Wow it's been a while since I've updated this. Read my story about my last night shift!
It was actually kind of a cool night. There is a film crew in camp to take some shots to update our website movie and they have all sorts of high tech gear. They came out at night with chris and martin to film the night drilling at around 10pm. The set up and film some shots of me logging core with my stupid headlamp and earmuffs on. There was a really awesome aurora while the were filming too. They finished up and when they left, I was talking with chris and martin and got the go ahead to shut down the hole in a few runs. They said they would call one of the guys to bring the boat over so I could come back early. Then martin asked me "You've been in the boat at dark?" and I told him I'd been in boats at dark, but not on this lake. I reminded him it was almost a full moon (waning) and we went ahead with the plan.
So at the end of the night, I took the survey tool and my backpack and went down to find the boat (they said they'd leave it at the old dock). I walked out from the drill and realised I'd forgotten my headlamp. I kept going anyways, and made it to the bottom of the hill. I got to a split in the road before I realised I didn't really know how to get to the old dock, I'd only really taken the new dock. I got to a T in the road, and I (wisely) took off my back and put down the survey tool to scout. At a fork in the road, I just walked straight ahead, right off into the bush towards the lake. I walked up to the lake, but it was getting pretty wet, and there was no nice beach I could poke my head out and look for the dock from. I was in thick bush trying to walk up the beach navigating dead trees, stumps, moss and water holes. I was getting a little worried out lost in the dark when I heard a noise. I listened closely, and I heard it again. Of course, all sorts of thoughts went through my head like bird, then bear, but I realized it was the high pitch squeal of the boat rubbing against the dock in gentle waves. I listened a bit more to make sure it wasn't just two trees rubbing together, and then started following it. I walked the the bush checking the shore every once in a while for about 300m, avoiding water holes as I went. I realised I was getting close to one of the drill's pumps, and the motor was running, but I could still hear the sound so I followed it. Finally, I made it to the dock (it really is old, and a little fucked up and slanted), saw the boat, an ATV and a generator; I was back on the damn road. I walked back down the road (It was the right bend), grabbed my gear and loaded up the boat.
When I got into the boat, I noticed I'd never been in it before and I had never started that engine. a white Johnson 15 horse 4-stroke sticking up out of the water. It took me two minutes to figure out how to put it in the water (almost lost a finger), and then another two to start it up. I threw on a life jacket. I pushed myslef straight with the paddle and noticed it was super shallow. I untied, pushed out, and floated out into the dark. The moon did help a bit on the lake, but zinc Island was invisible. You need to see that island to navigate back because there are reefs in the lake. I went up the shore for a bit, thought I saw a brown shape, and just went for it right into the lake crossing my fingers. Just before I got to it, I saw that I was passing zinc island: I was going the right direction. I pulled up to camp, noticed there was a boat already on the dock (the one I'd used before damn it), so I pulled her up to the second dock. It took me two minutes to figure out where the kill button was, but I did and unloaded the survey tool and my bag.
It's really beautiful outside, a nice night for a boat ride (minus the wind).