norseman Posted September 28, 2012 Share Posted September 28, 2012 How does one get over this fear? I'm not so much frightened by the thought of BF walking around, but rather the unkown in the dark, and the area. It's known to be haunted. Many suicides and deaths have happened in the area. How do I get over this fear of camping alone by the river? I'm not scared of much, but I've been scared before hearing a bipedal run as I was fishing at 3am. I guess I just have to face my fear? P.S. No bears here - Just mountain lions :/ When I was a boy I would go play "mountain man" for days on end in the Selkirk mountains of my home. A knife and a army blanket where my only companion.......unless I could get a buddy to come along. The human mind is a wonderful thing.......when it cannot see it tends to fill in the blanks for you. The trick is? What does it fill in with? For instance I would lay under my blanket at night and hear twigs snapping in the woods around me. Obviously because I could not see anything my mind would fill in the void with a very large grizzly bear that was coming to eat me. More often than not? It was a deer....... I began controlling my fear by actively filling the void with the most plausible explanation.....and imagined a peaceful doe munching on clover as opposed to the griz (that do reside in the selkirks btw). I disagree that fear is a good thing......it makes us make rash decisions that usually make the situation MUCH WORSE. My daughter is deathly afraid of bees, wasps, etc. I'm afraid that she is going to have one buzzing around her someday and she is going to blindly thrash around and run right out onto a busy street or something. You simply must eat the pie one piece at a time........you can only control what is in your power to control. And in the wilderness with very few "tools", one had better learn to master the most important tool, their own brain. If that grizzly had materialized when I was a boy? Of course I would feel fear.......but why feel fear over an over active imagination? The best course of action with mother nature is a healthy respect for her......and the boy scout motto "be prepared". And simply deal with each situation as it presents itself IF it's outside of your control. Can you control where you store your food? Sure. (not in the bottom of your sleeping bag......but in a tree 50 yards away) Can you look for obvious bear or cougar sign before you choose a location to camp? Sure. Can you control which way a bear walks in the woods? No........you get my drift. Also a important rule of thumb is that if your attacked at night by a predator in your camp site? You fight like heck. They are in your camp site......they are invading your space and they know EXACTLY what you are.......and obviously have no fear. This is a predatory style of attack........not protecting young or defending territory or food. You ARE Food!! So fight for all your worth. Some people safeguard themselves with pepper spray or a firearm while in the back country.......I generally pack both. And when you go to bed make sure your pepper spray is close at hand and not at the bottom of your pack. This isn't paranoia, it's being prepared JUST IN CASE that one in a million encounter happens. But don't let the fear of the dark ruin your outdoor experience.......that would be tragic. I don't care who you are.......when it's your time it's your time! Be bold and live your life to the fullest and met it head on! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MrMudder Posted September 28, 2012 Share Posted September 28, 2012 I disagree that fear is a good thing...... the Boy Scout motto "be prepared"... Fear is simply paranoia in my book. Paranoia is a survival mechanism. The ignorant non-paranoid die sooner. Fear and paranoia is a good thing, when done right. I was a Webelos Scout short of Eagle. I know all this. Food stays in my tent since there are ZERO bears here. Large can bear spray and double edged pointed machete (sword) are always at my side. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest BastetsCat Posted September 28, 2012 Share Posted September 28, 2012 I don't agree with Guns; unless you know how to use one. If you are interested in or feel you need to carry a gun then familiarize yourself with it. Understand that the bullets travel and know what you are shooting at. Be gun safe; Because guns do not kill people the person pulling the trigger kills people. Double that with a freaked out scared to death out of your mind fear scenario and you could be shooting at people; or like in the case of the foggy trail...someones dog. Fear is the mind killer. I love that statement. From the movie and the books DUNE. Never let fear turn to panic. Panic is a straight shot to harming yourself. We all have a brain use it and think. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MrMudder Posted September 28, 2012 Share Posted September 28, 2012 (edited) ... My doberman works too for an alert system. That dude can spot a squirrel a mile away, I [almost] swear Well, it's 2:20am here. Time to stop surfing the net on phone and time for some knocking wood and rocks and keeping more of an eye out. Nothing much so far except 2 bucks and their wives and kids. And a fishing boat going down the river. I'll behead the first raccoon or opossum that attempts to sneak on me though Later... Edited September 28, 2012 by MrMudder Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Strick Posted September 28, 2012 Share Posted September 28, 2012 Take lotsa pics and have a great time!!! I do almost all my camping alone and kinda remote as well, the more you do it the easier it gets and the sense of accomplishment is very rewarding, you will have a blast! I think this is very important. I would hate to think we are all running around on this forum reinforcing each other's fear of the dark. Wild camping and long distance hiking, often alone, was the route by which I got in to this subject and I would hate to think my enjoyment of the outdoors was compromised by my knowledge of Bigfoot. I have already noticed the fear creeping in a little bit and that bothers me. It's ok, I have it under control and I still go out in the woods alone all over the world. Even if Bigfoot exists - and I have my doubts on that one - the danger it poses is very remote. I haven't seen the figures, but I imagine way more people are gored in the woods by deer every year than even the wildest estimates of Bigfoot predation would have you believe: and yet we don't refuse to out of the car for fear of deer attack. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest BastetsCat Posted September 28, 2012 Share Posted September 28, 2012 I think this is very important. I would hate to think we are all running around on this forum reinforcing each other's fear of the dark. Wild camping and long distance hiking, often alone, was the route by which I got in to this subject and I would hate to think my enjoyment of the outdoors was compromised by my knowledge of Bigfoot. I have already noticed the fear creeping in a little bit and that bothers me. It's ok, I have it under control and I still go out in the woods alone all over the world. Even if Bigfoot exists - and I have my doubts on that one - the danger it poses is very remote. I haven't seen the figures, but I imagine way more people are gored in the woods by deer every year than even the wildest estimates of Bigfoot predation would have you believe: and yet we don't refuse to out of the car for fear of deer attack. Great point. There are so many things that can cause harm to a person. Knowledge is key to being safe and self reliant. I would bet that so many more die of exposure than deer. Know what you are doing file a plan and stick to it. Be prepared and all of that stuff. Bottom line is that not everyone knows how to be out in the woods and be safe. If you fall into that catagory...learn before you go. Know your weapons too; the best of which is your own mind; so that they can work for you instead of against you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
norseman Posted September 29, 2012 Share Posted September 29, 2012 Fear is simply paranoia in my book. Paranoia is a survival mechanism. The ignorant non-paranoid die sooner. Fear and paranoia is a good thing, when done right. I was a Webelos Scout short of Eagle. I know all this. Food stays in my tent since there are ZERO bears here. Large can bear spray and double edged pointed machete (sword) are always at my side. I think if you talk around either emergency services people or prior military? Cooler heads will always prevail. It's the paranoid who die sooner............. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobZenor Posted September 29, 2012 Share Posted September 29, 2012 I like being prepared because I think that fear is dangerous especially in the presence of predators. Even dogs are much less likely to attack if you aren't afraid. I believe that they can tell by how you act and it would be very difficult to hide fear. I am much less likely to hurt something if I am not afraid not to mention it makes me safer as well. Me not hurting something is the main reason I take the 357 with me in the deep woods as crazy as that might sound to some people. It would have to be a grave threat before I would actually shoot something and it normally makes me very calm and reasoned. There are times like when I know an area is crowded with mountain lions that I couldn't help but be afraid at night. I saw many of their prints at Whiting Ranch so I knew they were there. I would never carry a gun there so visiting it at night is not an option. I avoid those places at night. There is nothing I could do about the fear at Bluff Creek because I believe it was because of what I have always thought was a sasquatch that walked up on my brother an me. I just try to ignore the fear in that case and considered it a calculated risk. It was just necessary suffering that I was willing to endure it to be there. I figured that the actual risk of being attacked by a sasquatch was very small but that rationalization didn't always make the nights there any more pleasant. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted September 29, 2012 Share Posted September 29, 2012 (edited) Bob, when i'm out alone at night (or in the daytime) I carry my .357 for the same reason (and a couple other reasons). Not crazy at all, if the concealed weapon lowers your heart rate and blood pressure, and makes you calm and more confident. This alone, might make a difference in a situation with a dangerous animal, and be able to avoid a situation. Not that weapon itself, could avoid an attack. In the dangerous parts of a city or bar rooms(with humans), I think it Is crazy, and might have the opposite effect (over confidence or false assurance), which i don't think is a good thing Just my 2 cents. Edited September 29, 2012 by imonacan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Cervelo Posted September 29, 2012 Share Posted September 29, 2012 I always open carry in NPs, just makes it a little hard to strike up a conversation LOL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bipedalist Posted September 29, 2012 BFF Patron Share Posted September 29, 2012 I think if you talk around either emergency services people or prior military? Cooler heads will always prevail. It's the paranoid who die sooner............. Word. And.... FYI: Life Scout is a notch below Eagle; Webelos is a notch below Tenderfoot (or maybe now Second Class or so it used to be). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest wudewasa Posted September 29, 2012 Share Posted September 29, 2012 I always open carry in NPs, just makes it a little hard to strike up a conversation LOL Not for me. It simply lets me know who I'm dealing with. Honesty is to be respected, even if the perspective is in disagreement. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MrMudder Posted September 29, 2012 Share Posted September 29, 2012 (edited) I think if you talk around either emergency services people or prior military? Cooler heads will always prevail. It's the paranoid who die sooner............. Again, I partly disagree. Paranoia is an alert system to me. Yes, if one isn't cool headed, they will not survive. Let's say one isn't "paranoid" and is la-la-la-ing in wolf country (bad example) by themselves. They're going to die. But if one is "paranoid" and alert with their surroundings, and takes the precautions nessecary, they will prevail more over the non-paranoid. Police officers and military personnel have a sense of paranoia that makes them more elite than the average Joe, not including their experience. Paranoia is a good thing, when done right. I think I have a different definition of paranoia than most people. Update: Just got home a bit ago to grab a couple things and some ice. Nothing much has happened in that area. Although I did hear a large branch snap across the river last night during a time I heard something shuffling around. Never heard that before. Kinda got my willies going. I picked up the LED spotlight, and looked over there for a good 5 minutes, and didn't spot anything. I alse have a sensation of being watched, but that could just be me in a new area. I've done some tree knocking and rock knocking and whistling (with and without whistle) and no responses. Also did some owl hooting. Tonight and tomorrow night, I'll just remain quiet and see what happens, although I do always use my whistle whenever I re-enter my campsite. Edited September 29, 2012 by MrMudder Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Cervelo Posted September 29, 2012 Share Posted September 29, 2012 Not trying to start anything but ya might want to consider..... http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paranoia Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
norseman Posted September 30, 2012 Share Posted September 30, 2012 I think you and I are using the term differently.........to me someone who is paranoid is someone who has either lost control or on the verge of losing control because of FEAR. Being alert and cautious in the woods? Is a healthy RESPECT for mother nature, fear doesn't play into it IMHO......... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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