The next two days were a series of exploration and improving our camp. We found nothing of the rest of the plane or any other debris from the crash. I guessed that the rest of the plane was below the cliff. Twice we had heard a plane engine and twice it never came close. We sent up our smoke signal and received no recognition. Our food would run out the next day, and our water supply had dwindled to two juice boxes.

We had been trading words, trying to improve our communication. Simple things like fire, water and I have to go pee were now understood without hand signals. We...