Humans Can Fly!!

sageadvice · Jul 30, 2011

Back 25 years or so, i killed a big Blacktail buck in some roadless country about 4-5 miles back in from our Ranch House. There was nothing to do but gut the buck, make a backpack out of him, and head on out. I was working my way down a steep rimrock stretch when i stepped right dead on a big ol rattlesnake. I mean i stepped right on the middle of him squared up.

I instinctively jumped up and out before i gave it a thought, i flew! Not only that, lucky for me, i had a decent landing a good ways down the hill, buck still on my back and all. Could'a been a hella wreck that one could'a been!

Have you ever flown?

Joey

bucklover · Jul 30, 2011

Yep, when I was a teenager, we were out spotlighting rabbits (legal then). My friends truck was quite loud. I jumped out to shoot and as I was shooting I kept hearing a buzzing sound, and then I felt something under my foot. You're absolutely right! Before I knew it, I had flown backward clear through the cab of the truck, and was practically sitting in my friend's lap. I must have been standing on or near his head because he didn't nail me. Needless to say, he never had the chance to bother anybody else.

TOPGUN · Jul 30, 2011

I've never flown, but that's happened to me a couple times down in the Texas brush country and I think I broke the world long jump record both times, LOL!

Livetahunt · Jul 30, 2011

At my age,i just ##### my pants.

1911 · Jul 30, 2011

I was out moving through some really big rocks a few years back. Jumping from one to another, most the size of a small sedan. On one particular jump I landed square in the middle of a rattlers tanning bed. Quick as I got there he spun around and coiled up. I swear I defied the laws of physics, moving vertical ten feet, then another ten horizontal to the adjacent rock. No idea how I did not get bit that day. Funny what a quick shot of adrenaline can make you do.

BRUIN4L · Jul 30, 2011

I too found out I could fly! The the source of my vertical abilities did not rattle. This inspiration was black with 2 white stripes down his back. Coming up from a creek at dusk after dove hunting I almost walked right into him. I was trying to figure out what that movement was right in front of me when I finally figured out it was a skunk hopping up & down. Needless to say I flew!

sageadvice · Jul 30, 2011

LAST EDITED ON Jul-30-11 AT 08:07PM (MST)[p]B, That's pretty good! lol

In fact, all good ones guys, Thanks!

Joey

marley · Jul 30, 2011

Last year during an archery elk hunt I had a bull bugling down in the bottom of a hollow. I started my stalk and I could tell he was really close but still couldn't see him in the black timber. I was walking as slowly as I could and as quietly as I could. I had a big log laying in the game trail ahead of me that was about crotch high and I had to be slow and quiet. I stretched my leg over the log and the second my foot hit the ground on the other side a friggin' snowshoe hair came bolting out from under my crotch. I FLEW!! And the landing was even worse because if you remember from earlier in this story that log was about crotch high. I ended up on the other side of the log gripping my unmentionables in agony.

P.S. the elk heard all of this.

justr_86 · Jul 30, 2011

I didnt fly, I fell.

2 winters ago at work there was a pretty good covey (I think you call a bunch of chuckars a covey?) before they all winterkilled. I was working and went walking over to the meterhouse to check on production and was reaching for the door handle and 3 chuckars flew up out of the snowdrift in front of the meterhouse. One taking my hard hat off as it went by.... I fell down. Immediately getting up and looking around to see if anyone was watching... My coworker was rolling around in the snow laughing...

here's my skunk story.
JACO another friend named Travis and I were walking back to my house after walking to a pond to fish. we walked through a row of russian olive trees and in the middle of the trail stood a skunk, spraying JACO's foot. Well Travis being the bright young fellow at a ripe 10 years of age picked up a big cobble rock and tried to kill the skunk.. He did but it cost him.... He walked home about 20 feet behind JACO and I because we wouldnt let him get any closer...

Snake.
I was following my boss in to a production unit and in the Pesco walkthrough's theres a 2 inch pipe above your head as you walk in. A blowsnake had made its way up there somehow and hissed at my boss as he walked through the door. His knee jerk reaction was to throw his head the opposite way into the door jamp of the unit, giving himself a HUGE gooseegg and making me fall over backwards laughing...

TOPGUN · Jul 30, 2011

OUCH!!!

swbuckmaster · Jul 30, 2011

Walking through thick grass. Stepped on a cats belly. It did a sit up and bit me and tried to climb my leg. I didn't know what the he'll it was. I moved so fast I through my back out.

eelgrass · Jul 31, 2011

I'm usually pretty careful out in the brush. I try to cover all the bases.

One that really got me happened right here at home. It was a cold rainy day and I went out to the wood shed to bring in some firewood. The wood shed is out behind my garage. I turned the corner of the garage like I've done a thousand times and there is a Bobcat not two feet from me. It surprised him as much as it did me. It immediatly humped up and hissed, and we both jumped about 3'! It took off so fast it was just a blur. I thought I was nailed for sure!

http://www.monstermuleys.info/photos/user_photos/4455_oops.jpeg

msy · Jul 31, 2011

When we were kids we always loved to mess with my grandpa's cattle . My cousins had a doberman that loved chasing the calves around. So when we wanted a little fun we would walk out to the middle of the field with the dog, then let it go. It would chase the calf, the momma would chase it, and it would come back to us, then the momma cow would chase us. Who ever was the last to take off running was the winner. Usually though that also meant that you were the one who the cow followed and tried to kill. When you are about to be run down by an angry cow you can clear those fences without even touching them. I dont think i could jump as high as an adult as I did as a kid with those cows chasing us.

one_dryboot · Jul 31, 2011

We use to get a kick out of catching live rattlesnakes, then freezing them in a coiled, striking position. Some of the best pranks were when we set it in someones vehicle on the floorboard or in the back of a truck under something they were going to pick up. We also tried sewing the mouth closed to do the same but that was a little too dangerous.

overton · Jul 31, 2011

I once flew 18 feet. The flight was okay but the landing got me a helicopter ride and 5 days in the hospital.

BLooDTRaCKeR · Jul 31, 2011

Never flew, just froze. Years ago when I was 10 foot tall and bullet proof, I set out early before sun up to get to my archery spot. As I hiked, I heard the distinctive sound of a rattler by my feet. It was dark and I had no head lamp. The rattler was close and I could not pin point his exact location. I froze and did not move for fear of moving into his striking territory. The rattler and I stood our ground for ten to fifteen minutes while he rattled at me until I could see him. I was 2 feet from him! I got out of his way, politely picked up a fifty pound rock and burried him on the trail.

huntindad4 · Aug 1, 2011

A friend of mine killed a rattler and cut the head off and then tied it to his boot lace, he then starts jumping around screaming and yelling to "trick" his dad.

This turned out to be a dangerous affair because his dad went John Wayne and was trying to aim his pistol at the snake to shoot it off! We stopped him but it was close.

Bill

Look out Forkie, FTW is watching us!

AZStickman · Aug 1, 2011

Eel.... I know that's not a pic of you..... Depends don't leak like that...... Terry

Brandon82 · Aug 1, 2011

Ive flown a few times!

My first flight was about 10 years old looking for sheds with the old man. Him being the old man meant I was always hiking in front. As i was young my eyes wandered everywhere but where I was stepping. I knew what a rattle snake was and so was at least aware of what I was hearing. i came up over a ledge and literally about a foot in front of my face a giant rattler. I cannot recall how far i jumped but i went well past my father who was about 10ft behind me at the time. I was screaming in fear thinking it was going to chase us (I was young). after the initial fear left my dad and i spent the next 10 minutes yelling at it and throwing rocks until it coiled back up in a cave.

2 other times I can be so proud of were in adult hood while chukar hunting. No big story there besides us being a bunch of scared women when we hear those things.

Anyone ever ate one?

eelgrass · Aug 1, 2011

Terry, that pic was taken some years back.

Eel

AZStickman · Aug 2, 2011

LAST EDITED ON Aug-02-11 AT 04:09PM (MST)[p]I had lived in AZ for around 10 years before I had my first rattlesnake encounter. I was up in the AZ rim country scouting a couple of weeks before the Elk opener. I had worked my way down into the bottom of a canyon that had some real good Elk trails leading in and out from a tank / feeding area on one side of the canyon to a bedding area on the other. I had stopped in the bottom for a few minutes and was taking it all in when in the back of my mind a noise started to register and I thought "man that's a loud cicada". I looked down and 3 feet away was a black colored rattle snake. I don't remember reacting but the next thing I know I was 10 feet away. I suspect I had just learned the secret to Chris Angels levitation trick. The thing that spooked me the most was how the last thing on my mind in Elk country was rattlers. I am now prepared and thinking snakes no matter where in AZ I am.

One other occurence happened on a January Javie / Deer hunt. I had taken off work at noon on a Friday for an opening weekend hunt. I spotted javies right off the bat and an hour or so later my 1/2 mile stalk was busted by a wind swirl. I continued up to the top of the ridge I had stalked the javies on and started glassing. about 10 minutes later and about a half hour before shooting light would fade, I spotted two nice 4x4 muleys at the bottom of the ridge and the stalk was on.
This was one steep slope and as anyone who has hunted the AZ desert can tell you the crushed granite that coats the hillsides can be like walking on marbles. I was slowly taking one step at a time and made the mistake of looking at the deer while I stepped and not where I was placing my foot and the next thing I know my feet are out from under me and I am sliding dow the hill feet first on my butt. My instinct was to dig my heels in to brake my descent but it worked a little too well and the next thing I know I am airborn flying down the hill head first. I remember thinking "this is really gonna hurt". I landed and tried to absorb the shock with my hands and arms but gravity and the 20# pack I was wearing buckled them and I hit my head and was out like a light. I don't know how long I had lay there but when I woke up it was dark and I had no idea where I was or how to get out. I knew I had been hunting and had taken a tumble and that was about it. At that point I felt that panicky feeling start to well up and I got enough control to tell myself to make a fire. Gathering small sticks and kindling took my mind off my situation and as I got the fire going and calmed down my memory and bearings started coming back. As I sat there I finally saw headlights heading down the main road about a mile out. I now knew where I was and made it out to my truck without further incident and had a great hunt the rest of the weekend. I solo hunt a lot and never told my wife what really happened on that trip......... Terry

sageadvice · Aug 2, 2011

LAST EDITED ON Aug-02-11 AT 04:51PM (MST)[p]Really good stories guys, i'm impressed! Thank You!

My hunting partner told me of a time that he flew. He was wild pig hunting here in Cali on a private ranch that he had access to. From far up the canyon, he spotted a group of hogs down lower on a washed out flat. He circled around and came up closer, well above them on this straight off eroded hillside. He said that he was right at the edge proned out pointing down at the hogs, just about to squeeze one off when all the ground underneath him just fell off the edge in one big chunk. He remembers thinking, "oh $hit" and hitting some tree branches, stuff on the way down but that's about all. He figured it about a sixty-eighty foot flight, several broken bones, bruises, and knots on his head. He healed up ok in time but screwed up missing out on getting a pig.

Joey

kawboy · Aug 2, 2011

I have flown a few times,
the worst one was when I attempted to snowboard though. I was trying to keep up with my buddy, who was much faster and better than me. Here is a picture of the result.

I'll tell you who it was . . . it was that D@MN Sasquatch!

NVhunter66 · Aug 14, 2011

Great stories guys! I'm 6'2 240lbs and didn't think that I could jump so high and far. Last October we were trailing a deer that our friend had wounded the day before and while I walking down a rocky hillside I just happened to look down at my feet and noticed a Tarantuala the size of my fist about 3in from my foot. Boy I never thought I could move that quick!

"Elk dont know how many feet a horse had" - Bear Claw