Aki and I returned home wet from the moraine. I was tired. Aki was not. She trotted over the top of snow that was too soft to support me. We were heading toward the river on a little used trail. With each step my legs plunged mid-calf through the covering snow. 

            I should have returned to the well-packed trail to circle Moose Lake. But I thought if I pushed on, we would be rewarded by one of those wilderness experiences that given to those who paddle or hike beyond the edge of nowhere. Maybe a wolf will appear out of the snow or we will spot a pair of tundra swans resting on a river eddy. At a minimum, there should be eagles. 

            The trail deteriorated as we neared the river. Aki, who seemed to float over the snow crust would charge ahead to check out scents or tracks and run back to check on me. With such encouragement I made it to the river. No wolf turned to look at us. No swans or even ducks floated on the river eddy. Clouds covered Mt. McGinnis. There were no eagles.