Scariest Moment in the Woods?

**ninjahamockman** · 03-12-2016, 19:27

I got lost in the wilderness that was scary

**ninjahamockman** · 03-12-2016, 19:28

Originally Posted by Doctari

My latest "scary moment" was last year, mid may in VA on the AT. I woke up to someone sniffing near my head,,, Opened one eye, yelled "NO, GO AWAY!!!" heard a few rapid steps of something without hooves & I muttered, "It's my stuff" & went back to sleep.
I had my food safely hung,,,,, from the foot end of my hammock.
Best I can figure, it was a young Bear. As I was on rocks, no foot prints in the AM, so,,,,,,
3 days later (just N of McAfee knob) saw my first Wild bear. Last night on trail, had a VERY heavy rock (my guess around 65 Lbs) overturned as I slept 10' from it, I never heard a thing. Again, my food safely hung in it's usual spot. Groundlings, about 15' up the hill from me also had there food as safe as mine, heard nothing!
So, that's my tale, a tale of 3 bears.
On reflection, I didn't get scared at all. WOW, I'm weird!!!

That would have made me crap my pan5s because when there's a cub there is a mom.

**BackpackingDude** · 03-14-2016, 12:11

My first backpacking trip was with a church group from the Upper Peninsula. We went out to the Grand Tetons (Jackson Hole was our "base city") and went out into the mountains for around 10 days. This all happened within 12 hours of each other - first, while hiking from a ridge to our next campsite in a valley, a sudden squall dumped rain and hail on us. I was hiking shirtless, and all of us went into turtle mode trying to protect ourselves as best possible. Definitely a scary feeling, being at the mercy of the storm, and not being able to do a lick about it. The second happened that night... out there, each established campsite has a bear box (basically a huge steel box with a clasp/toggle for your smellables), at some point in the night, I awoke to a pounding on the box. Not sure if it was a bruin or what, but it was loud, and the intensity of the banging was that of something that wanted our stuff... Later that night, after hearing the pounding on the box, something was roaming through our campsite. There was 12 of us high school aged hikers (3 - 4 person tents filled with teens), and 3 "experienced" guides... something was out in the camp walking heavily and smelling around our tents. The other three guys and I instantly came full awake and grabbed our knives and started making noise. Whatever it was went away, and we were able to "sleep".

The next morning, after quiet reflection, we came to the determination that there was no way it could've been a bruin, and that it had to have been on of our guides... so we (me and other guys from my tent) went over to the suspect's tent and very quickly removed all structural support and brought his tent down on him... he had quite the wake up

...

Was it a bear? Who knows. Was it our guide? Again, no one may ever know - he definitely tried to say it wasn't him

... To this day, and my hiking buddies will attest, I'm overly-anal about making sure ANYTHING with odor is hung in a bear bag - at least 100 yd from camp. Overly cautious? Maybe. But being the father of 5 kids, and a wife who just last summer started to get the camping "itch", I'm trying to teach good habits and keep everyone safe. That night certainly helps fuel my OCD...

**Cnoon** · 05-27-2016, 18:27

About 10 yrs ago I was camping on the Potomac with 2 buddies.

One night after we finished fishing ( and some drinking ) we were walking back to camp. I had one side of the cooler and my rods with 1 of my friends holding onto the other side and his rods. The third guy was walking behind with the lantern.

Suddenly I hear my buddy with the lantern yell "snake"! I turn around and it's coming at me. So I take off running, throwing my rods to the side, and about ripping my friends arm off when I drop the cooler. As I look back this thing is on my heels, keeping up with every step. While looking back I trip on the path and I'm laying there screaming, freaking out.

Then I hear the laughter as the light is back on me. I look down and there was fishing line wrapped around my ankle with the scariest leaf ever attached to it.

Never lived down "The Killer Leaf Story".

**AtHomeDad** · 05-30-2016, 16:18

I've had a few. . . Out camping with cub scouts a number of years ago, we had some storms come in. Nothing forcasted other than light showers, but in the middle of the night, I was quickly dropped and then snapped into the air as the trees that I was attached violently swung in the wind. Got out to find rain coming down in a deluge (I think I hears somone calling "All Abord, Two by Two!") got the kids into some shelter. As things settled down went back to bed. About an hour later hear a blood curling scream, like somone woke up to find their arm severed from their body. Jumped out and right thorugh the side of my tarp to find the problem. . . a little boy crying "There's a daddy long legs in the bathroom!" I think it took two weeks for my pulse to slow. Found out the next morning that there were multiple tornadoes that touched down all around where we were, no sirens or warnings 4 killed about 8 miles away. I haven't slept the same again in a hammock. (3 hours is now a good night camping).

Another time felt a raccoon rubbing against the bottom of my hammock. Figured I'd turn on a light and yell "Hey" to scare him away. . . He just left out the most meniacal of snarles. . . Turn off light. . . Wait for teeth marks.

Woke up another night and was nose to nose with a whitetail deer checking me out. He had bad breath. I probably did too.

I love camping and hammocks have made it possible given my very bad back, but I haven't slept well since the tornadoes.

I have 32 days scheduled with the scouts this summer in bear country. Maybe I'll find a way to sleep.

"If they call it beauty sleep, why do I wake up so dog assed ugly!"

**g2outdoors** · 05-30-2016, 16:46

My scariest moment? I was on a 10 day elk hunting/hammock trip and I woke up on day 4 thinking it was time to go home. Talk about scary...

**g2outdoors** · 05-30-2016, 16:47

Premature evacuation.

**Hugh Morris** · 05-30-2016, 19:56

I have woken up to a deer sniffing around my hammock before, and that was plenty startling. Thankful to say that's my scariest experience; the tornado sounds terrifying!!!

**Doctari** · 05-30-2016, 20:54

Originally Posted by ninjahamockman

That would have made me crap my pan5s because when there's a cub there is a mom.

Nah, I barely woke up to being sniffed! Slept through the rock being moved, was "walking on air" for about 2 hrs after seeing my first wild bear,. :-)

Not a bear encounter as such, but the one time I've actually been frightened on the trail: Late 90s, walking in the Smokies on the Cucumber ridge trail, saw a small bear footprint in a stream, bear gone about 45 seconds, no biggie. about 1 hr later, I was on the Little river trail, got to a GREAT overlook of the little river. I stood on the very edge of the trail (actually a gravel service road) & looked for a good 10 minutes. just as I was going to turn & continue my hike, a Grouse, that was at my feet, literally 4 to 6" from me, BLEW UP & flew across the river, OK, I will admit to being somewhat on edge from the bear seeing me, I jumped, turned & started to run, while still in the air. Pulse went to at least 200. What a RUSH!!! Made my day. So, I guess that , in fact I was scared by a bear, a bear that was at least a mile away from me. LOL

**SilvrSurfr** · 05-30-2016, 21:36

I'm sitting in my office today, and I found a hornet crawling up my leg and he's heading north rapidly. I'm a courteous guy, so I walked him outside, hoping he didn't reach my face by the time I got him outside. Once outside, he flew off. Crisis averted!