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shilo
May 13, 2003, 1:15 PM
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After a less then friendly encounder with a heard of freasians last week i thought post this and see what new encounters you lot have had with membersof the animal kingdom.
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daceilo
May 13, 2003, 1:58 PM
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I once had a run in with a nasty and persistent chipmunk! Man that bugger was a bastard! Would even run away with used tea bags if given the chance... and nothing deterred it either!
Laurence
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boris
May 13, 2003, 1:59 PM
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We once got mugged by a troop of baboons when we were going for a picnic at Cape point ZA- the buggers grabbed the lunch bag and cruised off up the hill trailing borrowed cutlery and serviettes as they went :D
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shilo
May 14, 2003, 11:09 AM
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no baboons or chipmonks in the UK, unless you go climbing in a zoo!!!
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dontfall
May 14, 2003, 12:43 PM
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I wasn't climbing for this one :cry: but I went hiking along the app. trail for a weekend. 8) We were setting up camp for the night when all of a sudden a nice little cub decided to come and think we would serve him dinner. :shock: He tried to swipe one of our bags full of food. Luckily one of the guys I was with was swift enough to throw rocks at him till he left. Luckily he didn't tell papa bear cause we never saw him again. :D
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vegastradguy
May 14, 2003, 5:23 PM
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we were descending off of Olive Oil a few months ago and ran across a herd of Bighorn Sheep. We sort of stopped and didnt move much. The guy at the back of our party (closest to the sheep) sort of inched his way toward us, since the bull didnt seem to happy.
It was pretty cool. They ended up crusing back up our descent path, but it was defintely a neat moment for all of us.
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jaylaka
May 14, 2003, 5:35 PM
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last weekend, i was climbing and reached into a dark area. i heard horrible noise and thought the boulder was falling. two pissed off looking pigeons came flying out at me. i think we scared the shit out of each other. :D
then last summer i was camping at a state park, came back to the campsite to find blood ALL OVER the big cooler. after surveying the area, and finding no bodies, i figured it must have been a squirrel risking life and limb for some food.
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allanange
May 14, 2003, 5:56 PM
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My friend and I were coming down from doing a route on baxter's pinnacle on the other side of Jenny lake and we were running late (my friend had to be at work). We were really moving and when we came around a corner we almost tripped over a moose that was bedded down. She didn't seem happy but we talked real sweet and backed away slowly.
No harm
Allan
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corpse
May 14, 2003, 7:19 PM
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I've wondered that.. What about down-right deadly animals (like the moose), or things like mountain lions n such... I thought about that a few times in jtree - what if ya come across a mtn lion?? They are faster and stronger then us - do u just act REAL still and hope for hte best.. Put your bag over your head to look bigger, or have your friend get on your shoulders and try to intimidate it (by looking bigger)? Crap in your pants hoping the stench will keep it away? Get out your rambo blade and prepare yourself?
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chris_nor_cal
May 14, 2003, 8:21 PM
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I often wonder about that. I went climbing out an Indian Joe Caves in Sunol and there is a pasture you have to walk through about a mile and a half uphill, the cows are MEAN! They followed us the whole way up the hill and even though we left a WIDE berth because there were babies and a bull, they still got pissed at us. I had to throw rocks up in the air and when the hit the ground they got scared and ran off. it was pretty scary. you'd think cows are happy, but they're pretty big and i woulnd't want to piss them off
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mtman
May 14, 2003, 8:23 PM
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when i lived in CA we used to have mountain lions in the hills behind the housing development. and they told us that is we saw a mountain lions to throw sticks and rocks at it and to never turn your back on it and never run or curl up and play dead. you are also to try and make your self as big as possible.
i never actually saw one up close but i have heard them scream at night, that was freaky
ya so good luck if you actually see one!!!
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psych
May 14, 2003, 8:39 PM
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We've had a few mountain lion encounters in my neck of the woods (none myself personally, but they're out in the hills and pick on dogs and children sometimes). I'm not sure if it's "the" way of dealing with them, but I think you're supposed to actually try to frighten them off. One incident had a mountain lion attack a small child, drag it from it's mothers side, the mother took on the mountain lion, punched it in the face and it bailed, leaving the child alive.
Rambo knife it is...then if you live you can tell your grandchildren how you used to wrastle the mountain lions...
Mike...
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allanange
May 14, 2003, 9:19 PM
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I think that we need more man eating predators. It would solve many problems. The predators would cull the herd so to speak. I think we need to strengthen our gene pool a little. It would also take care of the obesity problem in this country since the fat and slow ones would probably be the first to be eaten.
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sid_rock
May 14, 2003, 9:30 PM
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In reply to: I think that we need more man eating predators. It would solve many problems. The predators would cull the herd so to speak. I think we need to strengthen our gene pool a little. It would also take care of the obesity problem in this country since the fat and slow ones would probably be the first to be eaten.
That's a great idea, except for one minor problem. The fat people would be sitting in the safety of their homes watching TV and stuffing their faces with potato chips, while the lean rock-climbers would be out at the crags getting eaten by lions.
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fixxervi6
May 14, 2003, 9:37 PM
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that would suck, all us out door people would be potential food and the couch potatoes would rule the earth.
Not to mention you'd have some people trying to hunt them to extinction once they started snacking on a regular basis on hikers and campers.
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chris_nor_cal
May 14, 2003, 10:13 PM
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I would think its probably illegal. But i wonder if anyone carries or at least has with them a large caliber handgun while in the wilderness for life or death situations. mountain lions, bears etc... hmmm i can only imagine what the general population would think/do if they saw you shoot an animal.
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fixxervi6
May 14, 2003, 10:22 PM
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I've thought about carrying a gun.. for more than one reason, animals, and of course, people, you never know when your gonna come accross a bunch of people looking to rough you up or make you "squeal"
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cadaverchris
May 14, 2003, 10:41 PM
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IN the New river gorge this spring, i nearly punched a bat in the face trying to jam a crack on Fool Effect!!!! The thing was at eye-level, no more than 3 inches away from my face as i was clippin in my rope! - he was making little yawning faces.
i debated whether or not to tell my second ...... =)
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coldclimb
May 15, 2003, 12:20 AM
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I guess living in Alaska I naturally see more wildlife than a lot of people, but sometimes it still surprises me just how much more.
In reply to: I've wondered that.. What about down-right deadly animals (like the moose), or things like mountain lions n such... I thought about that a few times in jtree - what if ya come across a mtn lion?? They are faster and stronger then us - do u just act REAL still and hope for hte best.. Put your bag over your head to look bigger, or have your friend get on your shoulders and try to intimidate it (by looking bigger)? Crap in your pants hoping the stench will keep it away? Get out your rambo blade and prepare yourself?
I think it's really funny that a moose is being called a downright deadly animal, but hey, some people don't spend as much time around them as me. One fun thing to do with moose it to provoke them by getting as close as you can, and then climb like mad up the nearest tree and wait until they leave. This is by far the best approach when near a mad moose, because they can't climb worth a darn. And just so you know, moose are not vicious killers at all. They are big dumb stupid things, but they will attack you if you threaten their kids or piss them off. Usually they just leave. Just make sure you're close to a tree or an easy route. The mountain lions I can't help you with, having never seen one myself, but I do have some cool bear stories. ;)
Oh yeah, and ALWAYS carry your rambo knife, even if you never use it.
In reply to: I would think its probably illegal. But i wonder if anyone carries or at least has with them a large caliber handgun while in the wilderness for life or death situations. mountain lions, bears etc... hmmm i can only imagine what the general population would think/do if they saw you shoot an animal.
Around here, we usually file the front site off of the pistols before going outdoors. This is so that it doesn't hurt so much when the bear jams it down your throat.
Seriously though, those who care to survive the bear encounter carry a high-power rifle while in the wilderness. Pepper spray has saved lives, and I'm sure a handgun is better than nothing, but in the bear situations I have been in, I wouldn't have wanted either one of them in place of the rifle. Gotta have something with stopping power.
Never encountered anything more than mosquitos while climbing, but those things sure can get dangerous. I've almost thrown myself from the rock trying to kill the dumb things.
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jaylaka
May 15, 2003, 12:45 AM
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In reply to: I would think its probably illegal. But i wonder if anyone carries or at least has with them a large caliber handgun while in the wilderness for life or death situations. mountain lions, bears etc... hmmm i can only imagine what the general population would think/do if they saw you shoot an animal.
yeah, when i was hiking in yellowstone, the bright yellow "dinner bell" attached to my pack made me feel incredibly safe.
because, you know, should i have encountered a bear, i could have distracted him by dancing a jingle before making my getaway. who needs guns when you have bells?
:D
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coldclimb
May 15, 2003, 12:54 AM
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lol, yeah you've probably heard the old joke:
Q: How can you tell bear poop from other kinds on the trail?
A: It has a bunch of bells in it. :lol:
And in places like Kodiak, there's so many hunters that a gunshot is a dinner bell. The bears know that where there's a shot, there will be a gut pile, and so they litterally run right over mountains to get there first. I've been there, and believe me when I say that watching a bear run straight down a mountainside at you while you're carrying half of a bloody deer is more than slightly stimulating to the heart. And when it stopped across a small draw and my dad fired two shots right over its head, it didn't even move. Needless to say, we left most of the deer there and got back to camp almost walking backwards to make sure we weren't followed. When we went back the next day, there wasn't even blood on the ground. The bear had licked up every trace of the deer.
Not exactly climbing related, but I had to tell it. ;)
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kman
May 15, 2003, 2:18 AM
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In reply to: there's so many hunters that a gunshot is a dinner bell. The bears know that where there's a shot, there will be a gut pile, and so they litterally run right over mountains to get there first
That is absolutely true!
Oh...and never play dead with a black bear, if it gets a taste of you, you will be dinner. There are many many documented cases of humans being stalked and preyed upon by black bears. And all that talk you've heard about bears being endagered in the north west is absolute hooey.
I had a run in when I was 13 with a black bear cub. We were walking home and I heard a noise in the bush, so I looked over and saw the bear cub dart up the steep hill next to us. I looked to see where it was running too and there's mom standing tall up the hill. I have never run so fast in my life. Good thing we were close to the protection of home and that there was a very steep hill seperating the mother from us. A human doesn't stand a chance trying to out run a bear.
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exrunner
May 15, 2003, 3:55 AM
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In reply to: I've wondered that.. What about down-right deadly animals (like the moose), or things like mountain lions n such... I thought about that a few times in jtree - what if ya come across a mtn lion?? They are faster and stronger then us - do u just act REAL still and hope for hte best.. Put your bag over your head to look bigger, or have your friend get on your shoulders and try to intimidate it (by looking bigger)? Crap in your pants hoping the stench will keep it away? Get out your rambo blade and prepare yourself?
Actually, you can fight off mountain lioins. If you've ever read The Worst Case Scenario Survival Handbook it talks about it. The book says that if you are attacked that you should fight back and try and that an average person can fight one off. Not that you should go picking fights with mountain lions, that doesn't seem like a good idea. So don't be suing me if you get attacked by some crazed mountain lion. But still, its encouraging to know that you could fight one off.
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philbox
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May 15, 2003, 5:02 AM
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The close encounters I`ve had out in the wilds of Australia are as follows.
Koalas, Kangaroos, possums, Echidnas (spiney anteaters), Carpet snake (python), red belly black snake, brown snake, goanna (large monitor lizard), dirty great big spiders, giant ants (over an inch long), leaf tailed gecko, hawks, eagles, teeny weeny bats.
Then there`s the times when I`ve been snorkelling up on The Great Barrier Reef and had to take cover from reef sharks, played with deadly stone fish, ignored sea snakes, got stung by coral and had a rash for six weeks that hurt like blazes.
There`s lotsa things out there that can take yer out not just the big bities. Take for instance cone shells, innocent pretty looking things they are but they have one of the most deadly toxins known to man. If you get stung by one of those you will be dead within minutes. Then there are Irukanji jelly fish, tiny jelly fish that have long tendrils which wrap around limbs and chest and can kill by injecting their toxins and shocking the heart to stop by all the pain.
I still wouldn`t give up being in the outdoors for anything.
...Phil...
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corpse
May 15, 2003, 12:34 PM
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Lots of great animal stories.. My scariest animal encounter when I was a child and was climbing over my fence, my dog bit my knee to try to keep me in the yard. And being from the big city, it makes me "wonder" a bit more when I am in the wilderness areas... Good tips!
So what about the beArs? What techniques to fend them off? Throw a big steak over their head, grab a stick and play catch? If they can outrun you, climb up trees, and don't get taken down with rambo knives or mace, you seem to have a BIG problem.
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