2012/04/14

The Kennewick-Man Expedition, DAY 13


I got up at 7 a.m. The temperature in the tent was 41 degrees Fahrenheit.



At about 9 a.m., Masako Barnes, Japanese, we met yesterday, visited my tent for supplying provisions. Rice balls containing umeboshi and surrounded by nori, and Japanese pickled vegetables were wonderful hospitality of Masako who had read my mind left Japan 2 weeks ago, and made me energetic when I ate them.



I attached a sail system to the kayak, and then tested the ability to sail of it, twice both in the morning and the afternoon. Because manipulating a sail including a yacht’s one was my first experience, so I tried my knowledge learned in yacht textbooks.

On the still water in Port of Kennewick, the kayak with sail caught a breeze and glided at a pace of quick steps. “Oh, great!”, I was impressed by the first sailing for a while.

I made a half-turn around the port, and then proceeded into the Columbia River which swelled and had strong current with melted snow. The wind was blowing from direction of one o’clock, which when I saw the direction of the upstream. I made an attempt to push the kayak against wind and flow of water, as I headed the kayak upstream and went against headwind. But, although I used a power of paddling in addition to a power of wind, the kayak inched backward by succumbing to the rapid current. It seemed like that there was no other way to give up the hope of paddling upstream to the spot where bones of Kennewick Man were discovered and starting the journey from there…



At night, Mark Blotz, General Manager from hotel CLOVER ISLAND INN, fed me a delicious dinner in the hotel.