Did that just happen?

Joezilla

Joezilla

Moderator- Wilderness and Survival Skills
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Many stay in tree stands and see interesting things happen. Some, maybe on a fishing trip, others, in the middle of new york on the street.

Ever have a moment where you went "did that just happen?"

I can think of a few off the top of my head.

While reeling in a good size bass in Fla, an ornery alligator came in out of no wear and ate it, snapping the line.

Walking to the dorms one day back in college, a red tailed hawk came and swooped down to pick up a squirrel. In the middle of the quads not 20 feet from a group of sorority girls.



Can you think of some moments along that line? Doesn't have to do with animals or nature at all, but it could make a neat story.
 
I had something interesting happen a few years ago. I was sitting in a tree stand during rifle season (whitetail) around dawn. A huge shape swooped by (scared the crap out of me) and landed on the ground about 40 yards away. I lifted the binocs and it turned out to be a great horned owl, which was sitting on the ground happily tearing some chunks off of a dead turkey. While I was watching it, I saw something moving out of the corner of my eye and turned to look. It was a bobcat moving quickly (but very quietly) towards the owl and turkey. The owl saw it and took off in a hurry! The bobcat grabbed the dead turkey and promptly drug it away further into the woods. Quite a way to start the day!
 
We were crabbing once when I was maybe 12 in the South Louisianna marshes using string and chicken necks and dip nets. I was laying on a barge pulling up a really tight line with my mom manning the dipnet standing over me. Slowly I pulled up a gator, and bolted, easily breaking the line. My mom and I had to change our shorts.
 
I was wading in chest deep water off a beach in St Croix when a monster pelican hit the water about 10 ' in front of me and came up with a fish. Scared the crap out of me! A local said it wasnt that uncommon because you spook the fish and the pelican just hangs up there waiting for an opportunity.KV
 
When I was doing a photo shoot for Bayliner, I saw an albino Bald Eagle just inside Deception Pass. We were totally set up for a running shot with no way to get a pic of the bird. I am still sick about that today.

That's the one that sticks out, but I have a few cool moments after handling troubled canines, endangered raptors and years of herpetile handling.
 
Once I was about 15 or so and fishing a creek bank about 3-4ft higher than the water with feet dangling down , enjoy'n the fresh air and summer breeze,fishing for whatever is biting ,blue gills to Catfish....Ok, fish on and reeling the little pan fish in and before I could get him up the bank,Bam line got heavier and the fight was on again....Hmmm something is not right,So I continue on reeling in hoping my zebco 33 and 10lbs line would hold,there it was and nice size Blue gill and attachted to his side was a 4-6ft water mossican ,dark brownish black had been sitting under me the whole time enjoying the day as well... :eek:
 
cool thread. I was maybe eleven and me and a freind were paddling a small john boat around a creek catching baby turtles with a dip net. It happened that I was at the rear and he was at the front and we were facing each other talking when a Mullet (fish) jumped completely over the boat, flying directly between us. We both just sat there stunned and we reckoned that noone would believe us.... and of course they didn't. but me and Tracy know the truth....

Hey what about a twofur. I work at a trucking terminal and one day when loading freight a hummingbird lit on my shoulder. I just stared at it hardly daring to breathe and after a couple minutes it took off for parts unknown. luckily I had respectable witnesses this time.

later gdwtvb
 
Just two days ago I was walking our back wooded lot looking for some kindling and I saw a red tail hawk flapping around on the forest floor. Then I saw a squirrel fall on top of it. Then another squirrel fell on top of it. The hawk was trying its best to get up but when ever it did a squirrel would run part of the way up a tree and launch itself onto the hawk.

The hawk eventually got away and flew in a weird exhausted kind of way to a limb about 50 feet away. That is when I noticed the baby squirrel still squirming in its talons.

That was the most wild squirrel behavior I have ever witnessed.
 
During a zoo visit I was holding a hot dog when I was hit hard on the back of my left shoulder and saw a flash of white. A seagull had snagged the hot dog and left me staring at the empty bun asking myself "did that just happen?"
 
While hiking in a state forest we saw a deer come across the path with moss tangled in his antlers. There was so much moss on his head we named him "Elvis". (of course I forgot the camera)

My wife and iI were snorkling on St. Johns among a large school of fish when the pelicans started diving in around us. You could see them grabbing fish under the water. We were afraid that we were going to get bombed by one of them.
 
I was using a homemeade turkey decoy , made from plywood, stuck in the ground with a stake. A coyote heard my calls and came to investigate. He snuck up on the decoy then pounced. The decoy got knocked flat to the ground. The coyote stood there quickly turning his head trying to figure out where that turkey went.
 
I was dropping off a pt at the hospital, and While I was straightining up the truck, a psych patient did a header out of the 4th story window and landed on his head not 10 ft from me. I nearly crapped my pants.

I had a freind who was unloading groceries from her car and after the first trip inside, a driver missed the curve and hit the ditch, flipping his car on top of her car. She was standing about 25 yards away on her way back for the second trip of groceries.

I coded a guy once who was talking to me, died, and I shocked him back all within a matter of 15 seconds. When he came back up, he finished the sentance he was saying right before he croaked. Then told me his chest pain was gone. I bout pissed.

I pt who had no pulse you could feel, looked dead, and was laying flat on the ground. When my partner went to intabate, she grabbed his hand and said "dont do that".
Turns out she had a AAA and was just so thready, you couldnt feel a pulse....Well when she sat up, it ruptured and she bled out and died. Weird call.

I have more, but I will stop now.
 
I was fishing one time with a pair of sandles on and felt something on my foot. I looked down and there was a 5'+ black snake moving over my foot. I have no idea how I didn't move, but I froze in place and he went along his merry way.
 
Once fishing in a small Midwestern farm pond, I was bagging giant bluegill left and right. I mean really getting them. But the number of fish on the stringer never seemed to increase. Pulled up the stringer one time and there was a half of a fish on there! Pulled it up the next time and saw the culprit, a giant snapping turtle that was the size of a wash tub. :D

Several times I've seen trees fall over in the forest. Nothing else going on, no one else around, the trees simply fell over...

One tree to "fall" for no reason was in the forest near Santa Fe, a giant dead aspen less than five feet away from where I was standing (I was recording and photographing historic markings on the tree). The noise was like a cracking explosion! Scared the hell out of me.

Followed some very fresh deer tracks once in a series of historic gold mine tailing piles. The tracks went off the edge of one pile, and I looked over to see the deer laying dead at the base of an aspen tree. Seems I had 'chased' him over the edge and he hit the tree. :(

Saw a copperhead snake who was 'fishing' in a small clear pool. His head was above water, and he anchored himself in place with his tail. He was watching a group of fish very closely...

Found a six-foot "chicken snake" in my attic once. Not really an outdoors experience, but given the condition and location of the house, it was very much like camping out. :)

In Arkansas on the shore of Boggy Creek, home of the Fouk Monster, there was a lot of rustling noise in a swampy area on the other side of the creek. A coyote ran out of the woods, jumped in the creek and swam across towards me. It climbed out of the creek, ran right past me, and kept going! I can only assume the Fouk Monster had frightened it. :D
FYI, there was a 70s horror movie about the Fouk Monster, The Legend of Boggy Creek.


In the same area, a rabbit in the woods ran right up to my feet, turned, and ran away. It repeated this several times. I suspect it's den was nearby and was trying to lure me away.

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My strangest night camping ever was a couple of years ago in a New Mexico National Forest. I had set up camp on a hilltop overlooking a ghost town logging camp and cemetery. The area had burned a couple years before and the entire surrounding area was standing dead trees. It was also Elk mating season...

In the night the temperature plummeted and the wind started screaming through the dead trees. Trees started snapping and falling all around, one after the other like a continuous noise, all the while dozens of nearby elk were bugling their heads off. Didn't get much sleep that night... And woke to find the ground covered in snow, and a newly-fallen tree right next to my tent.
 
J Williams will appreciate this:

I worked in the ER as a guard, one night the Mental Health car (Police/Nurse + ambulance) came in with a rather large angry male. He was strapped to the gurney with leather restraints, and was fighting HARD. There was 6 burely officers holding him down. ER Doc administered IM Haldol several doses and we put the male into the seculsion room , strapped to a large hospital bed (about 600lbs) with leather leg arm restraints. The door is steel with oak core, and the door frame was steel and heavily reinforced.

as the haldol took effect ont eh male, he quited down. Or so we though. he managed to flip the bed, break the restraints and then proceeded to ram the bed into the door, bulging it outwards. the 6 police went in with us and he smoked one with the 02 bottle under the bed.

poor planning by the ER staff, no one checked to see if there was anything in the bed that could be used as a weopan, poor response by ER staff, and not enough haldol to chemically sedate the paitent.

ah the wonders of cocaine and steriod phychosis
 
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