SOS
Then we did something that we should never have done. Hap and Anders tramped a large SOS in the snow. Each letter must have measured about three by four metres.
They also spread the large orange tarp out on the snow below the SOS sign.
I am not sure we really thought of the consequences of what we were
doing. When we were finished we headed for the cabin to
rest.
It was not much more than an hour later when we heard a small plane
overhead. We all cheered.
“Wow, that is action,” Hap said.
We ran outside just in time to see a small yellow Piper Cub come in
low over the lake. The pilot didn’t use the runway.
We ran down to meet the plane as it pulled up by the shoreline.
The pilot let the engine idle and hopped out.
“Has there been an accident?” were his first words.
“Oh no,” Anders said cheerfully, “but my younger brother and
I need to get out.”
“What’s the emergency?” the pilot said questioningly.
“No, no,” Anders continued, “we just couldn’t make it out
on skis.”
The pilot’s worried expression turned to one of annoyance.
In fact, he got really mad.
“Do you guys know what an SOS signifies?” He didn’t even wait for an answer before continuing. “This can cost you dearly. A Canadian Forces plane spotted your SOS and radioed headquarters. They sent an alert out. A number of us heard it but I was closest and responded. And now you tell me there is NO emergency, that it’s just two guys who can’t get out on skis!”
He was almost shouting by now.
The four of us stood there looking very sheepish. There
was not much we could do. We apologized, but I’m not
sure that the pilot was very receptive. We invited him
in for a cup of tea but he declined. Anders asked him
to call Gareh at Lakeland Airways and tell him there were two people who
wanted to be flown out.
The pilot got back in his plane. We were somewhat shaken as we stood watching him taxi out on the lake. He revved up the engine but the plane seemed to labour as it moved through the snow. I got nervous. ‘Was he going to get stuck now?’
The plane made a big arc and came back up the lake, still not rising up on top of the snow. He made about three passes and then stopped. I ran out to the plane. The pilot had opened his window. I tried to be calm and pointed out the runway. For some reason he had not tried to use it. The pilot was visibly frustrated and just nodded. He probably felt silly not being able to take off.
I walked back and the pilot revved up the engine again. This
time he headed for the runway. The plane laboured
getting there but then rose up as the skis hit the hard-packed snow.
Now the plane picked up speed and in no time was in the air.
I let out a deep sigh of relief.
When I got back, the others had erased the SOS sign and removed the
orange tarp.
“Well, at least it is nice to know that an SOS works,” Anders tried to joke.