Sir, it is neither hygenic nor legal to defecate there...

[karma_gypsy]

Up here in Washington State, there are quite a few national parks and plenty of camping areas (between here and Oregon). So I spent a lot of summers camping (sorry, no electricity here! and having access to flush toilets was a dream, have you ever gone in a campground pit-toilet? ugh). Anyway, I am completely speechless on how these people can get close to wild animals, especially bears! (do they not notice all the SIGNS around them . . . apparently not . . .)

I remember my husband and I went hiking up near a place called Sheep Lake (I believe). It was a really rural area (like 20 miles down a lonely dirt road to get a campground . . .in the middle of nowhere). Anyways, I was scared sh*tless of the bears and wildcats (while we were on our hike). It being so rural, and the hike being so lengthy, I didn't have a doubt in my mind that we would cross a bear or cat (we did all precautions, hanging up our food and what-not). On our way back especially, I basically had to keep my mouth flapping and keep a conversation going (because we were stupid and didn't bring a whistle or air horn) because I sure as hell wasn't about ready to cross a bear!

[BookstoreEscapee]

Mysty - my college had a wild turkey (named Tom) that lived on campus. He hung out down by the lake a lot but his favorite spot was in a tree in front of the library. There was always a huge pile under it. He had a girlfriend too (Jenny) but she was hit by a car the year before I started there. (People think turkeys can't fly cuz the ones we eat are bred to have such huge breasts that they really can't fly. Wild ones, however, will come after you if you antagonize 'em...and they are faster than you!)

I haven't done any hardcore camping, but we had a pop-up camper when I was a kid, and we went to campgrounds with water/electric hookups. But at least we didn't bring the TV...we brought our bikes and rode around and went swimming and stuff. When I was 9 my parents were redoing the kitchen so we went to a campground right in my town so my dad could go home during the day and work and I could go to band camp.

Slightly OT but funny: My parents went camping once when they first got married, and brought the collapsible canoe and went fishing. My dad caught a big one...my mom! Right in the head, through her hat. Ouch. So their camping trip ended with a tetanus shot.

[Der Cute]

For Pete's Bloody sakes..

these idiots should have been left to the birds/critters/bears and just not allowed to breed.

I'm from Alaska.

We have bears.
Eagles
Fish
Moose
Caribou
Wild Dall Sheep
Wild Goats
Porcupines
Wolves
Beavers
Ravens
and other things that go *bump* in the night.

Ya catch a fish? Clean it, wash guts in the stream you got it in...and put in a bag/cooler and keep it AWAY from you!!!!

Ya see a bear? Wave! Holler! Make noise! And leave!
Most the time you see a bear you've interrupted their dinner. And most people HATE the interruptions....bears are worse.
Carry a gun, in bear country. Know how to use it. Understand you'll not be in trouble if Mr. Bear comes charging at you and you shoot him, even out of season . Just report it.

Ya eat stuff? Ya cook?
Do it away from Sleeping Area!
And pack OUT your sh!t!!!!!!!

As a kid, I helped fish on the Russian /Kenai river where they join. This was combat fishing, shoulder to shoulder, man to man, hipboots and beers galore.
Many a facial snag and finger cuts.....

But I helped the F&W officer pick up trash on the banks. We filled up 3 LARGE black garbage bags in 10 minutes. Fishing line, open packages from lures, broken rods, reels, beer / soda/ food things....saw people poop(didn't touch)....WE CLEANED YOUR NASTY MESS YOU SOBS!

My pet peeve is fishing line. Birds get caught in it, it clogs drains, it is a mess. Oh, and 6-pack holder-plastic. Hate those too.

Cutenoob

[friendofjimmyk]

Baby Dalhmer
We had a kid stone a duckling to death. An ENDANGERED duckling. In front of several traumatized little girls. WE caught the kid, told his dad. Dad was not pleased to say the least. And I had to explain to several very young girls that 'duckie' would not be okay. Damn.

That makes me weep for humanity.

[myswtghst]

One of my best camping moments I feel the need to share.

I went to Girl Scout camp when I was younger, and we stayed in either ancient buildings or platform tents with outhouses nearby. We were told no food, but being 13yo girls, we brought candy and Crystal Light powder and a few other things, but kept it sealed up in an airtight canteen. This was all well and good, until we spilled the powder on the floor. That night, I slept through a raccoon invasion in our tent--they opened our bags, dragged all of our jewelry outside, and ate all our flavored chapstick while I slept, and my poor tent-mate looked on in terror.

[CrazedClerk]

I HATE people who mess around with WILD animals! That'd be WILD, not PETS!

I always respect nature, I know not to mess with a bear or a wolf or whatever else might be out there.

[TwoScoopsSciath]

Okay, here is one of my BIG peeves...The animals are wild. DO NOT FEED THEM. The bears are not Winnie the Pooh. DO NOT TRY TO ATTRACT THEM. We had to kill FOUR aggressive bears at least this year, cause of damn tourists feeding them till they lost the fear of people and got aggressive. We had to shoot a wolf last year cause someone tried to feed it by hand. Trust me, in a choice between turkey coldcuts and you, YOU are tastier. Just because it looks like a dog, does NOT mean it acts like one.
Same for Moose. Just cause it looks like a horse, does not mean it is tame nor rideable. Moose are angry and ornery. ESPECIALLY in the mating season when you see them the most. Do not put your kid up there if you EVER want them back.

And please, PLEASE for the love of Sekhmet and all that is good in this world...DON'T smear your kid with honey, BBQ sauce or WHATEVER to get a cute pic of the bear licking them. IT WILL NOT BE GOOD YOU ASSHAT. (We see this every year)

Back when I first started coming to visit my fiance in Richmond, I heard about a lovely little place called Maymont. It started as a Southern Gilded Era museum, but grew to be a nature center and zoo. There were two bears there, much beloved by the public.

Some doofus mother decided to let her son take a closer look and hang him over the fence.

After the bears mauled him, the mother insisted the bears were rabid. So the lady in charge of public safety at the park ordered an autopsy. Meaning they killed two bears that never would have hurt anyone. It turned out the bears weren't rabid.

The public was livid.

We have two baby bears now and there's memorials all over the park for the bears. All this could have been avoided if the idiots hadn't been dangling their kids in the bear pen.

[Jack7957]

My parents took us to the Moose River Recreation Area located in the Adirondack Mountains every summer growing up. It's a primitave camping area, meaning dirt roads, tents, outhouses, your nearest neighbor could be 1/4 mile away, etc. Anyways, we were there one summer in the early 70's, driving down a road, and a bear comes out from the side of the road where a site is, and starts walking down the road away from us. My parents start filming, and slowly following the bear. As they pass the site, they look over and there are the cubs. What had happened was the people that were camping there, left their food in the tent, the bears came, and decided to eat, so they ripped open the side of the tent to get at the food. My parents got footage of some of their feeding, but the funniest part is one of the cubs on the picnic table playing with the Coleman Stove.

Back in 2001, I went camping with a group of friends, at an RV park, but we had tents. First night, I hear some commotion outside and think it's some teenagers getting into our coolers (we'd brought beer). Peek out and I see that familar sight of a black and white tail sticking out from a garbage bag by the picnic table. "Shit" I say. One guy says "what?" "There's a skunk in the garbage" I say. I grab one of my sneakers and chuck it over there, this was about 20 feet away, and just miss. Take another sneaker, and this time I hit the bag, and the skunk takes off thankfully, without releasing any scent. Immediately take the bag and go put it in the dumpster down the road from our site.

[Buglady]

and ate all our flavored chapstick while I slept, and my poor tent-mate looked on in terror.

That's why we have tent inspection at Girl Guide camp. That and the leaders go around the first night pretending to be wild animals; that scares them enough that they surrender all contraband at breakfast

[AFpheonix]

I remember my husband and I went hiking up near a place called Sheep Lake (I believe). It was a really rural area (like 20 miles down a lonely dirt road to get a campground . . .in the middle of nowhere).

Sheep Springs, perhaps?
Maybe not, that's in central OR. Beautiful place, though. We've taken our horses camping there before.

[Andara Bledin]

If it's remotely dog-like but it's not wearing a collar, it does not want you to pet it. It wants you to feed it. Your hand.

Classic!

We have a couple dogs that are part wolf, and they won't let anyone even play rough with my brother. It can be a little scary.

^-.-^