Chapter 9 07 On the Yukon

Whitehorse is a mecca for canoeing, with several businesses renting out canoes and planning canoe trips for clients. While inquiring about the cost of one of the itineraries, I met a skinny Japanese.He wears sunglasses, and he can smell the smell of suspicious people just by looking at him. If he said, "I am doing marijuana business in Southeast Asia", I would probably believe it without doubt. Be true.The man, about thirty-three or fourteen years old, claimed to be surnamed Yamato. He had been canoeing in Japan for several years, and this time he finally came to the long-awaited Yukon River.

"What are you doing, why are there only tattered canoes? What is this? Sure enough, renting is not enough!" He often complained as soon as he opened his mouth.Rather than blaming the canoe for being bad, it is better to say that it is a personality problem. I think his temperament is really eccentric. I couldn't help but laugh when he said, "I'm looking for a canoeing buddy to go with."Even so, the matter came to an agreement. Although I've been canoeing twice in Japan, I'm still unsure of my skills when I'm going down the vast Yukon River for days on end.He didn't sound like a liar when he said he was a seasoned veteran.I actually like this kind of person with unique personality and even a bit of eccentricity.

It was settled right away, and the two of us rented a Canadian canoe together. The next day, the rental operator trucked us toward the Teslin River, a tributary of the Yukon.We didn't sign up for any tours, but we ran into three other Japanese guys by chance.They came from Hokkaido, and according to them, going down the Yukon River has been their dream for many years. The rowing route we chose this time is to start from the Tianslin River, enter the Yukon River halfway, and go all the way down the river to the downstream town of Carmacks (Carmacks), with a total of 360 kilometers.There are no roads and rivers intersecting on the way, which also means that when we leave the starting point, the river will no longer be disturbed by civilization, and will flow leisurely in the virgin forest.

Ten days' worth of food, camping supplies, five dozen beers, and several bottles of whiskey were piled up on the canoe like a mountain. Once the boat entered the water, it sank deeply into the water. The water surface was too close to the ship's side, exceeding the general waterline. "Canoeing is boring without beer! I'll take extra, this Canadian canoe will do as much as you want." Although Mr. Yamato said so in a sophisticated tone, the appearance of the canoe launching into the water was really not quite right, and he was a little flustered. Take out the canned beer from the beer box, pull the tab open, gulp down a gulp, and then throw a can to me: "You drink it too!" Since the team leader said so, it's better to be respectful than obedient, Gudu .

The canoe glides steadily along the current, slowly, really slowly.The forest in the distance keeps passing by, and sometimes the sound of the water gurgling and swirling can be heard. It is difficult to estimate the width of the river, but I think it should be more than 500 meters.Although the water is quite deep, the stones at the bottom of the river are still clearly visible, and the transparency is amazing.Occasionally, a fish swims past quickly, even the pattern of the fish scales is clear. John said: "From the fourth day on, you can experience the silence of the forest." I felt it as early as the second day.

The river stops flowing like a still lake, and the vast water surface extends like a mirror.This is a silent world, only the sound of paddling is very clear, but the outline of the sound cannot be felt.When we stopped paddling, silence fell like a thick fog, enveloping the whole world. There was something oppressive about the silence, and I thought, if I'm alone here, I'm going to go crazy, right?It's creepy to think about. I couldn't take it anymore, and started singing "Eastern View of the Tsugaru Strait" loudly.After singing, Mr. Yamato then yelled Neil Young's

"Number".We took turns singing and paddling, and it was still early and both of us were drunk. At this time, the Hokkaido trio far surpassed us, and they seemed only as big as sesame seeds.Surprisingly, our singing seems to have spread so far, and when the two sides meet for a while, "Is that what you sang just now?" Even the title of the song is correct. ——John, you are right, the silence of the big river is really not simple?????? Once, I took out the portable gas stove, filled a pot with some river water, and cooked ramen noodles in a floating canoe.After seeing a similar TV commercial a few years ago, I've been wanting to try it out.

Mr. Yamato, who was sitting at the front, said coldly: "Hey! Is it really this fun?" "Santo-san actually wants to try it too?" I joked back. "Stupid." He didn't want to talk to me at all. The ramen is cooked. "Snoring--" I sucked on the noodles very loudly for him to hear.Leader, do you hear me?This is the sound of happiness! "Wow, it's delicious!" I yelled, in fact, it's really great!Surrounded by the nature of Canada, in the clear and cold air, eating hot ramen on the slowly flowing river, this is one of the bliss!Captain, did you see that?This is the color of happiness!

"Snoring!" I smiled and ate my noodles. Mr. Yamato looked at me blankly, and finally murmured, "I'm hungry." He began to search around in the backpack and took out the stove and pot. There is a legend about the Yukon River that says that a person who is building a fire on the bank of the river is hungry, so he takes out his fishing rod while warming the fire, and throws the hook back with his back to the river.As soon as the hook entered the water, the fish took the bait immediately, so he caught the fish and grilled it over the fire. As a result, he ate the grilled fish without even taking a step away from the fire.

I was also moved when I heard such rumors, and there was a funny and beautiful scene in my heart: nature and fish are pure and innocent, and human beings grab the blessings of nature in moderation?????? But in fact, it is not that if you put bait on the river surface casually, fish will be hooked. You really have to choose a specific fishing spot. For such a big river, the most suitable place would be the confluence of small tributaries.We found the place the next day, and I just couldn't resist the temptation to fish, and ran over as soon as the canoe landed. Suppressing the anxiety in my heart, I tied a hook on one end of the fishing line, and quietly cast the rod upstream—the rod immediately bent.

"what?" At the moment of my astonishment, I had already caught a longtail fish about 25 centimeters long, which is a trout called gray trout.From the next moment, I fell into a world of ecstasy. As long as I took the bait, the fish would be hooked, and I didn't feel that the story about the fire was bluffing. But the school of fish is not stupid. After fishing for a while, it seems that they also feel that "something is wrong", and the number of hooked fish gradually decreases. This gray trout was delicious when fried, with a mild flavor, somewhat like char.We paired it with beer and embarked on another leisurely journey down the river. On the third day, we encountered a group of king salmon.Although there were only about twenty of them, they were all so big that at first glance they thought they were logs that had fallen into the bottom of the river!I baited the bait half-jokingly, and I didn't want to take the bait in a while. "Shhhhh-" Swimming and jumping, the salmon tried its best to resist, and I also became excited, and in a blink of an eye I became a young man with full blood.The fishing tackle was designed for small fish, so it took almost thirty minutes to pull it up. As a result, a total of four fish were caught that day, and three were released, leaving only one female fish about 80 centimeters long for dinner. When we met the Hokkaido trio, the five of us swallowed, and someone took out a knife and slashed across the belly of the fish. "Oh oh oh!" The bright red salmon roe rolled out continuously, like hitting a small steel ball to win the jackpot.Looking at it, unconsciously, the small bucket has been submerged by one-third of these red gems. From that day officially entered the salmon roe food festival, from salmon roe rice bowl, salmon roe rice ball, salmon roe pasta, salmon roe ramen, salmon roe pizza?????? No matter what you eat, add a lot of salmon roe . It's so delicious, it's bigger than normal salmon roe, and it's explosive to pop in your mouth.The taste is not strong, with a slight sweetness in the umami taste, round and smooth?????? Ah, all in all, it is delicious! We ate and drank like pigs, and before we knew it, everyone had pimples, and salmon roe was oily. On the canoe, don't rush to paddle, let the magnificent river take us down the river.Originally, Mr. Yamato seemed to plan to let his companion row the boat, drink beer all day long, and take a leisurely nap on the boat.But I completely forgot his kindness for letting me board the boat (he paid for the charter, and the only condition for me to board the boat was to contribute three dozen beers), just like him, drinking and sleeping in the daytime, letting Xiaozhou move forward like a leaf Rafting for supreme pleasure time. The Hokkaido trio were also easy to get along with, and we camped together every night, talking by the fire.On the big river, everyone is happy. Maybe, as John said, it takes only a day or two of canoeing to experience the true face of the Yukon River. It takes several days to float on the flowing river, camp on the river bank, eat the blessings of the big river, and listen Falling asleep to the sound of running water is a good way to face the Yukon River, just like people in ancient times. Another thing that is particularly interesting to me is the difference in perspective.The world seen from a canoe is completely different from that seen from a bicycle.The water surface is close by, and the position overlooking the forests on both sides is low. If people live at such a height of sight, people will be more humble to nature, right?I can't help but think so. One night I had the long-awaited return of the aurora, a gigantic curtain of light in the night sky, and everyone was amazed.The Hokkaido trio excitedly yelled at Aurora: "Tamaya" ︵Note︶, and even Mr. Yamato, who has always been calm, stared at the sky with his mouth wide open like a teenager. It was this light that took me to travel on the great river.I looked up at the night sky, and I could only keep thanking Aurora in my heart. Note: Tamaya, the store number of the Japanese fireworks store, is held in the early summer fireworks in the Edo Ryogoku area together with "Key House" The rally was well-received and later became the cheer of the audience watching the fireworks take off.