Trouble on the trails - Let's hear your stories

I have had only one experience of this sort that spooked me. About 12 years ago I was motorcycle touring, and I stopped at a supermarket to grab something to make for dinner later when I camped for the night. This was in the Finger Lakes area of NY. Anyway, as I came out of the store, there were a couple of rough looking guys in an old truck eyeballing me. I thought nothing of it at the time.

About an hour later, I was setting up my camp at this little "unofficial" spot I knew about off an obscure dirt road that a hiking trail crossed (sweat spot with a small waterfall). The very same truck with the same two guys slowly rolled past, stopped for a minute watching me, and then moved on.

It could have been nothing, but that was much too great of a coincidence for me so I packed up and moved on to another place, a Nat'l Forest campground with some other people around.
 
All I can really add is this, based strictly on personal experience: the dog that's decided to bite you doesn't usually bark. If he does bark and you back away, he usually won't charge you. Of course if he does, you have some quick decisions to make.

The same goes for 2- or 4-legged critters. Usually.
 
I've never had anything but positive experiences. I'll tell one of those.

One time we were backpacking and it was getting toward evening. I kept wanting to stop but my wife wanted to keep going. We were on a trail we knew which was mostly rocks and we had already passed one of the 2 campsites.

It got totally black and we had to break out our Surfires and our headlamps cause there is not trail, only cairns thru rocks. It was hard not to get lost. Finally we could smell smoke and stumbled into the last campsite. These 2 guys said "your'e going no further!" we have a fire and you're staying here! It was cold. we warmed up and had a nice dinner and swapped some stories with them and crashed out.
 
Whack em with a stick as you go by.
Good luck trying to shoot someone when you're unconscious.
If they ain't a cop and they're within reach and openly carrying like that, down they go. I'm not giving the whackos a chance to decide to shoot me because they think they're above the law.

I am extremely offended by your flippant remarks; First Bigoted Anti-American and secondly very much British pussyness. ""eh wha' a yob, 'ad a gun.:eek: must be all bad you know, a;) wonking Yank yoob all wight." Yes, a stupid redneck, but no danger to you. Threating to scull bang people simply because they are armed is stupid and immature and will get you killed.

(( Back off. The point was already made and answered without your nationalist fervor tossed in. The personal attack wasn't cool, either. -- Esav Benyamin ))

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Geez...everyone hang on...we're going back downhill :rolleyes:

If only BF had a place where we could take our bickering and personal attacks to keep threads from getting locked...wouldn't that be cool?
 
Fox Creek said:
Whack em with a stick as you go by.
Good luck trying to shoot someone when you're unconscious.
If they ain't a cop and they're within reach and openly carrying like that, down they go. I'm not giving the whackos a chance to decide to shoot me because they think they're above the law.

I am extremely offended by your flippant remarks; First Bigoted Anti-American and secondly very much British pussyness. ""eh wha' a yob, 'ad a gun.:eek: must be all bad you know, a;) wonking Yank yoob all wight." Yes, a stupid redneck, but no danger to you. Threating to scull bang people simply because they are armed is stupid and immature and will get you killed.

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(( Quoting it just gives me something else to mark up. ))

Take it easy, bro. Or go to PM or email
 
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myright said:
We've actually got a problem similar to that in two of our parks down here. They are known places where gay men to go have some free love in the woods. It's a shame because they are nice parks.

I've never been approached, but my brother has while he was Mtn biking one time. He just kept on truckin' as I would have too.
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friend of mine works as a parks carekeeper. He made the mistake of leaving the headlights on once at night, which is taken as a signal for "Looking for a good time". He encountered what he described as "a very naked semi-muscular man with a very nice haircut" when he returned to his car.
 
I've never had a bad or even questionable encounter on the trail. Most people on the trail seem to be wary of me, rather than the other way around. I guess I look scary.
 
Getting it back on track...

I personally have never had a bad experience on trail. That's not to say I won't, but I do agree with others here that so much depends on what's between your ears and not what's on your hip. Eye contact, a firm tone, awareness of the environment all go a long, long way. I'll never understand folks who hike with an iPod on, oblivious to the world around them.

I have had some weirdness while fishing. A rather slick looking Latino fellow approached me on a small off-trail that descended to the river where I was fishing. Within about ten yards from me, he was blocking my only escape route besides the water. He began by asking, in a fairly heavy accent, if I had any friends, and his subsequent actions (he began massaging his crotch) made it clear he was soliciting a roll in the weeds. I made eye contact, turned so he could see the pistol on my hip, and made it clear I had all the friends I needed. He made his way back up the trail, and that was the last I saw of him.

Okay, maybe it does depend on what's on your hip... :p
 
Maybe bears are more serious problem than humans in Japanese mountains these days
but I've also heard about some troubles.
It's about the car left on the end of the road (which means the start of the trail).
Many of the hikers don't come back to the car until the end of the day
that a thief is watching these cars and looking for a chance.
 
The Song of the Little Hunter

Ere Mor the Peacock flutters, ere the Monkey People cry,
Ere Chil the Kite swoops down a furlong sheer,
Through the Jungle very softly flits a shadow and a sigh--
He is Fear, O Little Hunter, he is Fear!
Very softly down the glade runs a waiting, watching shade,
And the whisper spreads and widens far and near.
And the sweat is on thy brow, for he passes even now--
He is Fear, O Little Hunter, he is Fear!

Ere the moon has climbed the mountain, ere the rocks are ribbed with light,
When the downward-dipping trails are dank and drear,
Comes a breathing hard behind thee--snuffle-snuffle through the night--
It is Fear, O Little Hunter it is Fear,
On thy knees and draw the bow; bid the shrilling arrow go;
In the empty, mocking thicket plunge the spear!
But thy hands are loosed and weak, and the blood has left thy cheek--
It is Fear, O Little Hunter, it is Fear!

When the heat-cloud sucks the tempest, when the slivered pine-trees fall,
When the blinding, blaring rain-squalls lash and veer,
Through the war-gongs of the thunder rings a voice more loud than all--
It is Fear, O Little Hunter, it is Fear!
Now the spates are banked and deep; now the footless boulders leap--
Now the lightning shows each littlest leaf--rib clear--
But thy throat is shut and dried, and thy heart against thy side
Hammers: Fear, O Little Hunter--this is Fear!

-- Rudyard Kipling
 
stabman said:
Whack em with a stick as you go by.;)
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Between the above post and your forum name, I hope I never run across you on the trail :eek:

hollowdweller said:
I've never had anything but positive experiences. I'll tell one of those.
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Hey watch the thread drift :D
I've actually become good friends with someone I met in the woods last summer.


Guyon, you sure that guy wasn't just after your biscuits, you know all that flaky goodness :p
 
The world needs more lerts.

I was in Van Cortlandt Park one day, an extensive New York City park on the north edge of the city, and I had entered off Gun Hill Road alongside the golf course. I continued along the ridge by the fence instead of my usual path through the low ground and its bushes.

Then I noticed over a dozen young teens in woodland camo -- as I was! -- were slipping through those bushes, on some sort of tactical exercise. Three adults at the far end of the field seemed to be critiquing the exercise, checking off something on clipboards.

I wasn't particularly worried, we were near the roads and housing, but I decided to stay out of sight. So following the ridge I continued, moving slowly and stopping behind each large tree, until I was past the HQ adults.

No one had seen me. I went on my way, down the hill, and out of the wooded area. No one ever looked up.

Be alert!
 
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