Creature you'd most like to avoid on a trail

[Bill Talbot]

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.

It's not apples and oranges at all. It's having the means to deal with a particular problem.
You can be dependent on someone else to solve your problems or take on the responsibility to help yourself. For me it's not even a choice!

 

[Tricia]

Biting flies and mosquitoes are certainly an annoyance but they are not going to kill me.

There are areas of the country where mosquitos and ticks can be deadly.

 

[markojp]

It's not apples and oranges at all. It's having the means to deal with a particular problem.
You can be dependent on someone else to solve your problems or take on the responsibility to help yourself. For me it's not even a choice!

This doesn't really seem necessary, Bill. I take care of myself just fine. Like I said, what I wrote earlier has nothing to do with one's right to carry or own. I just haven't felt the need. If you're saying that those who choose not to carry in crowded urban places are helpless and reliant on others, then we simply see life very very differently.

 

[Bill Talbot]

Actually I just avoid 'crowded urban places'. Nothing for me there.

 

[fatbob]

I'm a wow too on the public transport point (unless public transport is a night bus on a notorious bandito route somewhere in South America or Africa). I think we as humans are incredibly bad at overall risk assessment - we stop our kids walking or cycling to school because of (remote )fear of paedophiles and traffic and as a result create more traffic and chances of RTAs, we worry about the extreme: air crashes, terrorists etc but not the more common -drunk drivers, speeding.

I think fearing an encounter with anything is probably not a good way to go about an active outdoor life, being mentally prepared with a gameplan is only prudent, carrying specific countermeasures for each possible threat might be a step too far. If it was recreating in danger areas I think bear spray would be worth having , a loaded Mossberg that needed to be accessible would rather detract from the experience for me.

 

[4ster]

There are areas of the country where mosquitos and ticks can be deadly.

True dat^
My brother has been dealing with Lyme for years & I do watch for tics when I am venturing into those areas. West Nile Virus has shown up in the southwest but still pretty rare around places I go.

 

[Wilhelmson]

Lyme is no joke but usually managable if treated quickly. Two immediate family members and two best friends all have had it. One let it fester for a while and is now paying the price.

 

[Sibhusky]

On Epic we all lived through Cirquerider's experience. Horrible. I've known two women back East whose lives and careers were impacted.

 

[Dadskier]

I never imagined this, but a Monkey Attack

haha, looks more like they just like knocking people down for fun.

 

[markojp]

Those buggers can be vicious and have Huuuge teeth.. not to be messed with.

 

[albertanskigirl]

I don't think anyone has mentioned this yet - but I think ungulates can be super dangerous. You scare an elk, or come across them in rutting season, and you're in trouble. i saw an elk charge once and it was terrifying. and they don't always stop, they just keep coming.

But most of all, I'm definitely nervous about cougars.

 

[Wilhelmson]

Wasps or hornets because you can't fight them.

 

[slowrider]

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

You wouldn't know I was armed. I'm not a gun nut that owns milatary style rifles. I have no use for them.

 

[slowrider]

BOYNE FALLS, Mich. - A Northern Michigan man saved his beagle from a black bear by kicking and punching the bear in the nose.

The attack was reported to wildlife officials in April. The dog's owner said he let his beagle out on a cable at 4:30 a.m. and returned a few minutes later to bring him back inside.

That was when the man saw a bear running up his driveway. In a report, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources said that's when the beagle started barking. The owner said the bear circled around and swatted at the dog as he frantically tried to pull him inside only to have the cable get tangled.

The man said he kicked the bear while trying to untangle his dog from the line. He said when the bear came back and bit the dog, he punched the bear in the nose and it retreated enough so he could bring the dog inside and close the door.

The DNR report said the dog required a few stitches to its side and rear end.

A conservation officer later advised the homeowner to remove all bird feeders, clean up sunflower seed husks, spread some moth balls in the area and stop feeding corn to the deer and turkeys in his backyard.

 

[ScotsSkier]

BOYNE FALLS, Mich. - A Northern Michigan man saved his beagle from a black bear by kicking and punching the bear in the nose.

The attack was reported to wildlife officials in April. The dog's owner said he let his beagle out on a cable at 4:30 a.m. and returned a few minutes later to bring him back inside.

That was when the man saw a bear running up his driveway. In a report, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources said that's when the beagle started barking. The owner said the bear circled around and swatted at the dog as he frantically tried to pull him inside only to have the cable get tangled.

The man said he kicked the bear while trying to untangle his dog from the line. He said when the bear came back and bit the dog, he punched the bear in the nose and it retreated enough so he could bring the dog inside and close the door.

The DNR report said the dog required a few stitches to its side and rear end.

A conservation officer later advised the homeowner to remove all bird feeders, clean up sunflower seed husks, spread some moth balls in the area and stop feeding corn to the deer and turkeys in his backyard.

you cant fix stupid!!! Its like some of the folks here that want to feed the bears and coyotes.........

 

[Sibhusky]

This was a couple years back. 85 year old woman had been feeding the bears: https://www.inforum.com/news/accide...d-montana-woman-killed-rare-black-bear-attack

 

[Mothertucker]

I got cougars stalkin' me all the time. Liger.

 

[Tricia]

I got cougars stalkin' me all the time. Liger.

Which species of cougar?

 

[Tricia]

you cant fix stupid!!! Its like some of the folks here that want to feed the bears and coyotes.........

That has become a huge issue in general but I've been hearing stories about vacation renters who aren't educated (in the interest of not calling them clueless renters) who leave scraps out for the wildlife.
The bear population is becoming far too familiar with human contact.

 

[James]

Those buggers can be vicious and have Huuuge teeth.. not to be messed with.

There was a lady in CT who used to have a 200 lb chimp for a pet. Travis. Had it for years. One day her friend who came over to help corral it, and also was very familiar with it, got viciously attacked. The owner stabbed it in the back three times but it kept going crazy. A cop shot it when it attacked the cruiser.

The victim literally had her face ripped off and her hands chewed off. She eventually had a "face transplant".

I thought the whole Xanax angle turned out to be untrue.

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/nat...vis-bloodthirsty-chimpanzee-article-1.1580690