The Drone on the Cliff

Hilde had spent the whole afternoon filming the coastline. She wanted a short video of the white cliffs at sunset. Her small gray drone had been flying beautifully for an hour. The light was golden, and the sea was calm. She was watching the screen so closely that she forgot to check anything else.

Hilde menghabiskan seluruh sore itu untuk merekam garis pantai. Ia ingin membuat video pendek tentang tebing putih saat matahari terbenam. Drone abu-abu kecilnya sudah terbang dengan mulus selama satu jam. Cahayanya keemasan, dan lautnya tenang. Ia menatap layar dengan begitu serius sampai lupa memeriksa hal lain.

At twenty to seven, a warning flashed: "Low battery. Land now." It was far too late. The wind had pushed the drone out over the water, and the battery was already almost empty. Hilde tried to bring it back, but it dropped like a stone. On the screen, she saw rock and grass, and then the picture went black.

Pukul tujuh kurang dua puluh, sebuah peringatan berkedip: "Baterai lemah. Segera mendarat." Itu sudah jauh terlambat. Angin telah mendorong drone itu ke atas laut, dan baterainya sudah hampir habis. Hilde mencoba membawanya kembali, tetapi drone itu jatuh seperti batu. Di layar, ia melihat batu karang dan rumput, lalu gambarnya menjadi hitam.

She walked to the edge of the cliff and lay down on her stomach to look over. Twelve meters below, on a narrow ledge, the drone sat between two stones. Its red light was still blinking. It was not damaged, as far as she could tell. It was just completely out of reach.

Ia berjalan ke tepi tebing dan berbaring telungkup untuk melihat ke bawah. Dua belas meter di bawah, di sebuah tepian sempit, drone itu tergeletak di antara dua batu. Lampu merahnya masih berkedip. Sejauh yang bisa ia lihat, drone itu tidak rusak. Hanya saja benar-benar tak terjangkau.

Hilde sat back on the grass and thought about her options. She could try to climb down. A steep path of loose stones led toward the ledge, and she had climbed worse paths before. But she was alone, it was getting dark, and the sea was a long way below. Or she could leave the drone where it was and forget about it. That meant losing three hours of footage and an expensive machine.

Hilde duduk kembali di rumput dan memikirkan pilihannya. Ia bisa mencoba turun. Ada jalan setapak curam berbatu lepas yang menuju ke tepian itu, dan ia pernah melewati jalan yang lebih sulit. Tetapi ia sendirian, hari mulai gelap, dan laut berada jauh di bawah. Atau ia bisa meninggalkan drone itu di sana dan melupakannya. Itu berarti kehilangan rekaman tiga jam dan sebuah mesin yang mahal.

She looked at the path again. Her mind kept saying, "Just ten minutes." Then she remembered a sign at the car park, with a phone number and the words "Cliff problems? Call the rangers." A drone could be replaced. Her own ankle could not.

Ia menatap jalan setapak itu lagi. Pikirannya terus berkata, "Cuma sepuluh menit." Lalu ia teringat sebuah papan di tempat parkir, dengan nomor telepon dan tulisan "Ada masalah di tebing? Hubungi petugas." Drone bisa diganti. Pergelangan kakinya sendiri tidak.

The decision was easier than she expected. She stood up, stepped well away from the edge, and called the number. A ranger answered after three rings. She described the ledge, the wind and the time. "Please don't climb," he said at once. "We have ropes for this. The light is bad tonight, so we will come first thing in the morning."

Keputusan itu ternyata lebih mudah daripada yang ia kira. Ia berdiri, melangkah menjauh dari tepi tebing, dan menelepon nomor itu. Seorang petugas menjawab setelah tiga kali dering. Ia menjelaskan tentang tepian itu, anginnya, dan waktunya. "Tolong jangan memanjat," kata petugas itu seketika. "Kami punya tali untuk hal seperti ini. Cahayanya buruk malam ini, jadi kami akan datang pagi-pagi sekali."

At eight the next day, two rangers in orange jackets arrived with ropes and helmets. One of them walked backward over the edge, calm and slow. Ten minutes later, he was back on top with the drone in a bag.

Keesokan harinya pukul delapan, dua petugas berjaket oranye datang membawa tali dan helm. Salah satunya berjalan mundur melewati tepi tebing, tenang dan perlahan. Sepuluh menit kemudian, ia sudah kembali di atas dengan drone di dalam sebuah kantong.

"Good as new," he said, handing it to her.

"Seperti baru," katanya sambil menyerahkannya kepada Hilde.

"Thank you," Hilde said. "Next time, I will check the battery first."

"Terima kasih," kata Hilde. "Lain kali, saya akan memeriksa baterai lebih dulu."

"And next time," the ranger said with a smile, "you can put our number in your phone."

"Dan lain kali," kata petugas itu sambil tersenyum, "Anda bisa menyimpan nomor kami di ponsel Anda."