Have you ever, when hiking, publically embarrassed yourself?

[gunwharfman]

I have, more than once! For example, I was in the pub in Bellingham when hiking the Pennine Way and I ordered an Indian Curry. A rectangular metal tray was bought to my table, at one end of it was a Paratha, the other end was a metal dish of prawn curry and in the middle a perfect mound, a mountain in fact, of plain rice! I was so hungry and it looked so good so I picked up my fork and just TOUCHED  the 'rice mountain' and it immediately COLLAPSED!!! The rice scattered in a 360-degree circle, a lot of it ended up on my lap and in a couple's laps who was sitting on the same table as me. So embarrassing! Everyone in the bar turned to look at me and all of them collapsed in laughter!

[BuzyG]

Not that I recall.  Others may beg to differ.  I did order half a dozed chocolate truffles for desert once in a small cafe, expecting them to be bite size sweets.  When they arrived they were tennis ball sized. I ate two and discreetly smuggled the remainder into my ruck sack for later. 

[gunwharfman]

A similar thing happened to me in Dunkirk, France. I'd just finished a hiking trip to Ypres in Belgium so I decided to spend my last night in a hotel. I cam down for breakfast, there was every food imaginable on trays on three large connected tables. I decided to start with muesli because the hotel had a see-through glass vase on the table filled to the brim with Maltesers. All I had to do was press a button at the base of the vase and a measured number of chocolates came out to crown my muesli. I pressed the button, the mechanism just failed and a 'million' Maltesers rolled everywhere! I got the oddest of looks from other diners in the room and I grovelled and apologised when the young waitress came out of the kitchen. It was alright though, the young women spoke English and whispered to me don't worry its happened before.

[ninthace]

My children regard me as an embarrassment.

[Rigel]

My children regard me as an embarrassment.

Do they read this forum?

[ninthace]

Do they read this forum?

Thank god, no, or it would be worse.

[Rigel]

I think it's pretty standard for children to be embarrassed of their parents, especially when teens. I wouldn't worry about it, Ninthace. I doubt it will always be like that.

[ninthace]

I think it's pretty standard for children to be embarrassed of their parents, especially when teens. I wouldn't worry about it, Ninthace. I doubt it will always be like that.

One turns 40 this year and the other 35.  When does it stop?

[fernman]

There can't be one walking pole user on here who hasn't on at least one occasion placed a pole on the ground in the way of a boot, which is followed by a quick canter to regain one's balance. And how many of us have turned around with a rucksack on our back and nearly knocked some innocent bystander off their feet?

[ninthace]

Not just me then, oh good!

[gunwharfman]

My other embarrassing moment was on the Pennie Way on my way from Middleton in Teesdale going south, I had to climb up and get through one of those stiles with the little sprung door/gate on the top. It was a wet afternoon and as I tried to get through the door/gate, I slipped on the wood and fell down the stile steps, rucksack still on my back and hanging upside down because the door/gate had sprung closed, and my foot and ankle were trapped! It could have been very nasty and I realised I could have broken my leg or something worse but I was lucky. A group of four (two young men, two young women) was already coming towards me, they saw me fall and then rushed up to rescue me. It wasn't easy, I was almost helpless, they had to lift me up a bit, get my rucksack off, get my boot and ankle free of the door/gate and then lower me to the ground. If hadn't have been there I have no idea what would have happened, I could have been there for a long time? The main embarrassment was having a couple of young women breathing on me saying to this old man, "Are you alright?" Looking back it was a bit of a Monthy Python moment, "Of course I'm not alright, I'm upside down!" My leg, ankle, and hip was painful for days after that. I learned my lesson though, be careful where you place your feet!

[richardh1905]

Had the "screaming squitters" * on the Gran Paradiso glacier once - felt so rubbish that I was beyond embarrassment.


(* father-in-law's expression)

[Bigfoot_Mike]

I think it's pretty standard for children to be embarrassed of their parents, especially when teens. I wouldn't worry about it, Ninthace. I doubt it will always be like that.

Are teenaged parents more embarrassing in reality, or does it just seem so to their kids?

[Bigfoot_Mike]

There can't be one walking pole user on here who hasn't on at least one occasion placed a pole on the ground in the way of a boot, which is followed by a quick canter to regain one's balance. And how many of us have turned around with a rucksack on our back and nearly knocked some innocent bystander off their feet?

I am guilty of both. I have also fallen flat on my face after tripping over my poles. It took me a while to get my arms synchronised with my feet. It doesn’t matter much without poles, but it certainly does matter when using poles.

[ninthace]

Mrs N and I invented social distancing year ago, ever since I started using poles.  I am especially lethal on stiles apparently.