Wild Bird

Wren spends the first couple of days at camp crying, sleeping, and feeling sick. By the third day, she runs out of water and dry rations completely; Michelle has refilled Wren’s canteen once but refuses to do so a second time, telling her that she needs to learn how to find local water. In the afternoon, Dvorka comes to Wren’s tent and offers her a sip of water, advising her to put her anger away and come learn to find water; Wren finally gives in.

Dvorka and Wren walk miles away and up to a ridge, and Dvorka compliments Wren on her willfulness—the first time anyone has ever done this. Dvorka helps Wren divine a water source by reading the directions and the surrounding flora. Wren figures out that the nearby north-facing canyon and the line of cottonwood trees next to a dry riverbed indicates an area where the recent rainfall has seeped underground.

Wren and Dvorka find a pool of water amongst the rocks near the riverbed. They drink from it using plastic tubing like a straw. Dvorak breaks out canned peaches, crackers, and peanut butter in celebration of Wren’s first water discovery. Afterward, they dig holes in the riverbed to find more water, and Dvorka shows Wren how to collect it in her billypot, filter it through her bandanna, and treat it with purification tablets.