What is the oddest thing you have ever seen while camping?

[megandrudy]

Last night while camping at Lake Lousia State Park in Florida, we saw a Macaw on the top of a pine tree. Saw it again early this morning when walking the dog. Right on the top of another pine tree. Sun hit it just right and the colors were just beautiful! Oddest thing we have seen as of yet while camping!! What have you seen??

[Phoenix]

Back in the '80s, we saw a UFO at Lake Powell while boat camping. -- Or, rather, we didn't see it.

My wife, two teenage sons and I had pulled our boat up on a sandy beach in a side canyon; and we were sitting around a campfire, when a section of the sky blackened and blocked out the stars and sky, overhead. A chill came over us, while all of the night sounds (crickets, bugs, animals, etc.) stopped like a recording had been turned off. It felt like we were in a darkened anechoic chamber.

The black patched slowly passed over us, then drifted off over the canyon walls. We all paused in silence and disbelief, then stared at each other until someone murmured, "Did you see that?"

We don't talk about that much anymore -- Eerie...

My best guess is that the government was testing some kind of secret surveillance blimp or something like that. Or, maybe we're NOT alone!

[Airrogant]

Originally Posted by Phoenix

Back in the '80s, we saw a UFO at Lake Powell while boat camping. -- Or, rather, we didn't see it.

Phoenix you are really freaking me out. I think I saw your UFO too. Back in about the same time-frame my family also boat camped on Lake Powell. We beached the whale of a houseboat that we rented, and two of us took off in a rowboat down into one of the canyons. We must have rowed for a at least an hour when suddenly the sky went dark. When we looked up I saw what appeared to be some massive charcoal-colored military cargo plane moving slowly overhead. What made it even stranger was that it appeared to be moving too slowly for it to maintain flight. It also appeared to be skimming the ground just barely above the top of the canyons. Strangest of all, however, was that it was TOTALLY silent. I experienced the same sensation as you did, as all of the sounds around us went silent. We stared in awe for less than 20 seconds before the "mothership" disappeared behind the canyon walls.

I've only shared this with a few family members and the people on that boat. I hope it isn't a mistake to share it with all of you...

[Tincampers]

I saw Bigfoot once. He made a sound I never want to hear again!

[DanB]

I'm not sure this is going where the OP was heading!

While towing on the backroads of southern Georgia, something big ran across the road on it's hind legs in front of us. Both me and my wife looked at each other and looked at each other saying something like "What the *&(*& was that?"

I will never question anybody who makes extraordinary/unbelievable sighting claims again. Us humans may not know everything after all!

[dznf0g]

Perhaps not odd, but rare anyway. While wilderness canoeing in BWCA a few years back we watched a lightning storm pass and saw a lightning strike about a mile away across the lake. It wasn't long before we watched the birth of a forest natural fire. Pretty intense evening, waking up nearby campers to make sure they were aware.

[Phoenix]

OK, here's another one:

Back in the '90s, while returning to Phoenix via Four Corners, we were southbound on US-89, approaching Flagstaff, when we saw a meteorite strike the ground.

It was late at night; and we were coming out of the desert, on the flats, a couple of miles north of the long, steep, uphill grade to the volcanic summit north of Flagstaff. This stretch of highway is straight as an arrow; so driving late at night, we had an unobstructed view of the vehicle lights all the way up the mountain.

Suddenly, in the sky ahead, we saw a long, bright green tail trailing a glowing ball of light, streaking straight down toward the highway ahead like a spear stabbing into the earth. Then, WHACK! The meteorite struck the mountain a few yards to the left (east) of the roadway, exploding like Fourth of July fireworks, spewing glowing chunks of space rock and debris a hundred feet or more into the night sky.

Traffic was light, but there were a few cars and trucks that must have seen this event, too. If one was driving (not dozing off) and just watching the road ahead, it would have been hard to ignore this meteorite strike from directly overhead, onto the roadway. However, I called Lowell Observatory the next day; and there were no reports of a meteorite that landed about 12 miles north of downtown Flagstaff.

[RamblinManGa]

Hi from AZ. . . OK, Phoenix, that settles it, I'm NOT traveling with y'all. . . period ! Never seen a UFO or a meteor hit the ground ! And I like it that way !, regards, Craig

[megandrudy]

And to think we were excited to see a Macaw!!!!

[Fly at Night]

The morning parade of campers enroute to the shower.

[John&Vicki]

The Lake Powell stories are fascinating. The longer I live the more I believe that we're fuzzy on the specifics of what we don't know, but that what we don't know dwarfs what we do know. I'm an empiricist but the limits of my empiricism frustrate me.

I did have a parkeet land on my head during a Boy Scout campout one time in remote Texas, but I think I've figured that one out.

Poppy

[BoldAdventure]

Nudist. "Hey, I'm totally comfortable with my body, but I'm not comfortable with your overweight giggly 60 yr old nakedness. Please, put some clothes on for the love of god, oh god no no don't bend over.. noooooo"

Still haunts me.

[Kevin245]

We were at SpringStream several years ago drinking our morning coffee outside the trailer when all of a sudden we here this crashing sound from above then a thud a couple of yards away. An adult gray squirrel apparently lost his/her footing while scampering around in pines above and landed ungracefully next to us. I'm not sure who was more surprised. The squirrel rolled over on all fours looking stunned... Sat there a minute then scurried off back up the tree.

Me... I poured another cup of coffee.

[Tincampers]

Did he say...I meant to do that...?

[Kevin245]

Originally Posted by mrprez

Did he say...I meant to do that...?

No he didn't but I do seem to recall hearing a distant voice saying "Hey y'all watch this" just before he dropped in.


Sent from my iPhone using Airstream Forums

[Tincampers]

No...hold my beer...?

[Del Gurney]

A friend and I had a sudden urge to go camping in N. Virginia, by the time we got to my 'secret spot' it was late at night. A thunder and lightning storm arrived as we we're nearing the camp sight under a large tree by a creek.
The tree then exploded when hit by lightning and we hightailed it out of there screaming like girl scouts.
Spent a big chunk of my life at sea and one would think I'd of seen something or heard of contact of the third kind, guess extraterrestrails are land lubbers......or maybe those who have never returned to port to tell the tail.

[crispyboy]

Last week we camped one night at Mississinewa Lake near Peru, Indiana. There was a guy walking through the campground with a parrot on his arm. Have seen folks walk dogs but never parrots.

One the way home yesterday we saw a tire explode on a semi-trailer going in the opposite direction on a divided highway. There was fist
size debris that flew up and landed just behind the Airstream we were following and our pickup. I'm certain it would have put a hole in the windshield if we had been traveling 1 second closer to the trailer in front of us.

[m.hony]

The camp host at Jeff Busby along the Natchez Trace in Choctaw County MS had a couple of cats that followed him like dogs.
We saw a drunk man wreck a motorcycle and hide from the law all night in the woods back in March at the North Abutment campground at Grenada Lake. No matter how drunk someone is, they still understand the fact that he is being pursued...


Sent from my iPhone using Airstream Forums