When he'd arranged for the canoes Draelin had also made arrangements for plenty of other things to be delivered with them, so as Qawasha inspects the canoes he checks the bags to make sure his purchases were there (as well as packing away the things he'd brought with him) - several were filled by tent parts (if asked, Draelin explains that they have four two-person tents, two in each canoe, although he's leaving the arrangements of who sleeps where to the others to figure out amongst themselves), while others were filled with rations (more than they probably needed, particularly if they can supplement their diet from the jungle, but when it came to food Draelin wanted to be better safe than sorry) and oil flasks for lanterns and other potential uses, and various tools and odds and ends were scattered across both canoes. In the end, he seems satisfied that it was all there, and takes his position in the front of the lead canoe - at this point, his excitement at finally setting off is almost palpatable.

Draelin stays in high spirits through the canoe journey, constantly keeping a watch on the shorelines they pass, not wanting to miss any of it. Even the brief monsoon and the need to bail out the canoes not even seeming to make much of a dent in it. Once the storm passes and the canoes are sufficiently cleared of water, he returns to his previous lookout, soon noticing something that causes him to look back at Qawasha and check if he's seen it too and if he has anything to say about the topic.

Once they stop for the day, Draelin asks one of the stronger party members for help carrying the tents over and then set about putting them up. The music catches his atttention though, and he looks at Qawasha again. "Any idea if they're more of those masked little people we saw from the boats, or if they're other travelers? If the former, any chance they're friendly? Those masks don't fill me with confidence that they will be, but maybe it means something different to them."