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Main Boards => General Walking Discussion => Topic started by: gunwharfman on 21:02:32, 12/10/20

Title: Any weird, wacky and/or amusing moments when hiking?
Post by: gunwharfman on 21:02:32, 12/10/20
I was once so embarressed when walking the Pennine Way a few years ago. I stopped to sit on a rock (going south) to eat my sandwiches when a young woman (going north) in her 20s appeared and started to chat to me. She then decided to stay and eat her food as well. At one point she said that she was hot, so stood up and just stripped off to her bra and knickers in front of me. She then rummaged through her rucksack, threw stuff out on the grass and then found some clothes and got dressed again. She never batted an eyelid, was not self conscious of me being there at all and didn't express a word about it, so neither did I. Those few minutes scared me silly, I was glad to move on! As I strolled on I did have to smile, I just couldn't help it, for me a really wacky few minutes.  :-[
Title: Re: Any weird, wacky and/or amusing moments when hiking?
Post by: veracocha on 21:22:26, 12/10/20
This Saturday just gone I went up Place Fell with my wife and I developed stomach cramps trying to keep a fart in waiting for a private moment of release. It never came until we reached the trig point where a small crowd were hanging around the stone. Whilst taking a photo of the wife touching the stone I was far enough away that the noise wouldn't register. As I let go the breeze did the rest and the entire pack were browned as they say. There were several sideways looks as they tried to fathom which one of them was to blame. Childish indeed but I found it funny.
Title: Re: Any weird, wacky and/or amusing moments when hiking?
Post by: Bigfoot_Mike on 21:26:07, 12/10/20
Skye 1983. My friend and I were camping near the water before catching the ferry to Mallaig. We put the tent down in record time due to a vicious attack by midges. We then started walking and saw a German camper cooking breakfast outside his tent. There was a sudden scream from within his tent followed by a topless wife / girlfriend sprinting out of the tent having just discovered midges for herself. Being British we managed to contain our laughter and walk on.
Title: Re: Any weird, wacky and/or amusing moments when hiking?
Post by: Birdman on 10:14:49, 13/10/20
Meeting weird/ interesting people while hiking is a categorie on its own (http://walkingforum.co.uk/Smileys/alive/grin.gif) . While hiking the PCT in Southern California and taking a break at one of the few spots with shade and a river in the desert, I met a morbidly obese transsexual woman (former man) who claimed to be hiking the PCT too. She was carrying a massive backpack but hardly any food (though I guess she could survive for months on her body fat) but se WAS carrying lots of unnecessary stuff like a heavy wind-up radio and a massive 20 Watt solar panel. We had a good chat for 30 minutes which was really interesting and fun, but then I really needed to move on. Never saw her again, but I wasn't too worried because it was at a water source (river) and not too far from road access so she could easily bail out (which I presume she would do very soon), although another PCT-hiker died just a mile from there a year earlier, presumably from heat exposure.
Title: Re: Any weird, wacky and/or amusing moments when hiking?
Post by: Birdman on 10:31:19, 13/10/20
Talking about the PCT, you get some funny characters there anyway. For example, one guy was carrying an inflatable dinosaur all the way from Mexico to Canada. And he kept it inflated permanently. On scenic spots along the trail he would then take pictures with the dinosaur.


Another guy, I think his trailname was "15 feet" or something, was carrying a 15 feet hose the entire way, for no purpose whatsoever.
Me: "Hey dude, what's with the hose?"
Guy: "I'm carrying it to Canada"
Me: "Why?"
Guy: "Because it has got to be done"
Me: "OK"


(http://walkingforum.co.uk/Smileys/alive/grin.gif)
Title: Re: Any weird, wacky and/or amusing moments when hiking?
Post by: pleb on 10:37:11, 13/10/20
I was once so embarressed when walking the Pennine Way a few years ago. I stopped to sit on a rock (going south) to eat my sandwiches when a young woman (going north) in her 20s appeared and started to chat to me. She then decided to stay and eat her food as well. At one point she said that she was hot, so stood up and just stripped off to her bra and knickers in front of me. She then rummaged through her rucksack, threw stuff out on the grass and then found some clothes and got dressed again. She never batted an eyelid, was not self conscious of me being there at all and didn't express a word about it, so neither did I. Those few minutes scared me silly, I was glad to move on! As I strolled on I did have to smile, I just couldn't help it, for me a really wacky few minutes.  :-[
All the walks I have done, still hoping for something like that 😂
Title: Re: Any weird, wacky and/or amusing moments when hiking?
Post by: Birdman on 11:15:10, 13/10/20



On the Arizona Trail, the one place where you cannot truly wild-camp is inside Grand Canyon. You have to use designated campsites there, and there are lots of people (unfortunately). While looking for some seclusion (and trying to find birds), a man appeared and started talking to me. I found his behaviour strange and I had an uneasy feeling about him, but he was friendly and I really didn't have any way to escape his company because I was camping among twenty or so other small tents. So we ended up on a beautiful beach along the Colorado River at the bottom of the canyon. He had cans of sardines which he generously shared with me (delicious - though a terrible idea, because you have to carry out the smelly empty cans in the boiling heat).


Then he started telling me about his life. He told me he was a former inmate. He claimed to be innocent, but was framed by people. He claimed to have been tortured into confession by the police. As he was now a registered criminal, he couldn't get a house anywhere so he now lived in his (passenger) car. As he was telling me all this, I could see he suffered a lot psychologically, but my gut also told me wasn't completely sane, potentially schizophrenic and delusional. I wasn't sure what to believe. I kept feeling uneasy about him. Not because of his criminal past but the way he interacted with people and some (imagined?) things that he told me, which could perhaps lead to unpredictable behaviour. He talked for a few hours and all I did was listen and try to understand what he was telling me. When it was time to go to my tent, he thanked me for having listened and not judged him.


The next morning I packed my tent and left early and was relieved that I haven't run into him since. But in hindsight it was an interesting experience.
Title: Re: Any weird, wacky and/or amusing moments when hiking?
Post by: gunwharfman on 11:17:08, 13/10/20
Again, a few years ago, I was walking Hadrians Wall from Greenhead to Housesteads and there were a fair number of people about. One late middle-aged man came walking towards me and was handing out A5 leaflets to every one that passed by. He handed one to me and it claimed that he was designing a walking route just for the English. I couldn't resist so made the effort to have a chat with him, he was a bit of an odd character, especially when he tried to convince me that the Romans were the real English. I moved on very quickly. I've kept my eyes open for his route but to date have never seen it.
Title: Re: Any weird, wacky and/or amusing moments when hiking?
Post by: gunwharfman on 11:25:45, 13/10/20
On a lighter note, I once walked the West Highland Way with a couple of forum members. One days it was raining vertical rain, no wind at all and I was walking along by myself at one point and came across a 'log cabin' type tea/coffee/cake snacks place in the woods. I bought my coffee and cake and sat outside on a bench, with others, under the eves of the building. Four middle-aged male hikers came towards us, and when they arrived one of them in his best tenor voice game us a rendition of some tunes from La Traviata. He was really good too!

They were all from Amsterdam and singing opera was this mans thing! We all had a great time. 
Title: Re: Any weird, wacky and/or amusing moments when hiking?
Post by: Birdman on 11:32:27, 13/10/20
The PCT (again) in Southern California. There is no water for many miles, so hikers tend to take a long break near water sources. So even when you hike alone, you usually meet other hikers there. One girl was taking a long break and she was lying in her sleepingbag chatting to some other hikers. Suddenly one guy says: "Don't move!". As it turns out, there was a rattle snake crawling across her chest, right below her face! It was the stuff you see in movies! Not sure if she actually [censored] her sleeping bag, but fortunately the snake slowly moved on without causing any harm!
Title: Re: Any weird, wacky and/or amusing moments when hiking?
Post by: gunwharfman on 14:44:58, 13/10/20
Reminds me of the time in France when on a site, loads of schoolkids camping when everyone was woken by girls screaming. A mouse had crawled into a three-person tent, from then on absolute pandemonium!

I've made this mistake twice and the experience taught me to never go camping again without a torch. The first time was when I was on a very busy site with loads of tents all around me. I needed to visit the toilet block, so stood up, saw the one lightbulb ahead of me and like a moth I just homed towards it. I did what I needed to and then planned to walk back to my tent, only I didn't, all I could see ahead of me was darkness and the outlines of a sea of tents. I had no idea where mine was at all! In the end I just didn't have the nerve to try, all of those 'hidden' guy ropes as well! Luckily it was a warm night and only about an hour before dawn so I just sat on a bench until I could see where I was going.

Two nights later I tried it again but this time I planned my route back in advance. It nearly worked, at one point a voice inside a tent reminded me that I was trying to get into the wrong one! I made it a couple of minutes later.

Title: Re: Any weird, wacky and/or amusing moments when hiking?
Post by: Rivingtonboots on 09:35:29, 18/10/20
Mrs Rivington and I stayed at a vegetarian guest house in Grasmere at xmas 1993 and were given a packed lunch including xmas cake.
We'd been out walking and sat on a rock eating the pack lunch when a sheep ambled over and ate my cake of the silver foil, then ambled off again.
I don't think I moved as the sheep enjoyed my cake.
Title: Re: Any weird, wacky and/or amusing moments when hiking?
Post by: Bigfoot_Mike on 10:36:57, 18/10/20
I once had a sheep trying to grab my sandwich on Hellvellyn
Title: Re: Any weird, wacky and/or amusing moments when hiking?
Post by: Birdman on 10:51:00, 18/10/20
I had a Black Kite snatching a boiled egg out of my hand just before I wanted to put it into my mouth (http://walkingforum.co.uk/Smileys/alive/grin.gif)
This was not really on a walk but when visiting a national park in Kenya. Black Kites there are like the Herring Gulls in British coastal towns.
Title: Re: Any weird, wacky and/or amusing moments when hiking?
Post by: Birdman on 10:59:20, 18/10/20
On my Arizona Trail hike, some rodent has eaten the straps of my hiking poles! (probably for the salts). I had left them outside my tent overnight. It really sucked, because hiking poles are pretty useless without straps. Then I improvised new "straps" using pieces of rope cut from my washing line. It wasn't great, but enabled me to keep using my poles for the next ~400 miles till the end of the trail. (http://walkingforum.co.uk/Smileys/alive/grin.gif)
Title: Re: Any weird, wacky and/or amusing moments when hiking?
Post by: GnP on 11:14:15, 18/10/20
A friend of mine is terrified of dogs . I always used to tell him stand still and just face them looking them straight in the eyes. They will  not do anything.

One day we heard many dogs barking. I looked ahead and noted a secure fence with a stile , and just at that moment a pack of dogs came bursting through a gate way towards us . I legged it and bounded over the stile tumbling down the other side.
Unbeknown to me , my friend had taken my advice literally about standing still.....  He stood still and they surrounded him barking & growling  for a good couple of minutes until their owners came and called them off .

Eventually my friend caught up with me looking scared witless , as if the life blood had drained from him. He shouted at me "what about that *****ing advice you`re always banging on about " !?

I said sheepishly " that only works if there is one of them" .... 8)
Title: Re: Any weird, wacky and/or amusing moments when hiking?
Post by: Birdman on 11:32:33, 18/10/20
On the Arizona Trail, at some point I pitched my tent along a stream in the afternoon. The AZT is a quiet trail, but because this was such an excellent location in an otherwise dry area that the only two other hikers I met that day also decided to pitch nearby. Fortunately, they were both about 100-200 metres away from me and out of sight, so no big deal.


Now the interesting thing is that I had a fully enclosed tent and stored my food away from my tent in a bearproof bag. Then there was a girl who also had a fully enclosed tent but she kept her food inside her tent and there was an (ultralight) guy with a tarp who used his food bag as a pillow.


After I had eaten my meal, a skunk appeared. He started sniffing the edges of my tent, all around, but after one minute he concluded that there was no food to be had and he ran off. He never returned. About 15 minutes later, I heard the girl screaming: "Go away! Go away!". Apparently the skunk had found the girl's tent! Some time later, it was completely dark now, I heard her packing up her tent and saw her going back on the trail with her headtorch.


The next day, I met both this girl and the guy with the tarp. The girl told me that the skunk just didn't leave here alone, so she had packed all her stuff again and went looking in the dark for an alternative spot, miles further along the trail (which was difficult to find in the dark - the area was quite rough). However, the guy with the tarp had it much worse. Because there was nothing stopping the skunk, it kept coming back the entire night. And there was nothing he could do because he was afraid that if he scared the skunk, the skunk might spray his sleeping bag and other stuff with stink! So he didn't get any sleep and needed to tolerate the skunk going through all his stuff the entire night.


I was so happy that I had carried a few hundred grams extra for that food bag that I could hang away from my tent!

Title: Re: Any weird, wacky and/or amusing moments when hiking?
Post by: Birdman on 11:39:22, 18/10/20
@GinAndPlatonic: I'm terrified of dogs too! I have been harassed by groups of aggressive territorial dogs when hiking in Ecuador. It's my single biggest fear when hiking in rural, not truly wild areas. However, your approach does indeed work very well when facing a single one. And reaching to the ground (as if picking up a stone) will often also scare them (as they know locals will throw stones at them). 
Title: Re: Any weird, wacky and/or amusing moments when hiking?
Post by: Birdman on 11:58:05, 18/10/20
I read this story a few days ago, about a guy being threatened by a mountain lion (puma)  
Cougar stalk: Utah jogger on six-minute encounter with a mountain lion (https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/world-us-canada-54548467)

 
Actually, I have been face to face with one of these myself when walking alone in a forest in Suriname. I was trying to spot a bird, then I heard some animal making noises towards me. It turned out to be a puma! He/ she was definitely not happy with my presence.

 
Then I needed to decide what to do. The thing you should never do is run, because that only triggers their hunting instinct. Besides, no way in hell that you can outrun a puma! It is better to stand your ground. So I decided I might as well try to take a picture of it! But it ran off as soon as I grabbed my camera, so I only managed to get a picture of its tail!

 
Phew!

 
(https://i.postimg.cc/FRh0P21S/SUR-L-Puma1.jpg)
Title: Re: Any weird, wacky and/or amusing moments when hiking?
Post by: gunwharfman on 11:58:42, 18/10/20
The main reason I carry a whip, just a view or a tap tends to be enough to keep angry dogs at bay. I've never had to lash out but maybe one day? The whip works on cows and horses as well, again just a look or a tap on the rear is just enough to remind them that I hold the aces!
Title: Re: Any weird, wacky and/or amusing moments when hiking?
Post by: GnP on 12:07:26, 18/10/20
Edit...Sorry Birdman I see you posted the video already


PS Birdman it is ok to run if you can run faster than anyone else that might be with you.... ;)
Title: Re: Any weird, wacky and/or amusing moments when hiking?
Post by: GnP on 12:30:38, 18/10/20
The main reason I carry a whip, just a view or a tap tends to be enough to keep angry dogs at bay. I've never had to lash out but maybe one day? The whip works on cows and horses as well, again just a look or a tap on the rear is just enough to remind them that I hold the aces!
I have had some horses follow me from one side of a field to another nuzzling my ruck sack , but I didn`t feel theatened by them . At the time I think they could smell the food in my bag .

I always feel wary of cows though .

I was just finishing a 12 mile walk recently & was very weary , when I came across a frisky looking herd of heifers , who spotted me straight away , so I started walking up a very steep hill to avoid walking straight through them .I was surprised with how much energy I still had , because of them . ???

 I  think cows are a bit lazy deep down and don`t particularly like walking up hill just to harass a bod like me.
Title: Re: Any weird, wacky and/or amusing moments when hiking?
Post by: barewirewalker on 12:34:17, 18/10/20
After a few days climbing some Aiguille from the Mer de Glace,  my climbing partner, Pete and I descended to Montenvers and decided to catch the Telepherique down to Chamonix. We both had ice axes strapped to our rucksacs. The rule was the spike had to have a rubber guard on to be allowed in the cabin, and Pete had lost his. For a quick improvisation we stuck an orange on the spike. It was a bit of a crush at the end of the day, and we had to sit with rucksacs on on laps and the orange hovering around the end of his nose. As we had been at high altitude for a few days we looked pretty local. A rather fresh faced  English couple were seated just behind us and carrying on a conversation about the curious personalities they were observing, saying how safe it was to talk about people sure that they did not understand English.
They then started to discuss how silly it was to carry an orange around on the end of walking stick, surely it was not very hygienic and didn't he think that he looked a bit of an idiot walking around with an orange like that. Pete and I could hardly restrain laughing, it became obvious that they were on honeymoon, so as we exited, we made a great fuss of so Charming a couple of English lovers in our best Maurice Chevalier accents in very broken English.
Title: Re: Any weird, wacky and/or amusing moments when hiking?
Post by: Birdman on 13:20:46, 18/10/20
PS Birdman it is ok to run if you can run faster than anyone else... ;)


Heheh! Yes I know. But I always walk alone, so I really need to outrun the beast, which is impossible. I have met bears on my walks too, but luckily up to now they have always ran from me.
Title: Re: Any weird, wacky and/or amusing moments when hiking?
Post by: ninthace on 13:22:44, 18/10/20
@GinAndPlatonic: I'm terrified of dogs too! I have been harassed by groups of aggressive territorial dogs when hiking in Ecuador. It's my single biggest fear when hiking in rural, not truly wild areas. However, your approach does indeed work very well when facing a single one. And reaching to the ground (as if picking up a stone) will often also scare them (as they know locals will throw stones at them).
A stout umbrella is supposed to be efficacious.   Suddenly opened it scares the bejazus out of dogs.  A proper umbrella, not a city gents version, can also serve as weather protection and an improvised shelter.  Source:  https://www.amazon.com/Clear-Waters-Rising-Mountain-Across/dp/0140243321 (https://www.amazon.com/Clear-Waters-Rising-Mountain-Across/dp/0140243321)
Title: Re: Any weird, wacky and/or amusing moments when hiking?
Post by: Bigfoot_Mike on 13:23:43, 18/10/20
PS Birdman it is ok to run if you can run faster than anyone else that might be with you.... ;)
Depends on the animal! Some hunt in packs and you might be running into an ambush. However, you won’t find too many prides of lions in the British countryside.
Title: Re: Any weird, wacky and/or amusing moments when hiking?
Post by: Birdman on 13:38:03, 18/10/20

I have walked in tiger country too (Chitwan National Park - Nepal), but not alone! I was with two experienced (mandatory) local guides. It was pretty scary, walking through tall vegetation where tigers could be lurking right next to you. Check my foot next to a fresh tiger footprint! You don't want to mess with that one! Never saw a tiger though...


(https://i.postimg.cc/hjkwTY8f/Chitwan4.jpg)


(https://i.postimg.cc/BnjWK2HL/Chitwan3.jpg)
Title: Re: Any weird, wacky and/or amusing moments when hiking?
Post by: Bigfoot_Mike on 14:02:17, 18/10/20
I have walked in Big 5 country with a guide and that also gets the heart beating. Hyena and lion footprints show who might be around. On one walk we spotted white rhino tracks crossing our outgoing footprints. On another walk we alarmed a small group of impala, wildebeest and zebra. The zebra proceeded to let all other wildlife within earshot know of our presence. This included a huge male rhino, who was clearly aware of us and we had to make a detour to avoid a confrontation.  The imagination goes into overdrive, wondering what might be hiding in the bushes to either side. No worries though, our guide had a bolt action rifle to protect us.
Title: Re: Any weird, wacky and/or amusing moments when hiking?
Post by: GnP on 14:03:28, 18/10/20
Depends on the animal! Some hunt in packs and you might be running into an ambush. However, you won’t find too many prides of lions in the British countryside.
Thats true.  :)
Although I was ready to run from this fella when taking his photograph at Lewa , Kenya. He was a young orphan . No fence in between but he was very well behaved . ;)

(https://i.postimg.cc/8Pgpgv26/Lews-Rhino.jpg)
Title: Re: Any weird, wacky and/or amusing moments when hiking?
Post by: gunwharfman on 20:56:44, 18/10/20
I like the photo!
Title: Re: Any weird, wacky and/or amusing moments when hiking?
Post by: GnP on 16:19:17, 19/10/20

Heheh! Yes I know. But I always walk alone, so I really need to outrun the beast, which is impossible. I have met bears on my walks too, but luckily up to now they have always ran from me.
Birdman I think you have put together a great site cataloguing your travels . And not carrying a phone with a sim...well Kudos to you.  :)
Title: Re: Any weird, wacky and/or amusing moments when hiking?
Post by: Birdman on 11:52:32, 20/10/20
Thats true.  :)
Although I was ready to run from this fella when taking his photograph at Lewa , Kenya. He was a young orphan . No fence in between but he was very well behaved . ;)



Awesome picture!