For me, it must be 2015 when I hiked the GR10 route across the Pyrenees. As I walked up a track to the top of a large domed grassy and ferns mountain, on Day 16, it was within an hour of being dark and it also started to rain. As I neared the top, by now dusk, the rain was now pounding down vertically, there was no wind at all and it was now also very foggy as well. Eventually, I came to a narrow tarmac road going left to right from me. I turned left and walked along it, thankfully it was on the flat, I felt rather exhausted and cold by now.
It was soon dark and very quiet, the fog deadened all sound. I needed to find a flat area of ground which I did. it was adjacent to the road, down a short grassy slope and I could see a flat area and the outline of one tree. I quickly erected my tent and managed to keep the inside fairly dry as I did so. I got in my sleeping quilt and although the rain was making a loud din on my tent I quickly fell asleep.
I suddenly woke up!!! It was still raining and I could hear loud grunting around me! I instantly thought it was wild boar! In a bit of a panic, I pushed my down quilt into its waterproof bag, very disciplined of me, can't get that wet or I really would be done for!
My tent feet end started moving, then stopped, then at my face end a large 2" across, wet, sticky snout appeared from under the outer tent. Panic! I grabbed my hiking stick, always folded to its shortest length and kept beside me. I unzipped the inner tent and the snout appeared again. I unzipped the outer tent and there about 15" from my face was HER face, a big white domesticated sow and she tried to come closer! I hit her (not too hard but hard enough) on the nose and she squealed and stepped back and I bounded out of my tent and stood up still with hiking sticking in hand. It was a warm morning, I was just in my underwear and within a few seconds, I was wet through from the incessant rain.
There were three more just as big sows with her and they all wanted to get into my tent! I shouted, swore at them, waved my stick at them and smacked one who got too close. As one retreated another one came forward, they worked as a team. As I was thrashing about they just demolish my tent, they were too quick for me. This stand-off lasted for about 15 minutes and I wasn't winning. Suddenly and thankfully the pigs heard a dog bark and they just ran away!!! Phew, all over!
As I stood there, a man (the pigman I think) and his dog appeared at the top of the bank. He just laughed and waved at me and then he was gone as well. I suddenly got a sense of myself, standing there with just my little nighttime shorts on, soaked to the skin and still puffing and panting from the effort of it all. I felt a right fool and I'm sure I looked like one as well, and I now felt embarrassed.
I got my act together, found my clothes (all wet by now) and got dressed, well I TRIED to get dressed, every item of wet clothing stuck to my wet skin but after much pulling material around and over me, and swearing, (I rarely swear!) I eventually did it. I then packed everything into my rucksack (I knew that my only dry item was my sleeping quilt) and again nothing would slide easily into the rucksack. I had to punch and push the lot in as best I could. Once I got to the top of the bank I could see that in the foggy and wet night I had wandered into an open range pig rearing area, there were pigs everywhere! It all made sense now.
It was to be a most miserable day, I was wet, my clothes were wet, in fact I was VERY WET! I had to walk for hours that day, and I soon noticed that steam was coming off me as my body heat warmed up my clothes. It didn't stop raining until very late in the afternoon, I eventually came to a road, turned left and within a kilometre there in front of me was my saviour the CAFE PEDRO, a motel with a restaurant, white and gleaming in the middle of nowhere. A beautiful place! If you ever hike the GR10 please go there and think of me! I had two gigantic mugs of black coffee and two large portions of Basque Tart but because I was so wet I chose to stay outside sitting on one of those garden swing seats with a waterproof fabric cover above me. The two young female staff in the restaurant were highly amused, this old bloke, wet, steamy and bedraggled just sitting there devouring coffee and cake like a wild banshee!
I walked on to Larrau (a few hours away) and booked myself into the local hotel, by now I was really done in! I ended the day by putting all of my wet gear across the room to aid drying and once done I decided to have a really nice hot shower. I stripped off, strolled into the shower room, saw my naked self in a full length mirror, looked, looked again and exclaimed " B-gg-er! I've got a HERNIA!" So one problem solved, only to be confronted by another, but thats another story!