot and launch at the docks and boat everything in. They paid for parking and launching or dock rental space, including the canoeists with permits to enter the park. Charlie had a good set up, he thought.

  Dan thought the coming week-end should be busier on the lake and maybe at the resort too. The fall colours were at the peak he noticed when they drove in on Sunday, so the tourists and artists and hikers will be lured into the area. It's hard to say, though, with the recession-like economy still in full swing.

  This was a new experience for him, coming like this in the fall. When they came at their usual time, the end of April into the first part of May, they were usually the only group at the resort. It was just getting ready to open after being closed all winter. He would greet Charlie looking at a fresh face, full of enthusiasm for the upcoming season. He could see now though, that working every day since the resort opened had taken its toll. He noticed there were lines of tiredness, exhaustion even, around Charlie's eyes and mouth.

  It was Tuesday, the third day of Dan's trip. He had been coming with a different group for 25 years, bringing the best and brightest of the fourth-year geology students with him. The area was ripe for geologists being in the La Cloche mountain area, known for its high quality white quartzite. A company was still mining it at a quarry at the edge of Highway 6 near the road into Miner's Village, to be broken down into the silica used to make glass.

  Sometimes another professor would come if the numbers warranted it, but not this year. There were only five students this time. There was a mix up with funding and the usual spring trip was canceled. The money finally came in for a 10-day fall trip, but some students were already working after graduating and couldn't take the time off. Why would they if they had jobs in the field? The trip still included an extra credit though, and it was this and the field experience that when seen on a resume could help the students get a foot in the door.

  Thank Christ none of this group had it in their heads that they would walk into a million-dollar-a-year job in the oil industry in Alberta as soon as they graduated. How he got through teaching the course in the 1990s with those students who thought like that, he had no idea. Most of them didn't have the love of seeing the wonders inside the rock. They just wanted the big offices and big windows in Calgary and the stake in the share of the oil companies who hired them. The boom of the oil industry in the seventies then again in the nineties meant graduates expected to be rich, finding high-paying jobs in the lucrative oil business right out of university. A lot did. This group this year though, would be lucky to find full-time work doing anything. The bust in the oil industry in Alberta was happening.

  He still had work though. The geology course was still part of Brock University's curriculum, for now. He could leave if he wanted with an early pension, but his divorce settlement would take a big chunk of that each month. Besides, at 62 he still thought of himself as young. What would he do if not teach? Isn't 60 the new 30s or something like that? he thought. He still had a trim and fit body from all the climbing around escarpments chipping away at rock and swimming twice a week at the community pool in St. Catherine's. It was this confidence and arrogance, he thought with a shudder, that led to his thinking that Ashley would welcome his arm around her when they were at the camp fire last night.

  The other students drew dinner clean-up duty, so hadn't joined them outside yet. It was dark and there were a few trees between them and the cottage where the other students were washing dishes, so he was sure no one saw Ashley shove him away, or heard her hiss that he was "fucked, so fucked." She said she would report harassment to the university once they were back and he could kiss what remained of his pension good-bye. His recent divorce was no secret among the students or staff. Ashley made it clear it was only her fear of losing the course credit that would stop her from saying anything to anyone during the rest of the time on the field trip. She got up and stormed into the cottage to join the others.

  The students all come out to the campfire shortly after that. Ashley sat close to Lori on the bench by the fire. Dan stayed for a beer then left them to it saying goodnight, taking refuge in his cottage. He closed all the curtains, poured more than his usual shot of whisky, glad that the liquor store in Espanola carried Jameson Irish Whiskey and that they stopped in on the way to the resort. He sat in the dark thinking how he could change Ashley's mind to report him, or to change her version to one of innocence on his part.

  Now though, it was time for him to get dressed for the day. They were going to take the van along Highway 6 and stop for rock samples at different spots, the same spots he took the students each year. This time though, there was no need for bug repellent, and the terrain would be dry and not snow-soaked and muddy. He put on his canvass cargo pants with the zippers at the knees and a long-sleeved button-up shirt with sleeves he could roll up past his elbows and button once the day got warmer. The day looked promising with no forecast of rain. He might be able to unzip his pants to shorts. He found he got hot quickly hiking and working on sun-warmed rocks. He took down his Tilley hat from the peg on the wall by the door and packed it with his backpack already organized with what he needed for the day.

  He made his bed and rinsed out his coffee cup. He looked around the little one-room cottage thinking this trip could be his last if Ashley did report him. He loved the cottage. He always stayed in this one. It had a blue swivel chair, a queen-sized bed and an antique wood dresser painted blue with red hearts, all in the same room as the kitchen. Everything was in good repair and always clean. Though small, the kitchen was fully equipped and had an old wood table for two, set into one corner of the room. It was set with a red and white gingham cloth and an old creamer filled with fresh flowers or flowering weeds found on the property and picked by Charlie. Windows all around the cottage and a back door including its own screen door, afforded the views of the mixed-growth forest that surrounded the resort. He put on his leather hiking boots, careful to tuck the bottom of his pants into his socks for protection against the first-of-the-day chill and dampness on the ground.

  He would go sit in the screened front porch for a bit then go knocking at the other two cottages along the lake to wake up the students. It was almost time for everyone to get cooking and eating breakfast.

  They always met in cottage #1 where the three male students were staying, each with their own bedroom. It was the largest cottage on the resort with a wood harvest table large enough to fit them all with room to spare this year. Ashley was sharing cottage #2 with Lori. It had three bedrooms too, but not the space in the living area or at the table. Like his cottage, it had electric baseboard heating but no wood stove like in cottage #1.

  He could now see the smoke coming out of the chimney, so one of the boys must be up already. It was probably Peter, he seemed to be more on the ball in the mornings than Haiden and Greg.

  He liked that his cottage was set back behind and between cottages #1 and #2. His cottage was built last, well after numbers one through five were built spaced well apart along the lake, each with private docks. The hill was too steep at the far end of the shoreline for any more buildings so cottage #6 was built at the next best spot. There was still a full view of the lake in front though, and the cottage was surrounded by white pines and a few cedar trees. He could see what the students were up to for the most part. He could see them walking between the cottages and see the lights com
e on or go off inside.

  He hoped he didn't have to knock to wake up the girls. He didn't know how he was going to face Ashley this morning and wondered if she kept her promise or if she confided in Lori.

  Chapter 4

  Charlie

  It was 7:45 am and time to get a move on. Charlie turned off the computer, reluctantly got up from the warm leather chair at the desk that faced out to the lake, walked over to the wood stove, slipped out of the moccasins and slipped into the tall, green Hunter boots that had been warming beside the fire. It was supposed to get warm today with no indication of rain, but the pine needles and long grass and weeds by the lake shore would be soaking wet still. Charlie walked to the other side of the room down a short hallway, and put on the wind jacket hanging beside the door that was marked 'private' on the exterior, for the house part of the resort only. The sign didn't seem to deter guests from trying to come in that way, but Charlie thought an effort should be made to try to stop them. After a quick grab to put on the thick gloves with the leather hand and finger grips that were on the chair by the door, Charlie went outside.

  The nuthatches were busy traveling down the trees, upside down to the other birds flitting about and on the branches of the tall pines that grew thick in front of the house and office. Their chatter amused Charlie, and the smell of the pine needles was exhilarating. This is why Charlie bought the resort here three seasons ago. Most of the landscape appeared unspoiled, even though logging and mining was going on years ago. The rail line along the opposite shore built by INCO to pick up mine workers from a small enclave of company houses was still there, but not used by trains anymore. Originally there was no road in from Highway 6 to the houses. There was now. Most of the 12 houses not occupied by somebody whose family had 'always lived there', were rented out by owners to weekenders. Guests coming to stay with Charlie at Kirk Lake Camp used the road, as did cottagers heading for the few properties that dotted the shore, just past Creepyville. Charlie smiled at the name given the village by one of the guests a few years ago. This was because of the line of attached dilapidated garages that lined both sides of the road coming into the area. Most of the garages were not used and had doors hanging off the hinges or sagging with rot. The roofs were covered in lichen and pine needles and old maple branches that fell from the trees that almost enveloped the buildings. Since then, Charlie didn't think of the area by its real name, Miners' Village, though it wasn't populated enough to be called a real village. There were no services for the residents other than the neighbouring volunteer fire department or O.P.P. police that had to come in from the highway if patrolling nearby, or from the station just outside of Espanola on Highway 17. That was about a 20 minute drive away, if traffic wasn't stopped by a beaver or a turtle crossing the road. That was the extent of the traffic jam up here.