Pissing in a radiator. It was a magnificent day on the Big Hole River and the float trip could not have gone better. The rules of the river including raft etiquette were in firm place when it came to beer cans and litter. The fishing was not the best but the beer was as we used a raft cooler as big as a coffin. The raft held the six of us explorers just fine as we floated, drank and spent a day laughing. My brother Kevin and I took his Blazer as the lead car and carried the needed supplies. The sandwiches with us reflected good intentions for beer was breakfast in the Big Sky. Morning services were held in each saloon if it shared any co-ordinates with the river. Our lives were to see only what was in front of us not hardships or failure of liver. The river trip ended as we broke down the raft and we made our plans for the night. It all came down to how we would feel back in Butte if bar drinks would fuel the flight. We climbed back into the vehicles sun burned and satisfied and surely feeling no pain. We started headed toward the Wise River Club then what happened is hard to explain. My brother got false courage and the fire to explore the Great Divide on the way home. Within a matter of minutes the Blazer was headed on a path a goat would never roam. The Blazer took a bump and for a bit we seemed to be moving at a 45 angle degree, We came to rest steam blasting out of the hood resting against the trunk of a tree. After some of my more harrowing experiences in my drinking years I kept only one motto. No matter what happens as long as I am still in Montana it’s a jam I can get out of. There was no such thing as a cell phone and where we were wrecked not even a field shed. When we got out of the Blazer to survey the damage, I wanted to punch my brother in the head. We had a cracked radiator and to add to the fun a rock had puncture a hole in the gas tank. A half tank of fuel running down the middle of this path so I made sure to Kev I said “Thanks” I have to give my brother credit for without pause he made a plug with his shirt and a stick. Our next problem was a draining radiator and no source of water, not even a trickling crick. We had the cooler that was holding some water so we poured it in after using some JB Weld. By the time the water circulated around the block we were all amazed that the patch still held. We were still short of the coolant we needed to get back to the Mining City with no overheating. I looked at my brother whose mind was conceiving a fix to his vehicle and avoiding a beating. We had the idea we would get back to Butte and then an emergency motor flush would be done. It was then we decided it would be best to filter the beer through our bodies while having a little fun. The patch in the gas tank held quite well while we drank the beer and collected natures coolant. We made it to the Wise River Club running on piss and beer and for work not one of us was truant.
Posted on: Mon, 15 Jul 2013 16:32:41 +0000