I'd met them 5 or 6 times over the past two years, they were a married couple a bit older than me (at this time I was 25) and they would be somewhere in their early to mid 30's, part of a group of friends that started coming to the Outdoor Pursuits company I worked for, first time as a combined stag/hen do for a weekend of adventure, and after that as a smaller group of hardcore funseekers (about 10) who wanted more of the same.
Over the visits they'd whittled down the activities that they wanted more of to three, climbing, caving and kayaking, pretty hardcore, although one or two would sometimes sit it out if we really pushed them hard, harder climbs, harder, sportier (wetter lol) caves, and bigger water for kayaking.
Simon and Trudie were fun, he was a bit of a joker, and she was quiet but would come out of her shell during apres-activity drinkies down the pub, "fraternising" with clients was a bit of a no-no usually, but with this group it was set from the start that they bought a meal and drinks for any instructors that had been with them that day, and the owners liked the return business, so they turned a blind eye.
One or two of the single ladies would be a bit flirty with the younger guys, some of them had been doing this sort of stuff for years and had the bodies to show for it, lean, muscled, I, however, was a bit of a late-starter to climbing etc so I wasn't as buff, I guess it saved me from too much unwanted attention.
Until one Saturday....
I got a call in the evening, and it was Simon. Swapping numbers with clients wasn't unusual, we'd call them with changes to the next days activities, or text them to remind them to bring spare clothes etc.... however, getting a call out of the blue was definitely a first.
Simon asked if I was free the following weekend for a private booking. I was a freelancer, meaning I could pick and choose who to work for, and when to work, but most of my work came through the one company, and I didn't want to piss them off, it was a large chunk of my annual earnings.
I decided to tell Simon this, random one-off bookings from unknowns was fine, but taking clients like this would be frowned upon.
He explained that they had something different planned, it wasn't a group booking, it was just him and Trudie, and they wanted to do something a lot less hardcore, Simon was a keen amateur photographer and they wanted to do some hiking with the chance to take some pics... then he dropped the bombshell!
"We want somewhere a little off the beaten track Mart, somewhere a little secluded" said Simon, explaining that they had got into taking pics of a more "personal" nature, and as they we going to be trying for a baby soon, Trudie wanted some "hot" pics to look back on, and as a target to aim for to get back in shape after.
Simon mentioned a possible location, I remembered giving the group a little history of an area we used for some of our activities, and I knew that a bit further up the valley there were trails that were little used.
I mentioned to Simon that they were capable of trekking on the trails on their own, but Simon said they would need someone to help carry the cameras and "other stuff", plus act as a lookout for some of the more "risqué" pics... my mind boggled!
Over the visits they'd whittled down the activities that they wanted more of to three, climbing, caving and kayaking, pretty hardcore, although one or two would sometimes sit it out if we really pushed them hard, harder climbs, harder, sportier (wetter lol) caves, and bigger water for kayaking.
Simon and Trudie were fun, he was a bit of a joker, and she was quiet but would come out of her shell during apres-activity drinkies down the pub, "fraternising" with clients was a bit of a no-no usually, but with this group it was set from the start that they bought a meal and drinks for any instructors that had been with them that day, and the owners liked the return business, so they turned a blind eye.
One or two of the single ladies would be a bit flirty with the younger guys, some of them had been doing this sort of stuff for years and had the bodies to show for it, lean, muscled, I, however, was a bit of a late-starter to climbing etc so I wasn't as buff, I guess it saved me from too much unwanted attention.
Until one Saturday....
I got a call in the evening, and it was Simon. Swapping numbers with clients wasn't unusual, we'd call them with changes to the next days activities, or text them to remind them to bring spare clothes etc.... however, getting a call out of the blue was definitely a first.
Simon asked if I was free the following weekend for a private booking. I was a freelancer, meaning I could pick and choose who to work for, and when to work, but most of my work came through the one company, and I didn't want to piss them off, it was a large chunk of my annual earnings.
I decided to tell Simon this, random one-off bookings from unknowns was fine, but taking clients like this would be frowned upon.
He explained that they had something different planned, it wasn't a group booking, it was just him and Trudie, and they wanted to do something a lot less hardcore, Simon was a keen amateur photographer and they wanted to do some hiking with the chance to take some pics... then he dropped the bombshell!
"We want somewhere a little off the beaten track Mart, somewhere a little secluded" said Simon, explaining that they had got into taking pics of a more "personal" nature, and as they we going to be trying for a baby soon, Trudie wanted some "hot" pics to look back on, and as a target to aim for to get back in shape after.
Simon mentioned a possible location, I remembered giving the group a little history of an area we used for some of our activities, and I knew that a bit further up the valley there were trails that were little used.
I mentioned to Simon that they were capable of trekking on the trails on their own, but Simon said they would need someone to help carry the cameras and "other stuff", plus act as a lookout for some of the more "risqué" pics... my mind boggled!