Creature you'd most like to avoid on a trail

[Joel]

I hate rattles snakes when mountain biking. I notice that when I do see one on the trail that startles me ( sometimes I see then far enough in advance that they don't ), every stick or twig on the trail after that looks like a snake.

 

[pchewn]

I have more than one friend who has started to carry a gun while hiking. I'm not going to lie, I've considered it. Its been a long time since I've been shooting so I'd have to refresh my skills before I'd feel comfortable packing heat.

I usually carry (concealed) and am most concerned in urban crowded areas than in the woods hiking. I'd never take public transportation without being armed.

 

[coskigirl]

I hate rattles snakes when mountain biking. I notice that when I do see one on the trail that startles me ( sometimes I see then far enough in advance that they don't ), every stick or twig on the trail after that looks like a snake.

I got involved in a rattlesnake bite victim search and rescue on Green Mountain in Lakewood last year. It’s got me too freaked out to return there and I hear North Table Mountain is bad as well. I think it was Apex that got closed for too many rattlers last year. People on the local FB trail conditions page have taken to calling them Danger Noodles.

 

[slowrider]

I was just thinking that armed people are the ones I want to avoid most.

Works for me.

 

[markojp]

I usually carry (concealed) and am most concerned in urban crowded areas than in the woods hiking. I'd never take public transportation without being armed.

Wow... And urban crowded areas? I can't imagine living life in that kind of fear.

 

[Sibhusky]

Wow... And urban crowded areas? I can't imagine living life in that kind of fear.

Me either, and I spent years riding the subway in NYC.

 

[François Pugh]

Wow... And urban crowded areas? I can't imagine living life in that kind of fear.

Not sure if it's fear or simply being prepared.
I still feel save in Montreal; I grew up there. I never felt safe in Toronto walking to/from a subway/bus stop in the wee hours of the morning; I was always looking over my shoulders and imagining what to do in the event that observed strangers were to attack me.... Well not always; there was that one time someone slipped something into my beer and I was eagerly hoping someone would attack me because I felt all-powerful and a match for any foe.

 

[Joel]

My Inlaws used to have a house that overlooked NTM, always told me it was rattler central.

I got involved in a rattlesnake bite victim search and rescue on Green Mountain in Lakewood last year. It’s got me too freaked out to return there and I hear North Table Mountain is bad as well. I think it was Apex that got closed for too many rattlers last year. People on the local FB trail conditions page have taken to calling them Danger Noodles.

 

[Posaune]

Works for me.

I wouldn't like to be feared. Each to their own.

 

[Snowfan]

...check out this video of Candide Thovex being charged by a cow

Candide is charging the cow. Cow acted in defense.

 

[Tricia]

Candide is charging the cow. Cow acted in defense.

I won't disagree with you on that one.
I often wonder, if you're skiing or riding somewhere and an animal appears, do you continue on your route or stop and assess? I guess it depends on the animal.

 

[scott43]

Not sure if it's fear or simply being prepared.
I still feel save in Montreal; I grew up there. I never felt safe in Toronto walking to/from a subway/bus stop in the wee hours of the morning; I was always looking over my shoulders and imagining what to do in the event that observed strangers were to attack me.... Well not always; there was that one time someone slipped something into my beer and I was eagerly hoping someone would attack me because I felt all-powerful and a match for any foe.

That's fear though, isn't it? We're on a dangerous slope in this forum..but there are 3 million people in Toronto proper, and 6 million in the GTA..we had 65 murders last year, I'm sure more than 75% of which are drug and gang related. I'm really not worried living here.. I've lived in Toronto for 30 years now and the worst beating I ever took, apart from that bet on the Leafs winning the Cup in 1993 (damn you Kerry "Press-on-Hair" Fraser!), was in a hockey game... I just don't get this irrational fear.

 

[pchewn]

So if you have a fire extinguisher in your house are you living in fear of fire?
If you carry a shovel, probe, and beacon are you skiing in fear of avalanches?

Or are you just over-prepared for a possible (even small) risk?

Wow... And urban crowded areas? I can't imagine living life in that kind of fear.

 

[coskigirl]

My Inlaws used to have a house that overlooked NTM, always told me it was rattler central.

Oh, it was NTM that was closed.

https://www.thedenverchannel.com/ne...north-table-mountain-park-in-jefferson-county

 

[4ster]

I voted moose because that is the dangerous animal that I have had the most close encounters with and is most likely to create an issue. The California Black Bears around Tahoe are pretty docile & easy to scare away. Sadly, the locals have become numb to the danger of these once wild, powerful creatures & treat them like teddy bears. If I was in grizzly country I’m sure I would feel different. Biting flies and mosquitoes are certainly an annoyance but they are not going to kill me.
I would have voted mountain lions because deep down that is the animal that I really fear the most, mainly because the likelihood of surviving an attack is low and I certainly ride a lot in mountain lion country. The reason I did not choose mountain lions is for the fact that the odds of actually being attacked are extremely unlikely.

 

[Snowfan]

...I often wonder, if you're skiing or riding somewhere and an animal appears, do you continue on your route or stop and assess? I guess it depends on the animal.

Good question.
https://runblogger.com/2013/01/running-trails-and-wildlife-encounters.html
https://www.outdoors.org/articles/amc-outdoors/responding-to-moose-encounters

 

[Tricia]

I won't disagree with you on that one.
I often wonder, if you're skiing or riding somewhere and an animal appears, do you continue on your route or stop and assess? I guess it depends on the animal.

Good question.
https://runblogger.com/2013/01/running-trails-and-wildlife-encounters.html
https://www.outdoors.org/articles/amc-outdoors/responding-to-moose-encounters

When I was in Michigan, riding a bit of dirt bike with the x and some of his friends, the lead guy(Not me, because I was slow as molasses) happened upon some cubs who got spooked and started running in front of his dirt bike. The mama bear got aggressive and started chasing the dirt bike friend until he slowed waaaaaay down so she could get in front of him to her cubs. She swatted them and forced them off the trail and we went on our merry way.
More often than not, I believe the animal we encounter is living by primordial nature and won't mess with us if we don't do something counter intelligent to their nature. Emphasis on more often than not, but not always.
Not really a win for any creature - cyclist or moose.

The Moose that I posted in one of the links in the OP is a mama Moose who is protecting her calfs. The road cyclist on a paved trail has no idea that he's about to encounter a Moose protecting her babies.
She didn't attack him but she charged him. In the cyclist's defense, that would intimidate the crap out of me. In the Moose's defense, she was going to get in-between anything that could possibly harm her babies.

 

[markojp]

So if you have a fire extinguisher in your house are you living in fear of fire?
If you carry a shovel, probe, and beacon are you skiing in fear of avalanches?

Or are you just over-prepared for a possible (even small) risk?

Apple's and oranges. I've never been armed with anything other than my dog in any urban environment (Chicago, NYC, AD, LA, Oakland, Seattle, DC, etc... ), and don't bc ski with anyone I think is going to mug me, so I don't imagine that I'll be using avy gear to protect myself from other people anytime soon. I've never thought about protecting myself from others on public transit or at home with a fire extinguisher either, but I guess I'm just not that worried and/or lack imagination, but if you want to carry, go for it.

That said, I gave up road riding in Snohomish co. just north or Seattle. Way too many angry bike hating F-150 drivers. Anyhow, I don't want to get into a second amendment debate as that's not what's being alluded to, questioned, or discussed.

Animal wise, we just had a mtn biker killed by a mountain lion... I'm guessing the odds of getting hit by lightning or winning the lottery are orders of magnitude higher. If I were hiking in a 'lot's a hungry bear' area, I'd think about carrying, and my irrational fear of sharks kept me off of surfboards, that's for sure.

 

[James]

Chicago, NYC, AD, LA, Oakland, Seattle, DC, etc...

"AD"?

 

[markojp]

"AD"?

Oops... SF. Big thumbs, insomnia, and a small keyboard.