Kusawa Lake dinner, courtesy of Wild Kingdom

So as mentioned before, my sister and I drove and camped here, at Kusawa Lake:



On our way we had to stop and let these guys cross the road (about 100 elk):



We didn't let the dog out of the truck to go hunt one, but once we got to the campsite we were too busy cooking dinner and setting up the tent to notice that the dog was indulging in his now-fevered bloodlust, until he marched up to us proudly with this little thing held delicately in his jaws:



We've been told ruffed grouse are tastier, but spruce grouse aren't BAD:



Why, look at all the fruit it was eating! How can that make for anything but tasty, tasty meat?



The dog is impressed with his mistress' handiwork, considering all she had was her river knife, and nature's boner (don't tell me it should be "de-boner").



Surely Julia Child would have preferred we used butter:



But it was quite delicious cooked simply in olive oil, salt and pepper. (Yes, we gave some to the hunter.) Thanks, little grouse, and I hope the dog ended your life swiftly and mercifully.



The next day, we rewarded the hunter with a whitewater paddle, which he enjoyed in his usual regal manner:



Here's more of the pretty river:



I could post more pictures and I will, except that I don't want to blow your mind with the beauty by giving you too much at once. Plus, I've had a total of about 6 hours of sleep in the last 48 hours. My friend Mike tells me that after something like 72 hours of sleep deprivation, soldiers don't take orders anymore. You can even hold a gun to their head and they'll just gratefully take the bullet. I'm not that close, but I have got to put this body to bed now.