Close Encounters Of The Third Kind

[bado1]

Scorpions almost every trip here in AZ. I haven't been stung by one ....they are just part of detecting here. Rattlesnakes are common as well but my detecting buddies and I haven't had any real close calls while detecting. I believe the reason is because while detecting you are moving slow and making lots of noise (coil scraping the ground) which alerts the snake that potential danger is near and they slither off. We've had much more scary encounters with Rattlers while hunting quail or deer because you are moving faster increasing the odds for a surprise encounter. As for lions, we have a large population here in AZ. They stay away from people. In fact, there is only one recorded unprovoked lion attack in the state's history! I've hunted lions or been on other guys lion hunts numerous times. Very tough hunts usually requiring the use of dogs to be successful. Seeing a lion in the wild is a rare privilege. I've talked to guys that claim that they have had close encounters with lions while detecting....I call BS everytime. Anybody that thinks carrying a side arm as lion protection is just being, to put it mildly, silly. For one the odds of it happening are close to nil and even if a lion did attack you you wouldn't have time to draw your weapon. Side arms are for the two legged predators. Having an accident on a quad or side by side poses a bigger danger than any of the creatures mentioned while detecting.

[WesD]

 I was hiking to a patch in Norcal when a "yellow dog" ran across the trail a short ways in front of me. I thought that's weird, a lost dog out here in the forest, but then my dog theory quickly changed as a big cat returned to the trail for a better look at me, I suppose.

I remember he was big and his tail was twitching about..  We stared eyes for about 10 seconds and then I raised my pick, let out a yell, and off he went, stealthy as a cat.  I never heard him run. Nothing like a bear crashing through the woods.  I can imagine if one were to attach, you probably wouldnt hear it coming, especially with headphones on.

 

Also had a small scorpion bite when I was brushing away dead oak leaves with my hand. Felt like a bee sting and pain was gone in 15 min. 

[bado1]

Very cool, Wes. Most people never get to see a lion....much less up close.

My wife and brother have both been stung by a scorpion. It's just weird that I haven't as much as I am on their turf. I have been bit by a diamondback on the right hand which put me in ICU for a few days....I was in my own back yard no less!

[Luis]

In the north of Spain we have a plague of velutina or Asian wasp, a single sting can kill a person, luckily I live in the South and it seems that it does not like the heat very much

[kac]

That scorpion is pretty cute....

[GotAU?]

One night at work I had to scare off a mtn lion that I could see in my headlamp. It was hunkered down under a bush on the only trail back to my truck, so I grunted and waved a big branch while stomp-walking towards it.  I thought it was a smaller one at first, but it jumped to the side clearing the tall bushes and ran off without making a single sound. That was fun.

I've seen bears too, but only their butts as they ran off.

[geof_junk]

I will not say what I and other Aussy have put up with in Aust. but if you are worried about that list DO NOT COME TO AUST and steal our GOLD? ☠️?

[Skookum]

Somehow, I’ve managed to live most of my life in AZ and never have been stung by a scorpion. I’ll be happy to keep it that way. 

One night while prospecting, not detecting, we woke to the strangest sound of an animal calling just feet away outside of our tent. It kept calling until another arrived up and it’s call turned into a soft “meow”. I thought what the heck is a kitten doing out here? It wasn’t until we got back home and I researched all internet clips of mountain lions did I find one that was exactly like that call. Primal and riveting in the dark. Like this: 

https://youtu.be/fMj32nwiVK4

https://youtube.com/shorts/hUuHBZkNTyc

[Sheppo]

3 hours ago, geof_junk said:

I will not say what I and other Aussy have put up with in Aust. but if you are worried about that list DO NOT COME TO AUST and steal our GOLD? ☠️?

I’m yet to see anything scary here in QLD, except for big mother paper wasps that were about as big as my thumb. I’ve heard some pretty out there stories though, some that would properly make the hairs stand up on the back of your neck.