Have you ever heard a howl from a wolf while camping?
I had a wolf. Didn’t know it at the time we adopted it from the pound. Thought it was a husky pup. The vet identified it as it grew older. SO of course we had to name him Wolf. He never barked, made a funny mewing sound. While we were in San Bernadino he was one miserable animal. He would try and play but would quickly get exhausted because of the heat. Then I got orders to Washington state. McChord AFB. Every mile we got closer to Washington the more lively he got. From the time I got my orders and actually arriving a McChord Wolf had grew a bit. Okay to be honest he grew a lot. I just didn’t notice how much until we stopped in the Redwood forest on our way to McChord. We got out of the Suburban and Wolf jumped out after us. Suddenly everyone in the area backed up in alarm. I look around expecting to see some kind of threat but the only thing I see is our dog. Then I realize how big he had gotten and how threatening he actually looked. However there probably has never been an animal with such a gentle and sweet nature. Hard headed yes, and when he gets focused on something his hearing seems to quit working, but he is totally lovable and harmless. When he proved to be friendly he became the big attraction for the day at the park and was sucking up all the extra attention that came his way. It was not until late that winter that we heard a pack of wolfs behind our house howling and it would be one of the few times we heard him howl. He sounded like something out of one of those old horror movies and it will send chills up your spine. Evidently he impressed the pack of wolfs in the draw behind our house, because they got really quiet right after he answered their call.
Camping in the San Bernardino National Forest/Big Beat Area- Tips?
Hello. My friend and I will be camping in Barton Flats next week, a campsite in the San Bernardino Mountains and about 20 miles from Big Bear Lake. We want to escape to nature and go on some hikes that offer the most beautiful views along the way. Can anyone recommend some hikes and/or swimming activities that were your favorite to do in the area? We aren't excellent hikers but we aren't bad either. Also, any advice on safety precautions? Bears and mountain lions are a bit of a fear for us. Thanks.
What are your top tips for going camping?
Know the sacred order: shelter, water, fire, food. Bring a field guide to plants, start learning them: poisonous, edible, medicinal. Baking soda, good because it is antacid, antidiarrheal, antibacterial, antifungal, underarm deodorant, brush your teeth, cleans resins from pots, puts out a grease fire, lightweight, good for backpacking too; it has two electrolytes for rehydration. Most basic kit: stout knife, pot, water bottle, cordage. Learn to build a debris hut. Boil all water for drinking, including what you rinse your toothbrush with. Learn how to distill water using a couple water bottles and a tube, and using the 2-pot method. Learn and practice a hand drill and a bow drill for starting a fire, then try it one-handed, start a fire with a clear plastic bag or a condom. YouTube has many answers. Breast-milk bags are useful for water and backpacking. Always have a long pair of pants and shirt, good for sunshade, bugs, and brush, and a pair of shorts for swimming and wading streams. A warm hat and a cold had, preferable a balaclava. A pair of leather gloves and a pair of wool liners, good for hot pots and most temperatures. Sleeping in them will keep you warmer in colder weather. Wool socks double as mittens, can be worn around the neck to dry, have a spare pair, and a scarf is versatile, the proverbial towel. Cotton and poly bandanas are very versatile. Cotton/linen is the best in hot weather, wool is best in cold weather, and polys have an extreme fire/melt-to-skin hazard. Down, unless it is water-resistant treated should not be relied on. Learn the rehydration formula: 1 qt/L of cool water, 2 Tsp sugar/sweetener, or boil starch in the water water, with 1/2 tsp of some kind of salt/potassium, plus some bicarbonate (baking soda) helps. The sugar/starch helps the body absorb the salts. Sip slowly periodically, even if vomiting. See the pro sites for details. Avoid the aspartame version in any quantity, it has methanol. Condition the body for cold, finish showers full cold, the more you do, the more the body can handle. Sweating is a good-healthy thing to do daily without antiperspirants. Take care and have fun!
Good names for a fictional camp (for a scary story)?
Camp Bog-a-log? Camp Yracs ?( later they discover it spells scary backwards)
A question about the Amityville Horror.?
I always wanted to go and walk around or even spend the night at the Amityville house on Long Island, Newyork. I saw the documentary on the new release of the movie the Amityville Horror. I've read the book and I've seen the original movie. I wonder if such a dark force actually exists in this modern day. I beleive the house is still standing. Can anybody give me the address and exact location of the house and any details about its current statis? And also what is your opinion of the phenomena of the details of the Amityville Horror.
What was your creepiest camping experience?
OK, a couple years ago I was camping by myself one weekend, for about three days…My parents had always wanted to see where we camped, so they came out to join me for the afternoon, and brought hamburgers. My mom, when finishing hers, threw her hamburger leftovers in the trash bag, instead of in the fire, something I never do when camping. She had no idea! (It’s always a good idea to burn your leftover food, rather than to store it in a trash bag, which would later become an “attraction device” for varmints of the night)For lanterns, I use the Coleman liquid fuel lanterns, or did at the time, and would pump them up to operate them, after refueling. (This is all background information that will help this makes sense in a minute…)That night, when I went to bed, I trimmed the lamps down low so that they were barely on. Then, if I needed to get up in the middle of the night, they would be easy to re-light. All I would have to do is turn them up! (I had no idea that when temperatures change through the night, the resulting changes in pressure difference in the lamps fuel reservoir could affect these lamps)Somewhere in the night, the temperature changed, causing the outside pressure to change in relation to the inside pressure of these pumped lamps. In other words, as the temperature changed in the night, the lamps turned themselves back on!!Now the timing for this was perfect! These lamps turned himself back on, just about the time the raccoons were starting to wander through my campsite, making this low “whoooo-ooooo” sound, which sounded rather like the sound of a ghost in a horror story!In all my years in working with, or running across raccoons, (and I grew up in the country in West Texas), I had never, ever heard a raccoon make this noise!!The hair stood up on the back of my neck!!I jumped up out of the tent and rushed outside to see what was coming in, to invade my space!! There was nothing there!The lamps were now lighted, as if all by themselves!! Oh, and naturally, the hair on the back of my neck simply would not lay down!!I later learned that the raccoons smelled the leftover hamburger in the trash bag, and were coming to find that’s for have a little burger themselves! After their second visit, I wrapped up the bag and put it in one of my footlockers, and proceeded to “mark my territory“.Naturally, they did not return the rest of the night.So that’s my story!Should I have been scared?Of course not.But… all of the circumstances… were just right!
What are the chances of getting raped while you're camping?
The simple answer is that you are far safer camping than walking around your neighborhood. Rapists don't stalk campgrounds 0-- those are largely urban crimes. I'm female and have camped out my entire life including many trips on my own in National and State Forests and Parks and private campgrounds. Nobody has ever bothered me at all. In fact, other campers tend to be far more friendly, helpful and protective than the average person on the street in your home town. Note that I have never carried a weapon while camping (other than bear spray in grizzly habitat). Good judgement is the best protection. In fact, statistics show that virtually all the crimes and violent acts that are recorded in National Parks and other wilderness areas occur between family members and people who know each other -- violence from strangers is incredibly rare. There is nothing remotely realistic about those horror movies that show campers being assaulted and preyed upon. In fact, the National Park Service reports an average of less than 18 rapes per year in the parks (and most of those are due to acts by someone the woman knew, like at a drunken party that got out of control). Compare that with around 90,000 rapes every year in cities and towns (that's one every 10 minutes). You actually have about twice as much chance of dying from being struck by lightning than you do of being raped while camping.
Anyone know any movies about camping, hiking, backpacking?
I'm in the mood for an outdoorsy type movie about something like camping or hiking and I'm drawing a blank on movies of this type...I dont want to watch anything about a summer camp but actual camping or hiking....doesn't really matter what genre(horror, adventure, etc)....something along the lines of "Whitewater Summer" or "The River Wild" would be nice, but I'm open for any suggestions.
I love camping but the silence at night scares me. I feel like someone is about to sneak up on the tent. How do I get over this irrational fear?
That happened to me. I was all alone in Badlands National park. I was thinking about Bison attack, robbers, national guards. Every tiny movement or unintentional friction between two things would make huge noise in that deafening silence. In middle of the night, some dogs or maybe foxes (I don't think there are Wolfs around) started howling. Thing that got me through the night was rationalising my fears.Bison don't move a lot. And they are not nocturnal. It's a lot of work for robbers to come to middle of nowhere to rob a camper. National guards wouldn't arrest me, at worst they will ask me to move for my own safety. Dogs/foxes were long away from me. I didn't have any food out in the open, there was nothing around that would smell and attract wild animal for food, potentially putting me in danger. After a while, I started noticing sources of noise due to friction and then learned to ignore them. I got through the night to see beautiful sunrise.This was a good short time fear management. I think only thing that will help me, (and you) in long term is doing it more. Start with relatively safe places where you know there is no danger from wild animals. Have buddies in tent nearby if you can. We are not used to silence hence, it is daunting at first. However we are also very adaptable.PS:I don't think playing music on headphones is a good idea. It will block you from all outside sounds. Some of those sounds maybe important to listen to when you are alone. E.g. Animal approaching. Someone asking for help. Sudden fall of tree, landslide etc. Moreover, what's the fun of camping in silence if we take it away with songs that can be played in comfort of home?Liquor is a very bad idea during camping! It will dehydrate you. During winters, it will drop core temperature and give you false sense of warmth. It will also impare your abilities in case of emergency. Liquor is also illegal in many parks, certain time of year (in some throughout).