This post may includeaffiliate links.
RELATED:
Who stalks through the forest, tracking a young woman like prey? As someone who grew up in an isolated country town, I always felt safest in the forest. When I moved to the city I discovered a lovely riverside wilderness area where I could walk off my stress. The winding track was just big enough for one person and long enough to walk for an hour. One of the best things was that it was rather unknown, so most weekends I had the wilderness all to myself. In Australia the forest is very safe. There are no bears or wolves and dingoes are easy for an adult to handle. It’s heaven.One sunny day I happily strolled along, stopping every now and then to listen to a wombat scurrying away through the dense undergrowth. But it was when I reached the furthest point from the car park that I realised I was not alone. Those scurrying noises? They stopped when I stopped. Again and again. And they were getting louder all the time.At first I hoped I was imagining it, but then I had to face the fact that somebody was sneaking behind me, hiding behind the undergrowth. Heart thumping, I pretended I was unafraid. I bent down casually to fake-tie my shoelace, so I could look behind me. I could see nothing but dense bushland at first, then my eyes dropped to the ground.Standing half concealed behind a shrub were two large men’s boots. In my shock I hoped they were empty, but as I looked a harder I could see legs inside the boots. Big muscular legs. A large man was there, watching me, sneaking up behind me as I walked.Now I’m a small woman so a fight was out of the question. I quickly stood and kept walking, my muscles rigid with panic as I tried to work out an escape. If I ran I would quickly reach a dead end, and the man stood between me and my path to safety. As my terror grew it evolved into an angry mass of adrenaline. I vowed to put up a fight after all, do some damage to him even though it felt hopeless. I leaned down and picked up a stout branch, ripped the leaves off and held it like a baseball bat, then turned around quickly to look back at the man. I couldn’t see him now, but I could hear the crunching noise of a very heavy body running through the bush.I think I had my eyes squeezed shut as I held my pathetic branch firmly, waiting for the a*****t. Then I realised he was running away from me. Tiny me! I don’t know what it is like to win the lotto, but I felt like I had won something massive. I was so thrilled and amazed. But I held my branch firmly as I walked quickly back to the car park on shaky legs. Sadly there were no more solo walks for me after that. But I still feel very very lucky.
I was on a hiking trail at South Mountain, in Phoenix, and was climbing up some steps near the top of a ridge when a bicyclist exploded over the top, sailed right over my head, and landed on the steps just below me. He didn’t fall, and was able to control his downward progress and zoom out of sight pretty quickly. But if I had been one step higher on that trail, he would have plowed right into me and might have [unalived] us both.In case you’re wondering, that segment of the trail was not approved for bikes. He was one of those extreme bikers out for a thrill, and he managed to give one to both of us.
I wouldn’t call it creepy, just a matter of bad timing. My wife and I climbed to the top of a local mountain. When we got there, there was a set of male and a set of female clothing on the rocks. I’m thinking there were two people who could not wait until we left
Years ago I was backpacking and sat under a tree to have my lunch.some leaves and bark fell around me and as I brushed them off I tilted my head back and looked upabout a dozen feet above me was a she- bear and her two cubs.I stood up slowly and walked away, leaving all my gear.
The wierdest thing i saw hiking was on a ridge on the Ouachita trail in Arkansas. We heard a large plane. As it got louder we started to scan the sky for it. It kept getting louder, and we couldn’t believe we hadn’t spotted it yet. When we were about to question our sanity, we finally spotted it below us. It was a C-130 practicing terrain following in the narrow valley.
I was living in the Pacific Northwest and my boyfriend and I went for a day hike. We followed an old logging road up the mountain and after a while we came out of the forest and the road dead ended. It was open country with an unobstructed view. The trail zigzagged upwards to a distant mountain ridge, it promised great views of the valley. We were used to hiking and being on our own, so nothing seemed creepy at first. We parked the car in the empty clearing at the end of road (no other cars or people around) and took off.We got a later start to the hike than planned, so we doubted that we would reach the uppermost ridge that day. The hike was visually rewarding but slow. The steep ascent had switchbacks and the trail was open to the sun and wind. After hiking for several hours, we checked the time and the position of the sun. We decided to start down the trail. At a comfortable pace, we could reach the parking area before sunset.A while later we noticed movement on the open trail far below us. It was the figure of a man hiking upwards. At first it didn’t seem creepy. I commented that he was getting a late start for a hike, as the sun was slipping lower in the sky. The guy hiked at a rapid pace, he was really covering ground. We guessed that we’d meet up with the stranger in less than an hour.We hadn’t seen any other people all day so maybe this created a mix of curiosity and apprehension. Soon the man was close enough to see that he was dressed in dark clothes. He never stopped for a break, just kept quickly climbing. For some reason I felt nervous about our eventual contact on the trail. My boyfriend didn’t say anything but he hiked ahead of me and stayed in front.So finally the stranger was in front of us. He was a thin pale man wearing ordinary street clothing (shirt and pants), no hiking equipment, backpack, or water bottle. He stared at us and didn’t respond when we said ‘how’s it going?’ I looked down at the ground because of the weird vibes and here’s what creeped me out…as the man’s feet passed I saw he was wearing a pair of black leather dress shoes. WTF? He kept powering up the trail, into the late afternoon sun.We hiked down as fast as safely possible and got to the clearing where our car was. No other vehicle was there and there were no trees or bushes where a motorcycle or bike could be hidden. So how did the guy get there? We drove for at least 30 minutes up the mountain to get to the trailhead. There were no towns or campgrounds in this area, it was logging country.Our old car gave rattling sounds but started, we gratefully took off down the road. By then the sun had set and the mountain was in shadows. The way back was filled with questions.There was his choice of clothing, totally unsuited for hiking or late in the day hiking — no coat, water, etc. Yes, the leather dress shoes, too.The guy was either super fit (he was so pale and thin though) or who knows on some kind of d***s, to hike so quickly. We were both in our early 20s and in good shape, he hiked the same distance as we did in about half the time.I wondered if the man reached the ridge top that night. And if so, what happened next?
When we were teenagers we went to the woods after dark to hang out, drink and have some fun. There were about 8 of us.Once we got into the thick part of the forest, my friend and I had the idea to run ahead, then circle around and scare-prank the rest of our group.About half way of our circling path, I told my friend to freeze! Naturally he smiled at me and acted like I was trying to scare him too. “No, seriously!” I said. “Shine your flashlight over there.” He did and it confirmed what I saw. A pair of human legs extended out from behind a large tree. We quietly approached and found what appeared to be a person who had died against a tree. He appeared homeless from his tattered clothes and weathered appearance. His eyes were just slightly open, staring into nothingness and he was slumped back against the trunk at the base. This was right in the middle of the forest.We trotted back to our group and told them there was something they needed to see. Rude and disrespectful, I know now as an adult. But as teenagers, we weren’t thinking sympathetically to whoever this person was.They didn’t believe us and thought it was all part of some elaborate prank. The girls in the group were getting frightened and asked us to stop the bullshit but we persisted even explaining thay we had originally planned to scare you guys…but then this happened.When we finally got everyone to buy in to the truth, we found our way back to this large tree….lo and behold, the man was gone!All I can guess is he was terrified of being found in the middle of the woods and froze up until we walked away and then ran full speed out of there. Or maybe we saw a ghost…who knows?Regardless, to this day, no one in that group believes a word of it. Only two of us saw the man lying against a tree in the middle of the woods that night and that’s how it will remain!
I found human remains whist hiking in the beautiful mountains of Colorado. He was a man who crashed his plane into the side if the mountain. His remains were never recovered.
- A moose. Moose are more dangerous and unpredictable, and attck more people than do bears.2. A rattlesnake. I’d accidentally just stepped across it, and it was rattling at me.3. Wild boar when rock climbing near Finale Ligure, Italy.
I was sacred when we stopped for a breather and the guy with me said: “Why are those mountains moving? I said, “sit” (he did), I said “drink 4 big swallows.” 3 min later: “drink 4 big swallows.” After about 15 min the peaks were not rotating any more. I said, “good, drink some more.” I transfered more than half his load onto mine. After 30 min more we continued our down-slope hike “Still 12+ miles to our truck.” All turned out OK.
About 6 months ago, I had the idea to have some time to myself & camp in the woods. I set up camp, called my friends on the phone, and then started stargazing after we hang up. After a while, I heard shuffling in the woods. I looked, and I saw nothing. I shined a small light from my phone into the woods, and it illuminated a pair of glowing eyes looking right at me.Reasonably, I got scared. I grabbed my stuff and ran. I heard whatever it was following me, but I was too scared to look back & figure out what was chasing me. As I hopped into the car, I turned it on & sped off. Only then did I look in the rear mirror to see what was chasing me.. it was a fox. 😐
While hunting on the side of a steep hillside, I saw a black bear. She was walking on the same trial as me. I really had no place to go as the hillside was very steep. I thought when she saw me she would run off. I waved my arms, yelled. A lot. Then her two cubs appeared behind her and she is getting closer. I yell a bunch more, wave my arms more. I hunt with a single shot handgun in a large caliber. I took it out and took aim while still yelling. She finally saw me, and charged. I had the hammer back, slack out of the trigger. She stopped about 20 yards away. Stood on her hind legs and woofed at me, then turned to leave. I hunted somewhere else that day.
See Also on Bored Panda
Oh, skiing down a slope which was on a sliding surface of a rock slab underneath, and breaking through a snow bridge. I had 1 leg and ski in the crevasse and the other outside. Changes your perception. I could have sworn it was twice as deep when I later skied up to the hole I punched through. Far worse than either of the avalanches that I’ve been in. Since that time I’ve also jumped into crevasses for rescue practice. Not nearly as fearful.
A freaking sand cat, in the rub' Alkhali or the empty quarter in Saudi Arabia not only did i find life in it but one of the rarest ones, i mean camels are common donkeys are eh every now and then geckos and jerboas are so common i have to check my shoes every time and snakes are unfortunately common but a sand cat is way too rare and still my proudest experience
I was hitch-hiking across America back in 1976 and I was down around the bottom part of Alabama in a pretty little park on the edge of a small lake. I had taken off my back pack and rolled out my ground cloth and I was settling in for the night. Dinner was simple, some sausage, bread, and fruit from an orchard I had passed earlier in the day. I ate, enjoying every mouthful while I listened to the crackle of the fire and watched the fireflies dance around the lake. I didn’t stay up long because the days travel had worn me out and I was looking forward to seeing an old friend who lived in Birmingham the next day and she was going to show me the sights of the city.The next morning something horrible woke me up. I could hear something , something big, panting right over my head which was buried in my sleeping bag. Things passed through my mind as I lay there, so scared that I couldn’t move even a single muscle . I lay there smelling the fetid air that whatever monster was above me was breathing out and wondering what in the hell I had gotten myself into. I wasn’t ready to die but I was sure that I was going to…very soon. I lay there and listened as the animal slowly moved off in the direction of the lake and then I couldn’t hear it anymore but still I lay there.Finally, I came to and lifted my head and looked around…nothing , nothing and nobody in sight anywhere around me so I got up, stripped then dove into the lake to wash the stink of fear from me. Never before and never again did I experience a fear so deep that I couldn’t move
What is the scariest thing you have come across while hiking or backpacking?When I went up Angel’s Landing in Zion N.P., snow had already fallen and left ice in many of the footholds. I had asked a stranger to go with me to take a picture at the top, and he had gotten ahead of me. Otherwise, I might not have gone further.Otherwise, the scariest encounters that I’ve had have been when a storm hit and I couldn’t reach a spot that I felt was truly safe from lightning.
Nearly stepped on a Rattler in the Utah Canyonlands a good 12-hour drive and 6 hour walk from Anti-Venom ….never been lost but I was a might confused for 24 hours following one blind Canyon after another on the same trip trying to find one that would get me back to the plateau where my car was parked.
I’m not afraid of any animal so no animal would startle me and I know what to do if I saw one that is dangerous, but for me, falling was the scariest. I have acrophobia (fear of heights) which my physician father diagnosed in me at about age 4. He loved to hike up a mountain and stand at the top and look out at the view and fast space. He tried to get me to go to him to look “over the edge” and I was terrified, he kept urging me on and I was crawling out to him and then when he told me to stand up, I climbed up, hanging on to his pant-leg for dear life.Later, I understood about the phobia and took flying lessons to help combat the fear, and it did. But when I went up in a two seat (tandem) glider once with a friend, I was scared the whole time, I just didn’t trust those warm air thermals to hold us up! That aircraft engine gave me security. I overcame the phobia of heights enough to not let it stop me from hiking. I even went up in a very tall radio tower once with a friend who got special permission and the man in charge of maintenance let us ride up in the elevator with him to the top. I was terrified and got the giggles but suppressed it! I went up to the observation floor in the Empire State building but didn’t enjoy looking DOWN! I was mostly just testing myself. I have flown all over the world and enjoyed it, even was invited up to the cockpit years ago (today, since 9/11, they keep the cockpit door locked now. My greatest aviation thrill was flying in the Concorde (a Christmas present to me) in around 1973 and I knew everything to expect. I sat right behind the bulkhead where a display of instruments showed us altitude, etc. and yes, I could see the slight curvature of the earth but what I did NOT expect at all, was how dark and purple the sky was at mid-day up at 58,000 feet! I was surprised at that, no one had told me it’s really dark up there away from the earth! Since then, I’ve researched and understand it technically, but not then!
Oh my. I’ve seen many strange things. One in particular was an arrow stuck in a tree at a height of about 30 feet. It was a Tamarack and it’s cover was gone. I could only look at it and wonder what someone was shooting at that high up.
Modal closeAdd Your Answer!Not your original work?Add sourcePublish
Modal close
Add Your Answer!Not your original work?Add sourcePublish
Not your original work?Add sourcePublish
Not your original work?Add source
Modal closeModal closeOoops! Your image is too large, maximum file size is 8 MB.UploadUploadError occurred when generating embed. Please check link and try again.TwitterRender conversationUse html versionGenerate not embedded versionAdd watermarkInstagramShow Image OnlyHide CaptionCropAdd watermarkFacebookShow Image OnlyAdd watermarkChangeSourceTitleUpdateAdd Image
Modal closeOoops! Your image is too large, maximum file size is 8 MB.UploadUploadError occurred when generating embed. Please check link and try again.TwitterRender conversationUse html versionGenerate not embedded versionAdd watermarkInstagramShow Image OnlyHide CaptionCropAdd watermarkFacebookShow Image OnlyAdd watermarkChangeSourceTitleUpdateAdd Image
Ooops! Your image is too large, maximum file size is 8 MB.
Upload
UploadError occurred when generating embed. Please check link and try again.TwitterRender conversationUse html versionGenerate not embedded versionAdd watermarkInstagramShow Image OnlyHide CaptionCropAdd watermarkFacebookShow Image OnlyAdd watermark
Error occurred when generating embed. Please check link and try again.
TwitterRender conversationUse html versionGenerate not embedded versionAdd watermark
InstagramShow Image OnlyHide CaptionCropAdd watermark
FacebookShow Image OnlyAdd watermark
ChangeSourceTitle
You May Like“He’s Blind Now”: 30 Times People Played With Fire And Got BurnedGabija Palšytė“The Coconut Oil Hair Story”: 30 Of The Darkest Stories People Have Posted OnlineRugile BaltrunaiteHow To Ruin Your Entire Life: 35 Scary And Sobering Stories Shared By People OnlineIlona Baliūnaitė
Gabija Palšytė
Rugile Baltrunaite
Ilona Baliūnaitė
Curiosities
