# Ever been slightly worried about an unexpected predator encounter?



## topgun47 (Jan 17, 2014)

ESOX started a great thread in the CCW area about 9mm's vs bears. I hope you'll visit it, read it and add comments.

ESOX's thread got me to thinking though....... According to my better half (And that's her opinion by the way), doing any sort of "thinking" almost always gets me into a great deal of trouble. Most times the "trouble" as she refers to it, is irreversible and inescapable.

But, I wanted to start a new thread to hear about any scary or life-threatening experiences you may have encountered while trying to enjoy Michigan's great outdoors, such as while jogging, biking, canoeing, walking, horse riding, hunting, camping, ORVing,.snowmobiling, rock climbing, etc..

It might have been a threat from predators, or a hazardous situation, or anything else that might have "put the fear of God in you" as my beloved Fred Bear used to say.


----------



## plugger (Aug 8, 2001)

In 1978 I got assaulted with a knife in a bar in Detroit, does that count?


----------



## topgun47 (Jan 17, 2014)

plugger said:


> In 1978 I got assaulted with a knife in a bar in Detroit, does that count?


Sure sounds like you were attacked by a predator to me........But if it only happened to you once, the jury is still out on whether it counts or not.


----------



## outdoorsaddict99 (Jul 9, 2016)

I was charged by a porcupine once while trailing a deer if that counts


----------



## DecoySlayer (Mar 12, 2016)

I have never been bothered by any kind of animal in Michigan, I have been bothered by rattlesnakes, copperheads, cottonmouths, fire ants, scorpions, alligators and several other kinds of "things" while I lived, hunted or fished in the south. Don't forget the chiggers, they are the worst!

In Michigan the most dangerous things I have run into is high winds, large waves, heavy fog and not enough water to get back in.


----------



## 2508speed (Jan 6, 2011)

I'm more worried about pet dogs running loose while I take my walk than any wolf or cougar in the LP.


----------



## wolverines (Jan 29, 2007)

When I was a kid, I remember walking across a field after gutting a deer on opening morning. All of a sudden I hear a series of shots, whistling sounds above my head, and dirt flying up in the air as the bullets hit the ground!!! 

Another time I remember getting a woodchuck I shot in a food plot and tossed it in the back of my truck. When I went to get it later it was all the way to the front of the truck bed. I thought it just slid up there while driving. When I reached down to grab it by the tail, it spun and tried to bite my hand! Scared the $h!t of me!


----------



## Wolverick (Dec 11, 2008)

Year before last I was out collecting mushrooms in September near my home. I heard elk bugling to the east, then to the west and then the north. It was beautiful of course. I continued minding my own business not trying to be quiet at all as I went. I noticed the bull elk were getting closer to me as I went. All of a sudden this six by six monster is standing less than twenty yards from me and raring for a fight. There I was with only a small amount of brush between us. Now if you try to tell me you wouldn't be un-nerved by a POed, horny, seven hundred pound monster a nano second charge from you, you are either stupid or a liar. I slowly moved to where a large tree separated us. The bull was not the least bit bothered by me being there and took his time continuing to move (I assume) toward his nearest rival.


----------



## NorthWoodsHunter (Feb 21, 2011)

Followed out of the woods twice by coyotes. Both time happened while pulling a doe in heat drag line. Gets your heart going no matter how small they are


----------



## topgun47 (Jan 17, 2014)

Wolverick said:


> Year before last I was out collecting mushrooms in September near my home. I heard elk bugling to the east, then to the west and then the north. It was beautiful of course. I continued minding my own business not trying to be quiet at all as I went. I noticed the bull elk were getting closer to me as I went. All of a sudden this six by six monster is standing less than twenty yards from me and raring for a fight. There I was with only a small amount of brush between us. Now if you try to tell me you wouldn't be un-nerved by a POed, horny, seven hundred pound monster a nano second charge from you, you are either stupid or a liar. I slowly moved to where a large tree separated us. The bull was not the least bit bothered by me being there and took his time continuing to move (I assume) toward his nearest rival.


Funny.

A friend and I were deer hunting near Atlanta, MI I think it was. He brought along his video recorder so he could get some deer videos and possibly a kill shot on video.

As we were quietly stalking through the woods, we came across an Elk laying down, looking away from us and chewing it's cud. We got to about 40 yards away and the big 5x6 or 6x6 beast just laid there chewing and looking the other way.

Well, my not-too-bright hunting partner quietly handed me the recorder and whispered for me to film him while he stalked closer, because he wanted to smack him on his butt. and get it on camera. I said: "Are you nuts"? ( I may have inserted an expletive between you and nuts) Before he left, he turned the video camera on for me, then started stalking. I couldn't believe how close he was getting to the Elk. I then noticed that an 8 to 10 inch diameter tree next to where the Elk was laying, had the bark rubbed off at least 8 feet or so off the ground. I saw that the red light was "on" on the camera, and knew it was recording this amazing stalking feat.

When he got about five feet away from the Elk, my buddy stood up to take the final step or two, and then smack him. Well when he stood up, the Elk heard him, and he stood up too. The animal appeared from my vantage point to be at least twice as tall as my buddy. The look on my buddy's face was absolutely priceless as he screamed and scrambled back towards me as the Elk was just standing there shaking his antlers trying to figure out what was going on.

As my buddy got near me and we both fled the scene, he said: "You got that on tape right"? I said "Sure did" as I handed him the recorder. That's when he noticed that he forgot to remove the lens cover for me..................That facial expression was priceless too.

I'm editing this because there's one more note to demonstrate the "sanity" or "insanity" of this former hunting buddy.

When we got back to the cabin that evening, he insisted on watching every second of over a half hour of blank video, in the hope that there was a slight chance that the recorder might have been able to record the event somehow through the lens cap. That's when I gave up and added the "in" in front of his "sanity" condition.


----------



## topgun47 (Jan 17, 2014)

NorthWoodsHunter said:


> Followed out of the woods twice by coyotes. Both time happened while pulling a doe in heat drag line. Gets your heart going no matter how small they are


Yeah, when them suckers start yip-yapping and stuff, and it sounds very close, it sure gets my attention.


----------



## Gamechanger (Sep 26, 2014)

When Stephen King's "'Salem's Lot" first came out, I read the whole dang book over the course of a day and then went out and sat in a deer stand all evening.

On the way out of the pitch dark woods with only a sliver of moon, my mind kept telling me that a whole herd of vampires were hiding behind every tree between me and my truck.

Fortunately, I made it out unscathed, but that longbow I happened to be using on that hunt has a permanent set from holding it at full draw the whole way out of the woods.


----------



## topgun47 (Jan 17, 2014)

Gamechanger said:


> When Stephen King's "'Salem's Lot" first came out, I read the whole dang book over the course of a day and then went out and sat in a deer stand all evening.
> 
> On the way out of the pitch dark woods with only a sliver of moon, my mind kept telling me that a whole herd of vampires were hiding behind every tree between me and my truck.
> 
> Fortunately, I made it out unscathed, but that longbow I happened to be using on that hunt has a permanent set from holding it at full draw the whole way out of the woods.


That's a good one, but you do realize of course, that there aren't "herds" of vampires behind every tree, only one or two behind each one depending upon the tree's diameter.........

And here's a helpful hint for your fixing that bow: you can get that permanent set in that longbow out by soaking it in the liquids found at the bottom of the outhouse in camp, and then carefully re-shaping it using disposable latex gloves.

The biggest advantage in doing that, is that none of your hunting buddies will ever be asking to borrow it again.....


----------



## Swamp Boss (Mar 14, 2003)

Well, since Gamechanger called in his own coordinates, I also have to confess to he horror movie, dark woods Willies. Several years ago, the wife and I watched horror movies all Halloween night. In the morning I had a plan to go duck-hunting, alone for the first time. I pulled up to the 3/4 mile trail that led to Saginaw Bay at 0- dark thirty and when my car dome light faded it was just me, my decoys and shotgun alone in the blackness. as soon as I entered the woods, there was seemingly scurrying creatures everywhere. In my mind they were surely some of the monsters from the movies the night before! About the half way point my bladder, half from all the coffee I drank and half out of fear (Actually HEAVY on the Fear to be honest) was screaming for relief. I leaned against a large tree and was returning liquids to nature--when clear as day I heard someone directly above me clear his throat! Deer hunters are that way when you stop and piss on their bait pile! With my waders at half- mast, I did the cowboy backpedal in horror, pulled everything in or up in very short order and managed a 'Sorry' in a cracking voice as I continued down the trail at a much higher rate of speed!

Things turned out much better that day, however, since then, I just read waterfowl articles or books the night before solo hunting! 

Other than that, my only close call with anything mildly predatory was a skunk who stated running toward me when he saw me jogging his way.


----------



## topgun47 (Jan 17, 2014)

Swamp Boss said:


> Well, since Gamechanger called in his own coordinates, I also have to confess to he horror movie, dark woods Willies. Several years ago, the wife and I watched horror movies all Halloween night. In the morning I had a plan to go duck-hunting, alone for the first time. I pulled up to the 3/4 mile trail that led to Saginaw Bay at 0- dark thirty and when my car dome light faded it was just me, my decoys and shotgun alone in the blackness. as soon as I entered the woods, there was seemingly scurrying creatures everywhere. In my mind they were surely some of the monsters from the movies the night before! About the half way point my bladder, half from all the coffee I drank and half out of fear (Actually HEAVY on the Fear to be honest) was screaming for relief. I leaned against a large tree and was returning liquids to nature--when clear as day I heard someone directly above me clear his throat! Deer hunters are that way when you stop and piss on their bait pile! With my waders at half- mast, I did the cowboy backpedal in horror, pulled everything in or up in very short order and managed a 'Sorry' in a cracking voice as I continued down the trail at a much higher rate of speed!
> 
> Things turned out much better that day, however, since then, I just read waterfowl articles or books the night before solo hunting!
> 
> Other than that, my only close call with anything mildly predatory was a skunk who stated running toward me when he saw me jogging his way.


That's funny....

I hate to go off topic, but your story reminded me of a funny incident I had one year while bow-hunting from a tree-stand. It was on over 700 acres of woods with a lake, trails, the whole nine yards. Well the property had been owned by a private hunt club until the DNR purchased it. The first year they allowed public hunting, I scouted the property and found the largest deer scrape I had ever seen before, or ever since. This scrape was at least 8 to 10 feet in diameter easy. Had the over-hanging branches that showed signs of nibbling, and the trees nearby were loaded with fresh rubs. I set up my tree-stand about 25 to 30 yards from the scrape.

My first afternoon in the stand, the sun is starting to go down and the woods got totally silent. Then I hear some movement off to my right. I quietly got everything ready and got into a position for a possible shot. Well when the noise got louder and closer, I realized it was three bow hunters walking in and looking for a spot to hunt. All three stopped directly in the center of that scrape to talk. One "hunter" says to the other two "hunters": "Well guys, I don't see any deer sign around here, let's go that ways abit". It was too much to handle and I laughed loud enough for them to realize I was up there. They sheepishly apologized, and moved on to a "better" hunting spot.......

BTW, after things settled down, I dropped a beautiful symmetrical 8 point right at the spot where there weren't any deer signs ......


----------



## grapestomper (Jan 9, 2012)

I was treed by two dogs while steelhead fishing. 
No gun that day. Carried one ever since.


----------



## topgun47 (Jan 17, 2014)

grapestomper said:


> I was treed by two dogs while steelhead fishing.
> No gun that day. Carried one ever since.


I was "threatened by a very large, tooth- showing, drooling unleashed dog while off-roading on my motorcycle one day. I had to stop, get off the bike and keep my bike between me and the vicious, snarling dog to avoid being bitten. The dog's owner didn't seem to think it was that much of a big deal. Probably because he wasn't in any danger.

Even though I have a license to carry, and had my SA 40S&W on my hip, I chose not to shoot this idiot's dog that afternoon. I figured it was the owner's fault more than the dogs fault.

I was at the pet shop the next day though to buy pepper spray for these sorts of confrontations.

Even though I'm a hunter, I truly love most animals. I'm just struggling to figure out who I should spray first, the mean dog, or the dog's idiot owner..


----------



## WAUB-MUKWA (Dec 13, 2003)

I put out a few dozen trail cams per section of places I set up wolf permit hunting/trapping. A few years ago I had been followed by two wolves on a couple occasions coming out at the one spot. I lost that laptops HD that had 10 years of trail camera pictures on it too. I only had this picture that was copied to my phone.

View attachment 224475


----------



## grapestomper (Jan 9, 2012)

topgun47 said:


> I was "threatened by a very large, tooth- showing, drooling unleashed dog while off-roading on my motorcycle one day. I had to stop, get off the bike and keep my bike between me and the vicious, snarling dog to avoid being bitten. The dog's owner didn't seem to think it was that much of a big deal. Probably because he wasn't in any danger.
> 
> Even though I have a license to carry, and had my SA 40S&W on my hip, I chose not to shoot this idiot's dog that afternoon. I figured it was the owner's fault more than the dogs fault.
> 
> ...


I wouldn't have shot the dogs, I sure would have made some noise though and watched them run.


----------



## huntmichigan (Nov 18, 2005)

WAUB-MUKWA said:


> I put out a few dozen trail cams per section of places I set up wolf permit hunting/trapping. A few years ago I had been followed by two wolves on a couple occasions coming out at the one spot. I lost that laptops HD that had 10 years of trail camera pictures on it too. I only had this picture that was copied to my phone.
> 
> View attachment 224475


There something following you in this pic if so i can see it?


----------

